LEARN -- How G.I. JOE: RETALIATION Uses 3D // LISTEN -- Marc Webb Discusses 3D, James Cameron And More!

Today we've got a double shot of 3D goodness from producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura (G.I. JOE: RETALIATION) and director Marc Webb (THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN).

First, Di Bonaventura opens up about advancements in 3D conversion and how it affected the new release date for G.I. JOE: RETALIATION:

"We learned a lot about 3D—I personally learned a lot about 3D in Transformers. The conversion part of the 3D process is night and day, you know, every three, four months it’s better than it was before. It’s amazing how fast that thing has changes. And originally we didn’t really have the time or the resources to try to figure out how to shoot it in 3D in the time frame that we were originally talking about, you know, starting in August and releasing in June. So this delay has allowed us to go at it now.

Jon [Chu] has some sequences that are really, there’s a phenomenal—for G.I. Joe fans it’s going to be one of the really great scenes for them, because there’s a fight between Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow in a hallway that is so perfect for 3D I can’t tell you. It’s going to be like one of the coolest fights ever in 3D, because there’s so much about it that’s dynamic. That’s going to be really fun. And you know people have seen bits and pieces of the Himalayan sort of rock climbing thing, it’s almost 3D without having turned into 3D, so I can’t wait to see that. That one’s going to be like what the hell?"

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Finally we have director Marc Webb (and VFX Supervisor Jerome Chang) talking all about the 3D in THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN and how he used his 3ality Technica 3D rigs on set, outfitted with Red Epic cameras.

The result? A truly AMAZING experience in 3D. Well done Marc and 3ality. THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 3D is now available for purchase from Amazon and would make a perfect gift for the Marvel fans in your life!

Hit the jump to hear Marc!





How much of a learning curve was there filming your first 3D movie with the 3ality Technica System?
There was a lot of time that we spent with the red cameras and 3ality early on. We just felt that there’s a big testing phase. Before that there was just a conceptualization of 3D, trying to figure out the best way for those sequences to work and try to make sure that we were exploiting it and doing it in a way that made 3D a meaningful part of the storytelling language. That took a lot of watching 3D movies and understanding the technology and talking to different filmmakers to see how best to exploit that.

What were you able to learn from what James Cameron has done with 3D?
James Cameron has a very specific philosophy about 3D that it doesn’t interfere with the story, that it’s about creating a sense of depth and enhance the sense of realism rather than making it a gimmick. The actual component of doing your visual effects in stereo is the fact that even the texture of Spidey’s suit, the roughness on how thickness the web lines are, the amount of frayed material. We would have to make sure that you could feel that also in stereo, because when we looked at the footage of the real actors you could see in the the cashmere sweater the individual threads. That amount of detail would then have to be added not only to Spider-Man, but also to Lizard. You have to see the bump or the scales of his skin. The whole stereo aspect really complicated, or added an additional challenge, to the visual effects in terms of digital imagery.

What was the most challenging, but rewarding, 3D sequence you filmed?
The most challenging and rewarding I think to me was the final battle, or the crane sequence, was probably the most fun. The crane sequence is emotional, but you get that sense of vertigo and velocity. It was a really fun part of the 3D experience. There was a sequence that I designed specifically to exploit 3D and have that actor – have Spider-Man — come up into your foreground and fall away. We’re adjusted the conversion to the depth to make it feel as exciting as possible

What are the challenges that remain when it comes to enticing people to upgrade to 3D at home?
I think there are people that assume that 3D is something that’s exclusive to the theatrical experience, but there’s a lot of value of playing with it at home. It gets fun. You’re closer to the screen. It can feel equally as immersive, but I think people are driven to buy new technology and they’re always looking for ways to keep up with the Jones’ as we say. There’s been a lot of investment in technology and Sony has done a lot of work in 3D technology. It’s just a way to connect deeper to the material that you’re viewing.

Where do you plan on taking Spidey in the next film?
Spidey will endure, overcome, and expand upon all of our favorite parts of the Spiderman Universe.  How is that for coy and ambiguous?

