IBC to Focus on 3D Advances

Is 3D the next big thing in video technology now that HD is becoming commonplace around the world? The annual IBC conference next month will attempt to answer this question, with a series of conferences and presentations, including the newest 3D movie to hit the big screen.

3D will be one of the main topics for Monday, Sept. 15. The theme, "New Dimensions for the Big Screen", will kick off at 9:30 a.m. in the RAI auditorium with Capturing and Creating Stereoscopic Content, which will include panelists Steve Schklair, founder and CEO of 3Ality Digital Systems, a Los Angeles-based post production facility whose sole focus is 3D live and post production. Also on the panel will be Kommer Kleijn, freelance director of photography and stereographer, IMAGO EDCF in Belgium; Todd Cogan with PACE USA; and Darwyn Peachey, supervising technical director for Pixar Animation Studios.

At 2:00 p.m. in the RAI Forum, the session Images of Tomorrow—Will the World Demand More Than HD? 3D will be among the topics discussed by a panel that includes Kelichi Kubota, director-general of NHK’s Science and Technical Research Laboratories in Japan, who will focus on the network’s development of Super Hi-Vision, which will be demo-ed at IBC. Other panelists include Andy Bower, head of broadcast research and innovation (acting), BBC Future Media & Technology; Alberto Morello, director, RAI Research and Innovation Centre in Italy; Wolfgang Graf, general manager TV Audio Online, IRT in Germany; Lieven Vermaele, director, technical department, EBU, Switzerland; and Kazuyoshi Shogen, director, broadcasting systems, NHK Science and Technical Research Laboratories in Japan.

In the session Unique to Cinema—But For How Long? at 4:00 p.m. in the RAI auditorium, panelists will discuss whether 3D technology could be successful in transitioning from the big screen to the screen in the living room. Panelists will include RealD President Joshua Greer; Keith Elliott, director, new business technology, DLP HDTV, Texas Instruments; Ken Blakeslee, chairman, WebMobility Ventures in the UK; Robert Kisor, vice president, engineering and technical services, Paramount Pictures & president of SMPTE, which has begun a 3D standardization process; and John Zubrzycki, principal research engineer, Research and Information for the BBC.

One session on Sunday night will also focus on 3D. Masterclass: A Production Language for 3D, in Room L of the RAI, will look at 3D basics, as well as 3D acquisition and post. The session will be presented by Phil Streather, 3D producer and consultant, Principal Large Format in the UK, Ralston Humble, Pablo Post Facilities in the UK and Celine Tricart, an independent filmmaker based in France.

IBC’s 3D coverage will conclude on Monday night, at 6:30 p.m. when Journey to the Center of the Earth—in 3D, the first live action, narrative motion picture to be shot in digital 3D will be shown to IBC audiences in the D-Cinema hall. The movie stars Brendan Fraser, Josh Hutcherson and Anita Briem and comes to IBC courtesy of Warner Bros. International, Walden Media and New Line Cinema. Doors open at 6:15.

Source: TV Technology