Digital Projection

[darth_mcbain]

I just saw this on IMDB.



Lucas has said that no theater will be allowed to show Episode III unless it is equipped with digital projectors.


I know GL has the best of intentions with converting over to digital, but that's a pretty bold statement. If certain theaters aren't ready by then, they're gonna be shut out from showing this movie? I don't know what is involved in converting over, but something tells me it is not something you do overnight and that there is probably a lot of red tape involved. Don't get me wrong, I think digital is the way to go, but I'm just concerned that 3 years from now we may not be totally cut over to that system and I'd hate to not be able to see SW if my local theaters aren't converted by then. And at least currently, the nearest digital theater to me is at least 3 or 4 hundred miles away - a long way to go just to see a movie...

[JMK]

You're right, it is a rather bold statement. I don't know whether he'll stick to his guns or not, but I bet theater owners are listening. I don't think theater owners want to be shut out of having the last new Star Wars movie ever because they couldn't get over to digital in 3 years. If enough fans make enough noise, it will put pressure on theater owners to go ahead and make the switch. If they don't switch, who will be the first to blink and cave in to the other side? I think if it came down to it, Lucas would give up and make nice. There's no way he's going not let millions of fans see the end of his saga. And if he does, well, theater owners are going to get alot of angry calls and death threats!

[sirdizzy]

its supposedly way expensive to convert too


i doubt he will be able to keep that statement up

[Lady Vader]

O_o

OUCH! That is a rather bold statemeent on Lucas' part.

But, I think in the end, it may not come to that. I'm one of the lucky ones that has several digital theaters in the LA area to choose from, but there are a lot, lot more in this country that don't, let alone foreign countries! Not only is it expensive like Dizzy said, but a lot of theaters aren't big franchise monsters like AMC and the like. Most theaters are small. They're not all going to be able to live up to that statement made about E3.

Lucas is most likely gonna have to rephrase that statement.

[imported_QuiGonJ]

He said for for Episode II also.. I wouldn't take much stock in it. However, the studios seriously want digital projection.

It would make movies a lot cheaper to distribute cause it would be on encoded DVDs instead of $5,000 film prints. Multiply that times 3,500 screens, factor in transporation and storage... see? It would be cheaper and easier.

btw, DLP digital presentation is off a 1024x768 image. Neat huh?

[Jedieb]

Digital projection isn't going to happen just because George Lucas wants it to. OTHER film makers are going to have to get behind the movement. The cost for switching over to digital is VERY expensive. We're talking about tens of thousands of dollars. Unless there are MORE films to show on those digital projectors then theaters aren't going to spend the money just so they can show 1 SW movie that year, when they can show every other major release on film. This is going to take time and more than just one filmmaker and 1 blockbuster.

[JMK]

It will also be increasingly difficult because Spielberg is anti digital right now. It would become a Lucas vs Spielberg bout before any change came. ;)

[ReturnOfTheCB]

Lucas won't follow through if most theaters haven't already switched by then...no way he's going to shoot himself in the foot and lose that much money.

[Marcus Telcontar]

And what about other places in the world that cant afford Digital yet?????


What's he doing, driving small theatres out of business?!? Lucas I hope shoots himself in the foot on this one

[ReturnOfTheCB]

He won't do it. When it comes down to it, he'll do what it takes to get the money.

I'm honestly wondering if this is just the media trying to make him look like a monster, or if maybe Lucas is getting a little arrogant...

[JMK]

It's just his way of getting people to move a little quicker, so he can make his movies in a cheaper fashion.

[imported_QuiGonJ]

I have seen TPM, Tarzan, Journey to Mars, Final Fantasy and JP3 in the format, and I highly recommend it.

Digital is mainly a win-win situation for everyone. It makes films easier to distribute, cause they can do it via DVD or satellite transmission, and since there is no film, the images and sound will be as fresh during week 7 of a film's run as it is during day 1.

It's also a natural evolution of the medium. It may not be free, but just like digital sound, it will happen eventually. I've heard the studios have even considered helping subsidize the costs.

The equipment, which I have seen, is simply a lightbox that goes over the head of the projector. The cost will get cheaper asmore are made. TPM was stored in a 300GB RAID of hard drives. Three years ago, that was huge, but now it's three 120GB hard drives with 60GB for trailers.

[Jedi Master Carr]

I think Lucas made that statement a few years ago, if memory serves me right. I doubt he would really follow through with it since it still hasn't caught on. I think Digital is the way to go but it is still years down the road before it will be mainstream, right now the theaters want the studios to pay up for it to happen.