 
 

Sources: Forbes | Collider

MUST WATCH: Behind The Scenes Of Sam Raimi's OZ: THE GREAT AND POWERFUL - Plus 3D Production Workflow Info!

3ality Technica Rigs With Red Epic Cameras

Ready for a fresh take on THE WIZARD OF OZ? I am. Well it's really a prequel. Moreover, it looks like Sam Raimi's going to deliver with some new perspectives on the famous characters. Plus, there is no singing and dancing - well very little according to Mila Kunis. In fact, due to licensing restrictions Disney has had to avoid some connections to the original movie, but that could turn out to be a blessing in disguise. I don't have any real interest in a total remake of the first Oz.

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One of the cool things about the movie is that it's being shot in native 3D using Red Epics and 3ality Technica's 3D rigs. If you're interested in a technical and in-depth review of the workflow involved with OZ: THE GREAT AND POWERFUL, check out this great read found on 695 Quarterly.

James Franco's Oz takes on three witches played by the aforementioned Mila Kunis joined by Rachel Weisz and Michelle Williams.

Says Franco: "This Oz is a little different. You get to see a lot more of who this Oz is. The search for (his heart) is one of the main themes of this movie."

Stereoscopic Monitoring Setup

Here's the movie's official storyline:
Disney’s fantastical adventure “Oz The Great and Powerful,” directed by Sam Raimi, imagines the origins of L. Frank Baum’s beloved character, the Wizard of Oz. When Oscar Diggs (James Franco), a small-time circus magician with dubious ethics, is hurled away from dusty Kansas to the vibrant Land of Oz, he thinks he’s hit the jackpot—fame and fortune are his for the taking—that is until he meets three witches, Theodora (Mila Kunis), Evanora (Rachel Weisz) and Glinda (Michelle Williams), who are not convinced he is the great wizard everyone’s been expecting. Reluctantly drawn into the epic problems facing the Land of Oz and its inhabitants, Oscar must find out who is good and who is evil before it is too late. Putting his magical arts to use through illusion, ingenuity—and even a bit of wizardry—Oscar transforms himself not only into the great and powerful Wizard of Oz but into a better man as well. When small-time magician Oscar Diggs (James Franco) pulls one flimflam too many, he finds himself hurled into the fantastical Land of Oz where he must somehow transform himself into the great and powerful Wizard—and just maybe into a better man as well.

I would think that Disney will be revealing more OZ during Comic-Con this week - we'll see. 

OZ: THE GREAT AND POWERFUL opens on March 8, 2013. Click here for all of our coverage of the movie. Click here for the movie's official site.

Check out the behind the scenes ET video:



Original Clip Source: IndieWire
 

Prometheus 3D Tricks Revealed in Latest American Cinematographer Magazine

Hey everyone, Tim here with some interesting news out of the latest edition of American Cinematographer Magazine. This is a great magazine for any would-be filmmakers out there, and is a great magazine for filmmakers. I've been hooked on it since college where Drexel University provided Film & Video students with copies for free. The writers get in-depth interviews with the cinematographer, director, gaffer, and all other crew members.

This month's issue got to talk with Dariusz Wolski, ASC, the cinematographer of Ridley Scott's Prometheus. We already knew that they shot on the RED Epic with 3ality Technica Rigs, but now we get a little more information.

Wolski shot all four Pirates of the Caribbean movies, including the 3D On Stranger Tides. He had to say of the location they shot for the alien planet, "Iceland is phenomenal. It had daylight for 20 hours a day when we were there, and the sun was always low and beautiful. If it was cloudy, it was also stunning. It’s an amazing place to shoot — and I’ve shot four Pirates of the Caribbean movies in the tropics, so I know the difference!"

Although he shot Prometheus at the 5K resolution of the RED Epic, with a 5:1 compression (occasionally switching to 3:1 for fine detail scenes) Wolski revealed that the original photography had to be converted to 2K in post in order to match the visual-effects resolution. Wolski noted, "On a movie with this many visual effects, going to 4K would have quadrupled the visual-effects budget." He went on to say that with 4K projectors now available that we'll be able to shoot in 5K, do visual effects and post in 4K, and project in 4K to make it as good as IMAX.

