International 3D And Advanced Imaging Society Announces Nominees For 3D Awards

Here's this year's nominations for awards from our friends over at the International 3D and Advanced Imaging Society. There is some amazing productions here - I personally loved DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES, THE HOBBIT: THE BATTLE OF THE FIVE ARMIES and X-MEN: DAYS OF FUTURE PAST. 2014 was a great year for 3D! Very excited to see Jean-Pierre Jeunet being honored here - his THE YOUNG AND PRODIGIOUS T.S. SPIVET looks amazing.

Here's the press release:

The International 3D and Advanced Imaging Society has announced its top nominated 3D features - Live Action and Animation, as well as the 2D to 3D Conversion categories were voted on by the International 3D Society's members for the 2015 Creative Arts Awards Ceremony to be held January 28th at Warner Bros. Studios.

The top live action nominees include “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” (Marvel/Disney), “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” (20th Century Fox), “Exodus: Gods and Kings” (20th Century Fox), “Guardians of the Galaxy (Marvel/Disney), “Maleficent,” (The Walt Disney Studios), “Noah” (Fox/Paramount), “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” (Paramount Pictures), “The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (Sony Pictures Entertainment), “The Hobbit: The Battle of Five Armies,” (Warner Bros./New Line), “Transformers: Age of Extinction (Paramount Pictures), and “X-Men: Days of Future Past,” (20th Century Fox).

In the animation category, the top nominees include “Big Hero 6” (The Walt Disney Studios), “How to Train Your Dragon 2” (DreamWorks Animation, “Mr. Peabody & Sherman” (DreamWorks Animation), “Rio 2” (20th Century Fox Animation), “The Book of Life” (20th Century Fox Animation), “The Boxtrolls” (Laika), “The Lego Movie” (Warner Bros.), “Planes: Fire & Rescue” (Pixar/Disney) and “Penguins of Madagascar”), Fox/DreamWorks Animation)

The nominees for 2D to 3D Conversion include ”300 Rise of an Empire” (Warner Bros.), “Captain America The Winter Soldier” (Marvel/Disney), “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” (20th Century Fox), “Godzilla” (Warner Bros.), “Guardians of the Galaxy (Marvel/Disney),”Maleficent” (The Walt Disney Studios), “Noah” (Fox/Paramount), “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” (Paramount Pictures), and “The Amazing Spider-Man 2” (Sony Pictures Entertainment).

“Many of the leading blockbusters of 2014, were some of the highest grossing 3D films in history, and we are thrilled that this genre of filmmaking has a significant role in film quality and innovation,” said Buzz Hays of the True Image Company and Society Awards Chairman. “These films are visually stunning to watch and are continuously evolving.”

The Society will present its gold Lumiere™ statuettes to winners in 20 categories selected by ballot from 460 of the Society’s professional voting members.

Sky, Atlantic Productions and David Attenborough will receive the Society’s Sir Charles Wheatstone Award for creative excellence in 3D story telling.

Since launching in October 2010, Sky 3D has broken new ground across a range of genres including live music, the arts, sports, movies and natural history, including six landmark projects from Sir David Attenborough with a seventh, Conquest of the Skies, due to premiere on the service this Christmas. Produced by Colossus Productions, a joint venture company formed by Sky and Atlantic Productions, Attenborough’s Sky 3D documentaries have delighted critics and audiences alike, and delivered multiple award wins.

Sir Charles Wheatstone is credited by history as the inventor of modern-day 3D. The Society’s Wheatstone Award has previously been presented to Pixar, DreamWorks Animation, Sony Pictures Entertainment, and Panasonic Hollywood Labs.

The Society’s annual Harold Lloyd Award will be presented to Academy Award Nominee and French Director Jean-Pierre Jeunet. 
Jeunet's latest work 'The Young and Prodigious T.S. Spivet,' starring Helena Bonham Carter, Judy Davis, and Kyle Catlett, was produced in 3D and shot at various locations in Canada and Washington D.C. The film has been released in Europe and the Weinstein Company has acquired North American theatrical release rights.

"Jean-Pierre Jeunet has thrilled us with movies including 'Amélie,' 'The City of Lost Children,' 'Delicatessen,' 'A Very Long Engagement,' and countless others," said Society Awards Chairman Buzz Hays of the True Image Company. "With 'T.S. Spivet,' he has graced us with an extraordinary work of 3D artistry," Hays added.