[JMK]

Yeah, it's a long way off, but it's an even longer way off if someone doesn't give the movement a shot in the arm, like Lucas is doing with this statement of his. He wouldn't betray his fans like that just because a movie theater was too slow in converting over to digital projection.

[imported_QuiGonJ]

The more I think on it, the more I think they are just mis-quoting what he said for Episode II, cause it makes no sense he would make the same statement twice.

[Jedi Master Carr]

I think you are right IMDB is known for misquoting, wouldn't be surprised if they took it back today.

[Charley]

Soderburgh is in Lucas' pro digital camp, so this sucker just might end up picking up steam.

[Master Yoghurt]

Does anyone know much about the image quality digital projection provides? I think the optical resolution is 1024x768, while 35mm has been compared to a theoretical 3-4000 pixels wide. Somehow that does not make sense though, since they did a test where they zoomed in 200% without degrade of the quality. I would think they have made some vast improvements to digital display technology.

I dont think I will be able to see AOTC digital. If they made a 70 mm print or IMAX version (like rumored), I would be in heaven. :)

Btw, making episode III for digital theaters only sounds terribly unrealistic, and I dont think that will happen.

[JMK]

The more I think about Episode 2 Imax, the more I drool over it. It would be unbelievable. And that would be an understatement!

[Darth Viscera]

1024x768 doesn't sound right. That's 4:3, which is the resolution for NTSC TV's. The screens in movie theaters are 16:9, which accomodates all the widescreen formats (1.77^8 and up-AOTC is 2.35, meaning the picture is 2.35x as wide as it is high).

To put it simply, there isn't enough space on a cinema screen for 1024x768. It would end up with 1024x436 on the screen, with the remainder spilling out as black borders. A likelier digital type which is already supported in HDTV would be 1080i with a 16:9 aspect ratio.

Also, 300 gigs for a 2 hour 16 minute movie? That's RGB uncompressed. If they were to switch to a lossless YUV, they could cut that down to 100 gigs.

[imported_QuiGonJ]

All I know are the specs given me three years ago... I can dig out the paperwork somewhere I think. I do remember they want to keep it large to prevent easy internet theft or conversion of the films.

The white light source is still a normal projector lamp, and the screen is still a normal theater backing. It doesn't go on a monitor as such.

Here's the site for you to see the demo of how it works:
http://www.dlp.com/dlp/home.asp

[Jedieb]

I saw Rick McCallum speak about digital filmmaking today. McCallum spat out some resolution numbers but I can't remember them. He also debunked that whole EP3 digital screening rumor. He made a plea to fans to ask their local theaters to make the move to digital. But there isn't gonig to be any demand from LucasFilm for digital screenings. It's nothing but another wild rumor.

[darth_mcbain]

I saw this on theforce.net today... Apparently Steven Spielberg isn't too big on digital projection.



Now the thing I'm most saddened by is the constant talk about the photochemical process becoming a thing of Thomas Edison's past. There's a magic about chemistry and film. Sure, a digital shot is steady. It doesn't have to ride through the gate of a projector. And, sure, it's as clean as the OR in a major hospital. That's exactly what's wrong with it. Film has a molecular structure called grain; even a still of just a flower in a vase has life because of the grain, because of the molecules in the film. Especially if you sit in the first five rows of any movie theater, you know what I'm talking about. The screen is alive. The screen is always alive with chaos and excitement, and that will certainly be gone when we convert to a digital camera and a digital projector. I was one of the first people to use digital technology to enhance my films, but I'm going to be the last person to use digital technology to shoot my movies."


I have actually heard similar arguments from people comparing CDs to LPs or tapes. That CDs are almost too good - and they lose some of the ambient sound that other formats pick up... I don't know - there are good arguments on both sides...

[JMK]

I'm all for better sound and picture quality. :D

[Jedieb]

Early CD's sounded pretty flat. LP's were still superior. But over time the quality has improved tremendously. My new CD's sound just as good as my old LP's. I'm not a sound expert, but I think the difference is neglible. I think the same will be true of digital. Over time digital is only going to get better and cheaper. It's hard to see how film is going to survive decades from now.

[JMK]

Especially with DVD as the new medium of choice in homes. Half of my VHS tapes are dying a slow death and the quality of them is deteriorating so much that I refuse to watch them now.