This was Ridley Scott's first foray into shooting digital. Scott had this to say about the RED Epic, "I really love the picture quality of the Red. But when you have that kind of clarity, it’s very easy for your lighting to become harsh, so you definitely have to pay attention to that." He sums up with "I think Prometheus is a pretty good showcase for Red. Dariusz made it look absolutely beautiful in both 2D and 3D."

With regards to the the switch from 2D to 3D Scott said, "If you’re used to shooting, there is no goddamn difference between 2D and 3D — you’ve either got an eye, or you haven’t. And if you’re a director who hasn’t got an eye, you’d better make sure your cameraman does!"

Lens choice wise, Scott and Wolski chose spherical over anamorphic, which is the hallmark style of Alien. When asked about the difference Scott had this to say, "I do like anamorphic, but spherical is a much better enabler — I like the sharpness. I have a great preference for spherical now, unless I’m really going to go for that shallow-focus look." And Wolski chose to shoot most of Prometheus on Angenieux Optimo zooms, as he explains "In 3D, lens changes are complex, and re-aligning the cameras is time-consuming. Ridley likes to move fast, and he likes to use multiple cameras, so I decided on four main rigs: two with 15-40mm Optimos, and two with 28-76mm Optimos. We also used a Steadicam rig with Zeiss Ultra Primes, which shaved the weight as much as possible. I think the short Optimo zoom is the most revolutionary lens in the industry right now. You can shoot a whole movie with two zoom lenses!"

Scott's multi-camera technique has been a hallmark of his sets since Gladiator and he especially loves them for dialogue scenes, not just action sequences. It is because of multiple cameras that he was able to shoot Prometheus in 82-days. That's an incredible amount of time to shoot such an effects heavy movie as Prometheus.

Lighting is as important to how the image is captured as the camera and lenses, and Wolski had his work cut out for him on that front. He states that "This film lent itself to using modern lighting, and we designed the spaceship with a lot of LEDs controlled by very complex dimmer boards." Wolski chose a consistent setting of 4,000˙K on the Epic, which lent to the color scheme inside the ship and for the exteriors nicely. What you got was an interior distinguished by a rich variety of blues, greens, and yellows, and an exterior that felt slightly cool.

Gaffer Perry Evans, whose uncle Ray Evans was gaffer on Alien, recalls that Scott asked for the ship's lighting to be dynamic in order to interact with the actors's performances, "Once Ridley saw that we could play with the lights, he pushed it to the limit. He’d say, ‘When he walks in the room, bring those lights up, and when he touches this desk, switch those things on.’ I don’t recall doing a single shot on the spaceship without a light change. I must admit, Ridley put us through our paces. There was never a dull moment!" The filmmakers used 200 "off the shelf" industrial fluorescents, which were outfitted with dimming electronics. Evans added that the dimming board could be remotely controlled with an iPad on the set.

Now the stereographer, James Goldman, who also worked with Wolski on the 3D Pirates, explained that Prometheus was primarily shot parallel and that the convergence was accomplished in post. His reasoning is that shooting parallel facilitates visual-effects work because the artists don't have to compensate for keystoning of toed-in, converging cameras. Goldman would monitor the stereo image on 3ality Technica's Stereo Image Processor, and Brainstorm's Qtake was used to create a converged 3D image for the filmmakers to view on set.

Goldman supervised the changes in IO (interocular distance) in coordination with Scott and Wolski. He notes that Scott favored a big IO with more depth, but that he saved extreme 3-D effects, like jutting foregrounds, “for the big moments when he wanted people to jump out of their chairs.” In general, he continues, Scott “adjusted his style to 3D and tended to put less in the foreground than he usually does.”

