Desolation of Smaug trailer has arrived!

Posted on June 11, 2013 by Michael

I love a lot of things about this first trailer for The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug. The music is catchy and exciting, Legolas is back, Tauriel looks like she’ll be a great action heroine, and the whole thing is just beautifully shot.

But I’ve got mixed feelings about the reveal of Smaug’s head at the end. It’s good that they only showed his head and that it is obscured by shadow, but even that might have been a bit too much for me. At the same time though I think he looks fantastic (love how huge he is!) and the shot definitely got me amped.

There’s still a ton of Smaug still unrevealed: his voice and personality, the way he moves, the look of his body and wings, his fire breath and, perhaps the most important visual highlight: his jewel and coin-encrusted belly and the way light and the environment play off of that.

Peter Jackson and the cast are currently in the midst of shooting additional footage for Desolation of Smaug and the third installment, There and Back Again. I wonder how much of that new footage is intended for Desolation, and how much for Part 3?

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug releases in HFR 3D on December 13.

Poster for Desolation of Smaug & Teaser Trailer online Tuesday

Posted on June 9, 2013 by Michael

The first poster for The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug has been posted on The Hobbit’s official Twitter and Facebook accounts.

Also confirmed is that the new teaser trailer will be unveiled this Tuesday, June 11th, at 10am PT / 1pm ET.

I like the poster –it relays the darker tone of the 2nd movie while adding context to the title (we see part of the desolation here) while, of course, teasing the dragon.

Now I wonder what the trailer will show? All I want to see of Smaug himself is perhaps a reprise of that awesome eye from the end of the first film. But maybe Peter Jackson will give us an even cooler tease? In any event, with the impending first look at my most anticipated movie in years, plus all of the E3 hoopla, this coming week is going to be crazy fun.

Trailer for Desolation of Smaug Approved; Will Likely Release with Man of Steel

Posted on June 7, 2013 by Michael

The first trailer for The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug has just been approved by the the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC). The trailer is listed on the BBFC’s site as running 2 minutes and 1 second. It received a 12A rating.

TheOneRing.net spotted a story on the Lebanese Cinema Movie Guide claiming the exclusive news that the Desolation trailer will be attached to Man of Steel on June 14, that it will be released online at 10:00 am PDT on June 12, and that it will be 2 minutes 30 seconds. TheOneRing, who think the timing of the trailer certification is a “very strong (although still not absolutely, 100% conclusive) indication that the trailer will be attached to Man of Steel),” has their own source telling them that the trailer will debut on Youtube on June 12, but an exact time was not provided.

So which of the 2 claimed trailer running times is correct? And will it indeed debut online before the launch of Man of Steel? Stay tuned for the official word!

Either way, I hope they take the Jurassic Park approach to revealing Smaug – in other words, build hype by keeping his design / voice / personality as secret as possible until the movie comes out. Sure, maybe a claw eyeball, or scale can be shown to tease us, but I’d rather not see anything else until I’m viewing his scene with Bilbo in 48 fps 3D.

Tauriel (Evangeline Lilly) Pic from The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug

Posted on June 6, 2013 by Michael

Today brings the first high-quality image of the elf Tauriel from The Desolation of Smaug. The reaction to this picture so far has been mixed, with many internet fans pointing out that the colors look too saturated or that her hair is too red.

Keep in mind, however, that this image was obviously created for publicity purposes and will certainly not be in the movie. And it would look much different if it were in fact taken from a frame of the finished movie: the costume and set designers, hair / makeup people, and lighting designers are intentionally using bold, saturated colors throughout the Hobbit movies.

As a Reddit user expains, “due to the nature of the 3D cameras they are using that tend to desaturate and “eat color”, all colors have to be super saturated when filming. I’m not saying this is necessarily case here, but I wouldn’t be surprised if watching the movie her clothes come out more of a sage green and her hair is closer to light brown.”

The decision to super saturate color throughout the Hobbit triogy is explained in the below production diary video (jump ahead to the 6 minute 15 second mark)”

This figure packaging image shows a closer approximation of how Tauriel will look in the finished movie:

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug releases in the United States (and much of the world) on December 13.

