RED Digital 4K Camera now in 3D !
Holy stereoscopic developments Batman! Bob Johnston, Executive Producer with Paradise FX contacted me today with details of their announcement September 5th of 3D test involving the awesome and VERY affordable RED 4K cameras. Note that this test was taking two RED cameras out of the box (never tested), shooting in 3D and then screening the digital 4K HD movie THE SAME DAY. I am amazed at how fast the teams have put together a 3D solution using the highly touted RED system - a system that Steven Soderbergh recently announced he would be using for feature film shooting soon (2D as far as I know).
I love the spirit of the RED team and the repercussions that are sweeping the industry. Heck I feel tempted to get involved directly!
Here is their press release:
Press Release
September 5, 2007 Source: Studio Daily
A quantum leap in 3D content production and stereographic post-production from a tapeless workflow, resulted in a successful 3D test shoot and screening on Saturday, September 1st . Producers Steve Gibby and Kenneth Corben of GibCor, teamed up with their 3D production partners Max Penner and Tim Thomas at Paradise FX to produce one of the first stereo 3D shoots originating with RED 4K cameras. (PHOTO: Max Penner seen adjusting the Red 4K 3D Paracam. Photo Copyright Steve Gibby)
GibCor provided RED camera #8 and their associate, Billy Summers, provided RED camera #13. Both were literally “out of the box” from the first 25 RED cameras released on August 31st. The team shot a 4K 3D dual camera test, and captured REDCODE RAW to two RED 8 GB compact flash cards.
The production alliance between GibCor and Paradise FX has been in development on their RED 4K 3D projects since February in anticipation of the cameras’ release this year. “The results of this first RED 4K 3D shoot will enable us to bring great stories, shot in stereo 3D, to audiences like never before,” said producer Steve Gibby. The RED 4K cameras were fitted with a pair of RED compact zooms (18-50mm) and mounted to the Paracam. The Paracam is a 3D camera system that employs a beam splitter and has digital control of the inter-axial and convergent positioning of each of the RED ONE cameras. By Noon the team was viewing 3D content, originating from a tapeless 4K workflow.
The 4K 3D post workflow was seamless thanks to ASSIMILATE’s SCRATCH® Digital Intermediate Process Solution and technical support from Lucas Wilson of ASSIMILATE™. The 4K REDCODE RAW (.r3d) files were imported from CF cards into a beta version of REDCINE running on an Intel based Mac system. The left and right eye files were de-bayered from 4K RAW to 2K files then imported to SCRATCH as .dpx files. SCRATCH allowed for “plug and play” into Paradise’s dual projection system for quick stereo 3D playback. After the screening, veteran 3D stereographer Max Penner said, “To take 2 cameras that have never been tested out of the box, then shoot and project 3D all in one day, is almost unheard of. All done with no umbilical cables, tape decks or digitizing. This changes everything!”
In anticipation of the continued global rollout of stereoscopic 3D enabled theaters and growing content demand, Paradise FX and GibCor are in negotiations with several major studios regarding this technology and it’s implementation in the motion picture industry. This is the first of a succession of stereo 3D tests with the RED ONE camera. Ongoing tests will help to define a workflow to apply to future 3D productions in both Large Format Film and Digital Theatrical Releases. The RED ONE camera has a small 3D form factor with a high resolution at a decent price, making it highly promising for future 3D films.
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www.kennethcorben.com