Ryan Nguyen was Prometheus's digital-image technician, and on set he monitored the images at a station next to Wolski, who set color "in camera." Jeroen Hendriks, camera-data supervisor, prepared the files for editorial at an off-set station. As Wolski explains, "We did everything in-house. Downloads from camera went to Jeroen’s station, and then the image went straight to editorial and stayed there all the way to the final color correction, which was actually minimal." Wolski chose a 24" Sony monitor as the absolute image reference on the set. Hendriks explains that each take’s settings were saved in a Red MetaData file that accompanied the footage through the workflow. “Ridley loved what we saw on the monitor,” notes Wolski. “He said, ‘This is it. Don’t mess with it.’”

Richard Stammers, visual-effects supervisor defined a window of 4,800x2,000 pixels in the 5K image to create the 2.39:1 widescreen frame, leaving 100 pixels on either side to allow for convergence adjustments and some vertical room for reframing. After Hendriks and his crew cloned the 5K originals, they used RedCine-X software to verify the RMD file, and then defined a convergence setting for each take (as provided by Goldman). This metadata was then sent via Skype to the off-set station, where color-corrected and converged 3D dailies were created for the editors. The final 3D convergence was accomplished toward the end of post during a convergence run, in tandem with the final grade.

And that is how the 3D cinematography was accomplished for Prometheus. Very interesting stuff. Looking back, Scott offers his final thoughts about Prometheus: “Working with Dariusz was absolutely marvelous. It was fun to revisit science fiction, an old genre, and he and his crew made the whole thing a great ride!”

PROMETHEUS Review! Spoiler Free - 9 Stars!! The Best 3D I Have Ever Witnessed!

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This review is SPOILER FREE. However, the comments section is fair game and you can expect spoilers in there - so be warned!

Ridley Scott has delivered again. He visionary take on science fiction in PROMETHEUS had me thinking about science like a child again. It takes magic to pull that off on an adult and I like to think of myself as one now and then! The movie is so good it will trigger your own deep thoughts and for that reason alone it deserves 9 stars.

PROMETHEUS was shot in native 3D with 3ality Technica 3D rigs housing Red Epic digital cameras and the results were extraordinary! See it for yourself. These technology companies are at the top of their game and the quality of this theatrical product is simply BEYOND. And with digital theatrical screenings you will have artifact and dust free exhibitions each and every time.

The trademark darkness of the ALIEN franchise was NOT an issue in 3D - not in the way Ridley Scott shot it. They shot with higher light levels and then dialed in the darkness when and where they wanted it in post-production, walking hand in hand with the stereoscopic 3D. Heck, even Roger Ebert liked the movie AND the 3D!

PROMETHEUS has the best 3D I have EVER seen in the theater. You can take that to the bank folks. I recommend the largest screen you can possibly see it on and SEE IT IN 3D.

You may read other reviews on other movie sites that were disappointed in the movie - for what, I have no, strike that, I have ABSOLUTELY no idea why. Seriously, if we didn't live in a free world where it is ok to have your own opinion, they should be summarily drummed out of the Internet. But alas, some critics can voice their opinion with little or no basis to back it up. If a movie leaves you thinking about it after you leave - and ESPECIALLY if you're thinking about it the next day, it has done it's job well. PROMETHEUS is that movie.

PROMETHEUS is VISUALLY STUNNING. Easily the best of the year thus far for pure visuals. Ridley Scott and cinematographer Dariusz Wolski tag teamed to conceive, shoot and edit together breathtaking visuals that will leave you wanting to see it again and again just to relive it.

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And let me say a word about the sheer brilliance exhibited by the visual effects teams led by Moving Picture Company and Weta Digital. SPECTACULAR!!!!!!! I need more exclamation points. Seriously I FELT like an android myself discovering things for the first time. To have a movie rekindle emotions like that  - that haven't been moved since AVATAR, hats off to all the visual effects artists that contributed to this event movie. Your names are now forever connected to the movie in infamy.

I can't discuss the individual points of my review here as I normally do as they would include spoilers but feel free to ask anything you like in the comments!

Why not 10 out of 10? Well, it has to be perfect to get that score and I have yet to see a movie that deserves it. PROMETHEUS has some issues but nothing to remotely consider panning the film. The characters should have been explored for another 15 minutes or so before seeing action - kinda like the original ALIEN. Michael Fassbender's David did however, enjoy some great development and he really carried the movie as far as the actor's performances are concerned.

