Following James Cameron’s keynote address on Sunday at the National Association of Broadcasters’ Digital Cinema Summit (reported here), the excitement is already starting to build for the rerelease of Star Wars in 3D.It has been common knowledge that George Lucas has been working on the project for some time, but it now seems certain that it will hit theaters in 2007 to mark the movie’s 30th anniversary.

The company behind the Dimensionalization® of the much loved sci-fi classic is In-Three, based in Westlake Village and Agoura Hills California. Founded in 1999 by Michael C. Kaye, a veteran in post production techniques and an innovator of several patented technologies, In-Three is growing rapidly to accomodate its increasing workload.

Their highly secretive Dimensonalization® process is performed fully in post production. This means that potentially any film can be processed into full 3D and negates the requirement for stereoscopic cameras during filming. Utilising their own tools, artists called Dimensionalists can add depth to 2 dimensional film. It is assumed that individual elements of a scene are isolated and separated into layers to simulate depth (think the OT DVD animated menus taken to the nth degree). Software tools help the artists resolve occlusions (blank spaces left where there is no original information), extract depth information and dimensionally choreograph each scene.

In-three claim that their post production process is actually superior to shooting with dual camera rigs because they can regulate depth properties and have complete control over each shot. Another major bonus of this is that a 3D version can be screened in cinemas with an untouched 2D version preserved for the home market or theaters lacking the necessary equipment. In fact, the content that reaches the veiwers left eye is completely unprocessed. It goes without saying that the potential to dimensionalize studio’s back catalogues is also huge.

To watch Dimensionalized movies, the audience must wear active 3D glasses, produced by partner company NuVision. Because the images are geometrically and mathematically mapped in software and the individual elements don’t stray too close or too deep into the shot, eyestrain is eliminated. According to In-three, dimensionaized movies can be watched comfortably for hours and there will be no ‘blindspots’ in an auditorium.

In-Three technology has already wowed the major studios and has won support from George Lucas, Peter Jackson, James Cameron, Jeffrey Katzenberg, Randal Kleiser, Robert Rodriguez, and many more, but the real test will be just how far audience jaws drop when that seemingly endless Imperial Star Destroyer passes overhead and swallows the Rebel Blockade Runner.

Posted by Elgar in Commentary, Movies, Star Wars • Add to del.icio.us Add to Digg