NHK Shows Off Compact 8K Camera

Posted on June 6, 2013 by Michael

NHK has taken another step towards ultra-crisp 8K resolution, partnering with ASTRODESIGN to create a compact 8K camera head. Here are its basics specs:

8K CAMERA HEAD
AH-4800

[Image sensor] : 2.5inch 33million pixels single plate CMOS
(SENSOR Developed by NHK Engineering System,Inc.)
[Active resolution] : 7680×4320
[Lens mount] : PL mount
[Output] : 12-channel parallel optical-fiber
[Dimensions] : 125(W) x 125(H) x 150(D)mm
[Weight] : 2kg

NHK has created 8K sensors and displays for its prototype 8K ecosystem. Although the current ecosystem encodes/decodes 8K content at 60Hz, a 120Hz version, which would allow stereoscopic TV at 60 fps per eye, is under active development and is the target for their forthcoming Super Hi-Vision broadcast standard.

The prominence of 4K TV sets at CES 2013 indicate that the days of 1080P will soon be over. But 4K won’t be the standard for long, if it becomes a standard at all: NHK and others have been pushing for an 8K+ future for years, with many believing that 4K is merely a stopgap on the road to true “retina” levels of resolution.

I’m always happy to see the fidelity bar raised. Rapidly increasing display/sensor resolution, computing power and signal processing will soon enable graphics that surpass the limits of what the human eye can perceive. And the ultra-high-quality virtual and augmented reality that so many of us want will require this.

HFR and 4K to be discussed at “Dimension 3″ conferences

Posted on May 15, 2013 by Michael

High frame rates will be a major point of discussion at the upcoming Dimension 3 expo in Paris from June 18-21.

Dimension 3 founder Stephan Faudeux says, “4K technology is enjoying the same buzz that existed around 3D technology three years ago. There is a synergy between 3D and 4K technologies as well as HFR film-making.”

Here are the conferences relating to HFR or 4K:

HFR – a gimmick or a technological advance?
ROOM 2
Wednesday 19 June
From 11:30 to 12:30

Following Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit, new films are produced using HFR (high frame-rate), but this is a source of some controversy, and the debate is technical as much as esthetic. Objectively speaking, what are the advantages of HFR? Can this technology become widespread in theaters?

What cameras for what uses, tomorrow and in the future?
ROOM 1
Tuesday 18 June
From 10:00 to 11:00

In terms of innovation, digital cameras constantly improve their resolution, but other technological advances are planned in the short, medium and long term. What will tomorrow’s cameras be like? They will be able to meet new esthetic and technological requirements (HFR, high resolution, 3D), but also allow for more creativity and leeway during postproduction: HDR cameras, integral imaging.

There will also be a few sessions dedicated to 4K / Ultra HD:

4K – filming and workflow
ROOM 2
Tuesday 18 June
From 11:30 to 12:30

4K cameras have been in use for several months now, and early feedback can now be offered in terms of filming, as well as post-production. With the outstanding resolution of 4K and the generalization of digital processes, we can wonder whether film is still relevant as a filming media… still, producing beautiful images requires that one follow a number of criteria dealing with the consistency of 4K workflows.

Ultra HD, soon on a TV near you
ROOM 1
Tuesday 18 June
From 11:30 to 13:00

The progressive standardization of the HEVC codec will enable the broadcast of audio-visual contents in private homes, at a higher resolution than HD.
- What processes are involved in distributing, broadcasting and displaying these images?
- When will UHD displays become widespread enough to launch a new mass consumer market
An overview of the state of UHD, including the first broadcast tests and feedback from manufacturers

Immersion: what to choose between 4K, stereoscopic 3D and 3D audio?
ROOM 2
Tuesday 18 June
From 10:00 to 11:00

The increase in images’ resolution to 4K and beyond allows for the creation of new immersive spaces that can be enhanced by applying 3D technologies to video and audio. This talk will present technologies such as 3D mapping, large format projection, and 3D audio, destined to be used in museums, art installations, industrial applications or cinema theaters.

Check out the conference schedule page for a full list of conferences.

Attendees will also get the chance to experiment with HFR and 4K production and post:

“The Forum’s 2013 edition inaugurates the Big Shoot, a life-size filming set with a unique environment allowing visitors to test new generations of cameras, 3D, 4K, high frame rate filming, DSLR, etc., and view, assemble and analyze the images on a post-production workstation.”

X-Men: Days of Future Past being shot in 3D – but what about HFR / 48 fps?