I saw the movie in IMAX 3D at Empire Theatres. Thank you for the exceptional screening Empire! I will also be checking it out in RealD 3D as well asap. PROMETHEUS is now playing in North America - if you only see one sci-fi movie this year, treat yourself and go see it!

Must See: Another Clip From THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN Plus A Featurette On The Movie's Stunts!

3ality Technica 3D Rig & Red Epic Cameras on THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN

Got a couple more videos for you guys to watch IF YOU DARE. The movie clip is of course a spoiler as it is directly FROM THE MOVIE. You have been warned!!

The stunt featurette has some very cool behind the scenes footage in it. The practical stunts look AMAZING and those stuntmen have nerves of steel. Got to love watching BTS stunts.

Man I can't wait to see the results of these red cameras mounted in 3ality Technica rigs shooting THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN in native 3D!

Here's the storyline:
One of the world’s most popular characters is back on the big screen as a new chapter in the Spider-Man legacy is revealed in The Amazing Spider-Man. Focusing on an untold story that tells a different side of the Peter Parker story, the new film stars Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Rhys Ifans, Denis Leary, Campbell Scott, Irrfan Khan, with Martin Sheen and Sally Field. The film is directed by Marc Webb from a screenplay written by James Vanderbilt, based on the Marvel Comic Book by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko. Laura Ziskin, Avi Arad, and Matt Tolmach are producing the film in association with Marvel Entertainment for Columbia Pictures, which will open in theaters everywhere in 3D on July 3, 2012.

The Amazing Spider-Man is the story of Peter Parker (Garfield), an outcast high schooler who was abandoned by his parents as a boy, leaving him to be raised by his Uncle Ben (Sheen) and Aunt May (Field). Like most teenagers, Peter is trying to figure out who he is and how he got to be the person he is today. Peter is also finding his way with his first high school crush, Gwen Stacy (Stone), and together, they struggle with love, commitment, and secrets. As Peter discovers a mysterious briefcase that belonged to his father, he begins a quest to understand his parents’ disappearance – leading him directly to Oscorp and the lab of Dr. Curt Connors (Ifans), his father’s former partner. As Spider-Man is set on a collision course with Connors’ alter-ego, The Lizard, Peter will make life-altering choices to use his powers and shape his destiny to become a hero.

First up will be the STUNTS FEATURETTE (some visual spoilers):



 And here is the Movie Clip featuring Dr. Connors and Peter Parker in an intellectual "classroom" discussion **SPOILER**



THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN opens on July 3!! 

via /Film

TWO More Featurettes For PROMETHEUS!!

It isn't going to stop guys! More to tantalize you about the upcoming return to the ALIEN universe by Ridley Scott. We have two more PROMETHEUS featurettes for you, one focusing on 3D and shooting the movie and the second featuring actor Logan Marshall-Green.

I'm going to say that there are spoilers in these because I can't be sure how much you have seen individually at this point and what you haven't seen. If you watch them - YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.

Love the behind the scenes looks with the 3ality Technica rigs and Red Epic cameras in the first featurette. You can tell that the visuals in this movie are going to be probably the best ever captured thus far just based on technology advances alone. We are in for a serious, serious treat here as we are with THE HOBBIT and THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN.

Gotta love this statement heard in the second featurette from Marshall-Green: "There's gonna be a lot of expectations... We're going to meet all those expectations." Wow. Powerful statement indeed. I'm getting a Tom hardy vibe from Marshall-Green a bit, are you?

Here's the movie's storyline:
Ridley Scott, director of “Alien” and “Blade Runner,” returns to the genre he helped define. With PROMETHEUS, he creates a groundbreaking mythology, in which a team of explorers discover a clue to the origins of mankind on Earth, leading them on a thrilling journey to the darkest corners of the universe. There, they must fight a terrifying battle to save the future of the human race.

Check out all of our coverage of PROMETHEUS right here. The movie opens on June 8.