Harold Lloyd was a keen observer and was deeply influenced by the French filmmakers of his era," stated Suzanne Lloyd, Chairman of Harold Lloyd Entertainment. "As we celebrate the 100th anniversary of Harold first stepping in front of the camera, I know he would be thrilled that this award, bearing his name, be presented to an artist of Mr. Jeunet's passion and achievement," added Lloyd.

Confirmed guests to attend thus far include, Sky Productions Head of Non-Scripted, Celia Taylor, Anthony Geffen, President and CEO of Atlantic Productions, Chris deFaria; President, Animation, Digital Production and Visual Effects, Warner Bros. Pictures, and Marvel Studios, James Gunn, Director, "Guardians of the Galaxy.”


More than 150 entries were judged by the Society’s voters for this year’s honors. Submissions were received from all around the world, including: the U.S., China, Japan, Korea, the U.K., Canada, Germany, France, Belgium, Italy, and Taiwan.

About The International 3D And Advanced Imaging Society:
The International 3D And Advanced Imaging Society is a community of content creators and professionals whose mission is to develop the arts and technologies of 3D, advanced imaging and its innovators, as well as educate its members and their consumers. With over 60 companies and 1,800 professional members in 20 countries, the Society is open to individuals and organizations active in moving 3D and advanced imaging to an exciting new era of creative achievement and consumer support. For more information please visit: www.International3DSociety.com.

More on the awards as they happen! Stay tuned. Good luck to all!
 

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES Top GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY For Top Box Office

Movie patrons shelled out more this past weekend for TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES than Marvel's GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY but we'll see what happens as time marches on between these two huge 3D movies. I haven't seen TMNT yet, but it is in the cards.

TMNT took in $65.6 million making it the fourth highest grossing movie opening weekend in August of all time. It's probably the best cross over that producer Michael Bay could have entertained at this level - plenty of brand power and hungry for CGI.

Paramount stepped up almost immediately upon word of the solid box office returns to announce a sequel is in the works with an anticipated release date of June 3, 2016.

GUARDIANS remains a juggernaut. It has topped $314 million worldwide already and is still expanding into new markets. Look for standard Tier A returns for Marvel at the end of the run. Another grand slam.

DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES just topped $500 million worldwide and will easily top $400 million overseas to pad the final tally. Native 3D doesn't get better than the high standard set by  the DAWN 3D team and 3ality Technica! See it again!!

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes - Tim's Review

Tim here, and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes is the best blockbuster movie I have seen so far this year! It currently ranks as the second best movie I've seen this year behind The Grand Budapest Hotel, which would have been fantastic in the stereoscopic 3D format. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes has such a compelling story that is very well written and directed that it manages to transcend beyond the normal sci-fi summer blockbuster into a contemporary power struggle tale between two species and the factions within each.

In regards to the story, the writing, and character development it is not without some fault. There was a moment early on in the movie where the characters made a claim about how important it is for a certain character to come along with them into the ape territory to fix the dam to restore power to the human community. However after an incident he is sidelined without further explanation of how his expertise is missed when it comes to repairing the dam. Beyond that small plot hole I couldn't find any additional faults with the story. Although some of the main human characters lacked development the main ape characters made up for that. And the truth is the movie is more about the apes than the humans. However, it would have been nice to have equal attention given to both.

Within the apes' community there are three particular apes that had great development and were performed by the actors with great poise. In fact two of the ape performers were so mesmerizing in performance that their characters felt compellingly real. It was so easy to relate to both viewpoints and where each of those characters were coming from in terms of their motivations and intentions. Those two characters (and, the actors who played them) are Caesar (Andy Serkis) and Koba (Toby Kebbell) whose relationship is strongly built. Very early on it's displayed how they are close friends (loyal to each other) and rely on each other to lead the ape community. As the film progresses they represent two opposing sides within the ape community: peace and war.

Andy Serkis' performance as Caesar is magnificent and awe-inspiring! If Serkis does not get award nominations this award season it will be criminal. Through Serkis' performance the full weight that rests on Caesar's shoulders is so immediately conveyed. He's responsible for not only his family but, also, the entire ape community needs his leadership. Serkis conveys so many emotions visually in his performances, and succeeds on levels that are astounding, while the WETA Digital team that brought those emotions through the digital make did a fantastic job at making him believable.

The visual effects in this movie are remarkable; the best I've seen so far this year. The opening shot and closing shot of the movie, which have beautiful circularity, are wonderful examples of how far WETA has come. They focus on Caesar's eyes and use a zoom where beyond the close-up detail the audience witnesses the amazing level of artistry to create the skin and hair of the apes. The apes are shown in wet and rainy environments and it's amazing how realistic the hair reacts to that environmental element.