Posted on May 7, 2013 by Michael

Bryan Singer just tweeted that X-Men: Days of Future Past is being shot in stereoscopic 3D and that he is using the Simul-Cam system that James Cameron developed for Avatar:

No mention yet of whether they are shooting in HFR – as you probably know, Singer praised the 48 fps of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey after seeing the premiere last year:

And Ian McKellen – who is reprising his role as Magneto in Days of Future Past – hinted to IGN that Singer might be making the film at 48 frames per second:

“I know [Bryan Singer]‘s a big fan of The Hobbit. He went to the opening with James Cameron in New Zealand, and he was very enthusiastic about the new technology. So whether we’ll be filming X-Men in 3D and 48 frames per second, we’ll find out.”

Kitty Pryde (Ellen Page) on the set of X-Men: Days Of Future Past

Hopefully we’ll find out soon. Bryan’s tweet confirming the 3D went up only about an hour ago, so maybe he simply wants to give any HFR news its own tweet. Another possibility is that X-Men is indeed shooting at 48 fps, but we won’t hear about it until much closer to the release date – Fox may be wary of letting the HFR aspect of the movie dominate the conversation, as it did initially with The Hobbit.

Check out Bryan Singer’s Twitter feed for more tidbits from the X-Men set

X-Men: Days of Future Past hit theaters on July 18, 2014.

introducing FutureLeap.com – a news / database site tracking transformational technologies

Posted on April 29, 2013 by Michael

Over the past months I’ve been working on another website project!

The site – futureleap.com – tracks the latest news regarding the game-changing projects, technologies and scientific research we read about every day on the internet by maintaining a database of these projects. It went live about a week ago. I really hope you find it interesting, informative, and useful.

Here’s a short excerpt from Future Leap’s mission statement:

“Future Leap follows projects that have the potential to change the world in a significant way.

The projects tracked by Future Leap aren’t incremental upgrades: they represent entirely new product categories, major new efforts, and bleeding-edge science. The fulfillment of one of these projects would represent a leap forward in the technological development of humanity. They will be the next major breakthroughs and first-in-class products in the fields of AI, Interfaces, Energy, Biology, Entertainment/Gaming/Movies, Space, Computing and Nanotechnology.”

There are currently about 36 projects in the Project Database, and I’m aiming for hundreds. The site’s still in a very early form. Please let me know if you have any comments/suggestions!

There’s a bit of an overlap in what I cover here at HFR Movies vs Future Leap, since Future Leap also covers significant technological developments in gaming, movies, interfaces and associated technologies. But I am for now planning on keeping both sites going as best I can…HFR Movies will remain as it is. If there’s a relevant Future Leap article pertaining to high frame rates, 8k technology, etc, then I’ll post about it here too. And vice versa.

I’ll also likely be looking for writers soon for both this site and www.futureleap.com. If you or anyone you know is passionate about this stuff, can write well, and may have an interest, please send me a message.

Thanks for reading – I really appreciate the intelligent interaction I have with readers here and the passion you all have for pushing cinema technology forward.

I hope you like Future Leap!

S3D Centre posts research whitepaper on HFR, VFR

Posted on April 27, 2013 by Michael

The S3D Centre at the Emily Carr University of Art+Design has posted a whitepaper containing the results and conclusions of its research into high frame rates and variable frame rates:

Download An exploration into the creation of variable frame rate (VFR) stereoscopic 3D narrative productions [interactive, 2.8MB PDF] | [print, 5.4MB PDF]

The paper – which presents their findings regarding HFR/VFR pre-production, production, and post-production – is based on the S3D Centre’s experience last August directing “L’âme Soeur (Soul Mate) 3D”, the “first variable rate HFR shoot of its kind” as a combination short film / research project.

Researchers found that it was difficult to go back to standard frame rate footage after being treated to the extra detail of the HFR version:

While watching the SFR version of the material if felt that visual information was missing. Additionally, imperfect movements whether a shaky moving shot or jerky dance move became even more pronounced in HFR S3D. To counter this, the 23.98fps version of the clip used its blurred frames to ‘smooth’ the image compared to the HFR versions.

Similarly the dancer in the short film was a very beautiful dancer but sometimes the HFR created a kind of ‘animated’ look to her dancing. 23.98fps seemed to retain the ‘soft, graceful’ aesthetic of dance, but it also enhanced blur and judder to the point that it was unwatchable in 23.98fps. Lighting on a human subject appeared more defined in HFR, and when viewers of the material suggested it made a person look video-game like, it can be speculated that this sharper lighting was the reason. We had used fog machines to soften the lighting, so this appears to be a genuine HFR concern.

