Tag Archives: IMAX

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

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michael-bay-directing-transformers-4-as-reboot-to-franchis-01Collider 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.

Editorial: The movie industry needs 4K projectors that are capable of 3D and HFR

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4KOne thing I learned from my interview with Christie Digital’s Don Shaw is that projecting HFR 3D (48 fps or 60 fps) at 4K resolution would not only require a “forklift upgrade” to the projectors, but that the rest of the ecosystem (servers, integrated media blocks, routers, and content delivery systems) are nowhere near ready to handle the massive bandwidth required for 4K HFR 3D. In other words, as of now 4K HFR 3D is not in the near future.

But what about 3D projection at 4K resolution at standard (24 fps) frame rates?  You might be surprised to hear that even this is impossible for now without two separate 4K projectors.  And of course the great majority of theaters who have sprung for 4K projectors don’t have the budget to purchase two 4K projectors for each cinema screen to enable 4K 3D.

The lack of a suitably fast 4K projector is also hurting IMAX.  I’ve been to a good number of IMAX Digital shows over the past 3 years, and in all but one instance I’ve suffered through a very pixellated image; the widely known “screen door effect” of seeing the spaces between the pixels.  IMAX Digital uses overlapped 2K images and some kind of IMAX special sauce to increase brightness, but it is crystal clear that a 2K image is hugely insufficient when stretched over the larger screen sizes of even the smaller (compared to real, 70 mm IMAX screens) IMAX venues.

For a company that prides itself in providing the very best in terms of audio and visual presentation, you may think it ridiculous that IMAX doesn’t use 4K projectors for their digital presentations. And they may have a good reason in that 4K projectors capable of even standard frame rate 3D don’t yet exist. But of course IMAX could simply purchase two 4K projectors for each of their screens, and it’s a valid criticism to point out that they aren’t already doing this.  Even using a single 4K projector would be an improvement over IMAX’s current setup as it would cut down on the screen door effect even if the source image is only 2K.

With 4K “Ultra HD” TV sets making a big splash at CES this year the movie industry simply has to up their game in order to continue to offer people a viable reason to leave their homes to see a movie.  We need 4K projectors with high bandwidth and commensurately powered integrated media blocks, servers, and content delivery systems. If the images we see at the theater can’t even match the resolution of the TVs we have at home, then that is a pathetic situation.

IMAX announces list of HFR 3D locations for The Hobbit!

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IMAX has posted a list of locations that will show The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey on their screens in high frame rate 3D:

US/Canada

Alaska
Tikahtnu Stadium 16 & IMAX & RPX – Anchorage

California
Aliso Viejo Stadium 20 with IMAX – Aliso Viejo
Burbank 30 with IMAX & ETX – Burbank
Century City 15 with IMAX & ETX – Century City
Mira Mesa Stadium 17 + IMAX – San Diego
Hacienda Crossings Stadium 20 + IMAX – Dublin
Mercado 20 with IMAX – Santa Clara

Colorado
Westminster 24 with IMAX – Denver

Florida
Aventura Mall 24 with IMAX & ETX – Aventura
Altamonte Mall 18 with IMAX – Altamonte Springs
Parisian 20 w IMAX – West Palm Beach

Georgia
Avenue Forsyth 12 with IMAX – Cumming

Illinois
Barrington 30 with IMAX – South Barrington

Kansas
Studio 28 KC with IMAX – Olathe

Maryland
Columbia 14 with IMAX – Columbia

New Jersey
New Brunswick 18 with IMAX – New Brunswick
Garden State 16 with IMAX – Paramus

New York
34th Street 14 with IMAX – New York

Nevada
Red Rock Stadium 15 + IMAX – Las Vegas

Ontario
Courtney Park 16 with IMAX – Mississauga
Empire Theatres at Empress Walk & Extra IMAX – North York

Oregon
Regal Bridgeport 17 + IMAX – Tigard

Pennsylvania
King of Prussia Stadium + IMAX – King Of Prussia

Quebec
Mega-Plex Taschereau 18 + IMAX – Greenfield Park
Mega-Plex Marche Central 18 + IMAX (English Aud) – Montreal

Tennessee
Pinnacle Stadium Cinemas 17 + IMAX – Knoxville

Texas
Northpark 15 with IMAX & ETX – Dallas
Palladium 18 + IMAX – San Antonio

Utah
Megaplex Theatres @ Jordan Common + IMAX – Sandy

Virginia
Hoffman 22 with IMAX – Alexandria
Tysons Corner 16 with IMAX & ETX – McLean

Washington
Lincoln Square Cinema 16 with IMAX – Bellevue

International

Cineplexx IMAX Donauplex 13 – Vienna, AT
Hoyts Perth – Perth, AU
Cinepolis JK Iguatemi Sao Paulo – Sao Paulo, BR
Pathe Quai d’Ivry – Ivry-sur-Seine, Paris, FR
UA iSQUARE IMAX Theatre – Hong Kong, CH
United Cinemas Canal City 13 – Fukuoka, JP
109 Cinemas Kawasaki – Kanagawa – Kawasaki, JP
109 Cinemas Nagoya – Nagoya, JP
UC Saporro – Saporro, JP
109 Cinemas Shonan IMAX – Shonan, JP
UC Toshimaen – Tokyo, JP
CGV Sangam – Seoul, KR
CGV Wangsimni – Seoul, KR
Pathe Arena Amsterdam – Amsterdam, NL
Lido Cineplex 11 – Singapore-Orchard Road, SG
Vieshow Banqiao Mega City Mall IMAX – Banqiao, TW
Cineworld IMAX Dublin – Dublin, IR
Odeon Manchester IMAX @ The Printworks – Manchester, UK
Cineworld IMAX Nottingham – Nottingham, UK

IMAX also made the following statement on high frame rates:

Advancements in technology are continually opening up new ways for us to experience movies. At IMAX, we’re committed to working with filmmakers to support and help deliver their creative vision to audiences across the globe.

In The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, Peter Jackson has pushed the boundaries of new filmmaking techniques by capturing the movie in high frame rate (HFR) 3D – marking the first use of this method in a major motion picture release. In addition to the IMAX® and IMAX® 3D presentations, the film will also be shown using a higher frame rate in select IMAX® theatres.

What is High Frame Rate 3D (HFR 3D)?

Frame rates refer to the number of images (frames) displayed by a projector in one second. The current standard in cinemas worldwide is 24 frames per second (fps). HFR 3D productions of 48 fps record and play visuals at twice the current rate, which more closely approximates what the human eye actually sees. The higher 48fps rate provides enhanced clarity and reduces motion blur during action sequences, artifacts, judder and strobing.