This is a movie that deserves to be seen in the 3D format!

Next the stereoscopic 3D in the movie was excellent. It was a very soft and subtle 3D, and it worked so well for the story. There were maybe a few places where I wished they had pushed it more, but overall it was really well thought out in its use. Props need to be given to 3ality Technica for their stereoscopic services on the film since it was their rigs that were used paired with the ARRI ALEXA. This is a movie that deserves to be seen in the 3D format! Michael Seresin's cinematography was absolutely beautiful and breathtaking. It felt very naturalistic, and his use of lighting was fantastic. He used the full latitude of light and as well used color, or lack of, to convey the emotional points of the story. It felt grim, and at the same time Edenesque.

The production design and art department did a fantastic job as well. They accomplished so much in building practical sets and environments for the actors to work in. As well they helped build a sense of realism with those aspects. One of the most impressive was the single abandoned gas station in the middle of a forest. The moment when the humans and apes manage to restore power and go to it is an astounding one. It was made all the more powerful due to the production design.

A movie isn't complete without the sound and score, and both were fantastic. The sounds of the ape world were very well designed. A lot was built around what was heard and not seen in the movie, and that couldn't have been accomplished without the astounding work of the sound team. One of my favorite shots in the film worked so well because of the sound. Completely the sound-scape was Michael Giacchino's score, which was hauntingly beautiful. It hit the soft moments, hit the fast paced action moments, and emotionally connected me to the world all that much more.

Director Matt Reeves deserves mad props for his excellent direction of this motion picture. Going back to the favorite shot I mentioned earlier: it was a long tracking shot similar to what Alfonso Cuarón did in Children of Men, however it's not quite as long. It follows Malcolm (Jason Clarke) in a building that is overrun by apes hunting down humans as he desperately looks for medicine. The choices Reeves made as a director were spot on in so many places. He brought so many talented people together to create a rich and engaging world set to a complex and emotional story and did a great job leading the charge.

I highly suggest you go out and see Dawn of the Planet of the Apes in 3D. Make sure to see it on the biggest possible screen. I promise you won't be disappointed.

#FourthOfApes Message From DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES

Watch the Independence Day message from DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES - some new shots in this and all shown with the dramatic narration of a famous speech you will all recall.

Can't wait for this movie. Critics who have seen it are raving! Currently sitting at 94% fresh over at RottenTomatoes. Don't forget this is a native 3D production using the industry's best of the best technology, like 3D rigs from our friends over at 3ality Technica.

Here's the storyline for the movie:
A growing nation of genetically evolved apes led by Caesar is threatened by a band of human survivors of the devastating virus unleashed a decade earlier. They reach a fragile peace, but it proves short-lived, as both sides are brought to the brink of a war that will determine who will emerge as Earth’s dominant species.

DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES opens on July 11.

Must Watch: Short Films Lay Groundwork For DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES

Check these three HD shorts that nicely help set up DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES. Love the innovation in this marketing! About 10 years have past since RISE so there is a need for something like this to help set the stage.

These are not movie clips but rather standalone shorts inspired and presented by the franchise. Here are titles of the shorts in chronological order:
- Spread of Simian Flu: Before the Dawn of the Apes (Year 1)
- Struggling to Survive: Before the Dawn of the Apes (Year 5)
- Story of the Gun: Before the Dawn of the Apes (Year 10)

I'd say it's a must watch. No spoilers. The actors are not involved with any of the other movies and some fairly good production value as well. The last short in particular is quite inventive.

Here's the storyline for the movie:
A growing nation of genetically evolved apes led by Caesar is threatened by a band of human survivors of the devastating virus unleashed a decade earlier. They reach a fragile peace, but it proves short-lived, as both sides are brought to the brink of a war that will determine who will emerge as Earth’s dominant species.


DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES opens on July 11 in native 3D shot on 3ality Technica rigs. Thanks sigma66 for the heads up.

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes VFX Evolution + Clips

Tim here, and there's a nice little BTS video for Dawn of the Planet of the Apes that appeared on IGN the other day. I've included it below followed by two short clips of a scenes from the film. The BTS video shows the challenges that had to be overcome with the performance capture technology and how far it has come since the last Apes film. It's very impressive to witness this kind of technological evolution combined with today's advanced native 3D - provided by 3ality Technica.