They observed that close-up shots were much more intimate (perhaps too intimate) in HFR, and that the perceived detail of background elements increased dramatically:

The HFR handheld shots were shockingly intimate, and could be intercut among different moments to create unique effects. Likewise HFR close ups of faces often broke the tolerable intimacy boundary for the viewer. It can be considered that this observation can be a strength, or major distraction depending on the focus of the story. All researchers observed that the background separated and was more defined in the HFR versions than in 23.98fps within the film. This is an advantage for S3D, but it should be noted that caution with set decoration must be taken. Any flaws in the background become more pronounced in HFR.

Overall, they found that the choice of HFR/VFR vs. SFR depends on the emotion(s) the filmmaker wants to elicit in the audience:

Early results with the variable frame rates of 24, 48 and 60 fps have shown that the emotional impact of static shots far exceeds what was originally expected for the viewers, and dynamic shots still suffer from motion artifacts that are actually caused by the HFR. A comparison of the VFR/HFR and SFR version of “Soul Mate 3D” show that VFR is indeed a valuable flexible tool dependent on the content of the narrative.

I’m curious about the video-game / animated-looking motion artifacts in dynamic shots that they claim are caused by the fact that lighting looks sharper and more defined in HFR. I understand that HFR will accentuate jerky / shaky movements of the subject, but I don’t quite understand what they mean by this concern (alas, all I’ve seen of HFR is The Hobbit and a number of amateur videos).

I hope the S3D Centre posts some of their conclusions regarding the granular application of differing frame rate to various objects within a scene (from what I’ve heard the next Hobbit movie will do this).

There is further interesting discussion of the emotional impact of various utilizations of HFR and VFR in their 4th Blog Post.

Check out all of the S3D Centre’s previous HFR Film Blog entries:

HFR Film Blog #1 ”Introduction and Creating a HFR Film” (September 13th 2012)
HFR Film Blog #2 “Effective Pre-Production and Production” Part 1 (November 8th 2012)
HFR Film Blog #2 “Effective Pre-Production and Production” Part 2 (November 21st 2012)
HFR Film Blog #3 “Effective Post Production and Dailies Pipelines” Part 1 (December 8th 2012)
HFR Film Blog #4 “Discussing HFR Technology and Standards” (coming April 2013)

Visit S3D Centre’s HFR (High Frame Rate) Research Home Page

Visit the S3D Centre’s Vimeo page for a video summarizing their HFR/VFR S3D research, 24 fps vs HFR comparison footage and a behind the scenes video of the “L’âme Soeur (Soul Mate) 3D” shoot.

Major Transformers 4 sequences will shoot with new 8K+ 3D IMAX cameras

Posted on April 17, 2013 by Michael

Collider has a video interview with Michael Bay (at CinemaCon) where he reveals that Transformers 4 will be the first movie to make use of IMAX’s new 3D digital cameras. Major sequences will be shot with these cameras, which Bay says have a resolution topping 8K:

Collider: What kind of resolution can the IMAX 3D cameras achieve? Is it 4K, 8K?

Bay: It’s like…I think it’s higher than that. It’s actually going to break the….you know, my finishing company said it takes, it’s some zigabyte, whatever the hell it is- it’s some name that I don’t even know what that name is. They just go, “we are screwed with the amount of computing power we’re going to need here.”

Collider: Are you going to use that camera for the whole shoot, or for specific scenes?

Bay: We’re going to do several big showcase scenes. [The screen aspect ratio] is going to open up. Because it’s too expensive to finish IMAX quality FX.

Bay also tells Collider that one of these new IMAX cameras costs more than the entire budget of his most recent film, Pain and Gain.

Here’s all that IMAX’s site currently has to say about their new digital cameras:

Even better for filmmakers, IMAX is expanding its repertoire of capturing tools by perfecting a next-generation 2D and 3D Digital camera. It will be small and nimble enough to go anywhere. It will also be hand-held, take longer shots. Directors will be able to work without interruptions, because there’s no film to change, yet still deliver quality that’s a match for the beauty of film. And as the technology develops, we expect it will ultimately go far beyond what film can do.

16K+ resolution would be amazing. I suspect that their statement that they expect their digital tech to “ultimately go far beyond what film can do” is a hint regarding the potential of ultra-high resolutions and/or computational photography. Hopefully we’ll get some more details from IMAX soon.