The scene that follows was shown to those in attendence at CinemaCon, and it got the most visceral reaction. For me it instantly became a favorite scene. It completely solidifies how insanely awesome the movie will be. Great tension. Enjoy.

Another clip that was released:

We're very close to the release of the movie. It lands in theaters on July 11^th.

Final Dawn of the Planet of the Apes Trailer

Hey everyone, Tim here, and I'm pleased to share the final trailer for The Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. This trailer includes a small bit of my favorite scene that was shown to us in full at CinemaCon. The movie looks incredible each and every time new footage is released - especially knowing it was shot on 3ality Technica 3D rigs. This trailer shows a bit more of the conflict and action between the ape community and surviving humans. The tensions are high in that clip Jim shared earlier this week, but the tensions seem to grow throughout the film until they reach the breaking point hinted at in this trailer.
Throughout the marketing campaign there has been photos and video showcasing the wonderful work of the actors behind the performance capture that helped bring the apes to life. With each image and video an immense amount of respect has been given to the artists who have worked so hard to bring the world to reality. It makes me very excited. I want to share the exclusive interview we got at MarketSaw with Andy Serkis during CinemaCon.

Here's the movie's storyline:
A growing nation of genetically evolved apes led by Caesar is threatened by a band of human survivors of the devastating virus unleashed a decade earlier. They reach a fragile peace, but it proves short-lived, as both sides are brought to the brink of a war that will determine who will emerge as Earth's dominant species.

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes hits theaters on July 11^th. Don't forget to visit the Official Website.

Watch: First Clip From DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES

Check out this clip from the actual movie DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES! Quite a bit of this clip has been seen in various other marketing releases like posters and trailers but not all in one rolling scene.

An important point raised in the clip's dialogue is the fact that many humans don't realize the apes are sentient. Apparently much has been held back from the human population and you can count on that single device as being an interesting channel of conflict - at least when the two factions first met up at least. Really looking forward to that.

Here's the movie's storyline:
A growing nation of genetically evolved apes led by Caesar is threatened by a band of human survivors of the devastating virus unleashed a decade earlier. They reach a fragile peace, but it proves short-lived, as both sides are brought to the brink of a war that will determine who will emerge as Earth’s dominant species.

DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES opens on July 11 in native 3D, shot on 3ality Technica rigs! Gotta love it.

MUST WATCH: New Performance Capture BTS Clip From DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES!

Wow - I love this! Take a look at how far technology has come - even since AVATAR - when it comes to the performance capture of actor's facial expressions. This Behind The Scenes (BTS) clip features a split screen approach to showing the on set action and what the end result is after digital post production.

Of course this whole movement has been spearheaded by a very capable actor (Andy Serkis) AND the artists behind the creation of these performances.

The digital work that's being done is of course married up with the industry leading native 3D produced from 3ality Technica's native 3D rigs. Man - can't wait to see all the technical execution done on this movie! I think I'll have to see it twice within a weekend; once with my Apes fanboy cap on and once from a purely technical view.

Anyway - please enjoy the work in this clip. I've watched it several times now and will continue to do ad nauseam - I like it that much.

Here's the storyline for the movie:
A growing nation of genetically evolved apes led by Caesar is threatened by a band of human survivors of the devastating virus unleashed a decade earlier. They reach a fragile peace, but it proves short-lived, as both sides are brought to the brink of a war that will determine who will emerge as Earth's dominant species.

DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES opens on July 11.

MUST WATCH: New Trailer For DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES !

You've got to see this trailer! My jaw hit the floor with a couple of these scenes from director Matt Reeves' DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES - how lifelike the apes are!! Weta - you're AMAZING!

But don't take my word for it, watch it. Just stunning. I'm so amped for this movie already - now I'm over the top. Imagine all this is gorgeous, natively shot 3D (with our friends from 3ality Technica) and the suspension of disbelief will be so solid!

Here's the storyline for the movie:
A growing nation of genetically evolved apes led by Caesar is threatened by a band of human survivors of the devastating virus unleashed a decade earlier. They reach a fragile peace, but it proves short-lived, as both sides are brought to the brink of a war that will determine who will emerge as Earth’s dominant species.

DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES opens on July 11.

Teaser For DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES Trailer That's Coming May 8

Here we go! I'm definitely feeling the anticipation for DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES and I love this teaser trailer. If your going to do a trailer for a trailer you absolutely must do it right. It's got to be short, concise and innvoative in some way - in others words, worth your time to watch it. I've watched it a dozen times so this is definitely a success for the movie's Instagram account.

Simply love how Caesar looks! If you haven't checked out Tim's exclusive interview with Andy Serkis (pictured above perf-capping Caesar) - I recommend it.

DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES opens on July 11. The new trailer launches May 8 - stay tuned! This is a native 3D production shot using industry leading 3ality Technica 3D rigs.

New Photos From DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES !

We saw one the apes clutching an assault weapon during a recent TV spot and now we have another one pointing a shotgun. Seems these apes aren't all about spears at all and have adapted to the human technology that suits their needs. Not all of it does apparently though.

It'll be interesting to see Caesar lead his group of apes while the humans struggle to make a comeback. I'm looking for human interest AND ape interest stories here and when the two factions meet - look out!

Here's the storyline for the movie:
A growing nation of genetically evolved apes led by Caesar is threatened by a band of human survivors of the devastating virus unleashed a decade earlier. They reach a fragile peace, but it proves short-lived, as both sides are brought to the brink of a war that will determine who will emerge as Earth’s dominant species.

Says Serkis: "Caesar not only has a wife, but also an infant son and a teenage son. This film centers around the notion of family — the survival of the family and what lengths you would go to to protect them when life is extremely hard and tough."

Check out our exclusive interview with Andy Serkis (Caesar) if you missed it! Tim and Andy talk about 3D, the 3ality Technica rigs - and you know, cool MarketSaw stuff :-)

DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES opens on July 11.

Source: USA Today

New Poster And TV Spot For DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES

"I need... to speak to Caesar!"

In case you've missed it, I've got the new TV spot and poster for DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES. The poster is via our friends over at Collider and it looks quite emotional actually and that's an accomplishment given there are only chimps in the shot. The eyes ARE uncanny.

The TV spot on the other hand shows just how far the scales have become unbalanced with the chimps and apes riding domesticated horses in clear military fashion. I can't tell if the spear points are made of stone or metal, but they are not solely wood. But are they limited to spears? Nope. A little further along and you can see one carrying an assault rifle - most likely acquired from a dead human.

I'll say it again - the VFX looks staggering. Perfect from what I can see. Add in native 3D cinematography shot on industry leading 3ality Technica rigs and you've got a massive visual treat for the eyes. Bring it on Caesar!

Speaking of Caesar, click here to read Tim's recent exclusive interview with man who performance captures him: Andy Serkis.

Here's the storyline for the movie:
A growing nation of genetically evolved apes led by Caesar is threatened by a band of human survivors of the devastating virus unleashed a decade earlier. They reach a fragile peace, but it proves short-lived, as both sides are brought to the brink of a war that will determine who will emerge as Earth's dominant species.

DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES opens on July11.

CinemaCon - Andy Serkis Interview

Tim here, and I had the great pleasure to sit down with the one and only Andy Serkis at CinemaCon for a One on One Interview! He was a complete gentleman and answered all my questions magnificently. We spoke about Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, The Jungle Book, Animal Farm, stereoscopic 3D, performance capture, and should the Oscars have a category specifically for actors in performance capture roles. You'll like his response to that last one. Andy was honored that night with CinemaCon's Vanguard Award, which is an award he rightfully deserved.

For those who don't know Andy Serkis has been confirmed by Warner Bros. to make his directorial debut on The Jungle Book, which is a new adaption of the book by Rudyard Kipling that will be much darker than the Disney version from the 1950's. Check out the interview below:

Tim: First, I want to congratulate you on The Jungle Book.

Andy: Oh, yes.

Tim: Got to ask, is it going to be 3D?

Andy: I would think at this point in time it is safe to say that it will be 3D.

Tim: Is it going to be native?

Andy: That is also a good question. It is still early days so I haven't got a definitive answer for that.

Tim: Moving on to Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, it was shot with 3ality Rigs, which you shot with on The Hobbit. You were the Second Unit Director, and this time you were acting with them. Was there any kind of difference for you working with the 3ality Rigs as an actor versus being behind the scenes?

Andy: I mean 3ality are fantastic rigs. They are incredible to work with. They're fantastic in the field and, of course, one of the things about Dawn of the Planet of the Apes was that we were shooting nearly every single scene on location. And they worked seamlessly. So they were great to work with, for sure, and I remember that from working with them on The Hobbit. They are very good to work with on the field. It's tough working with 3D in the field, and you need all the help that you can get. And 3ality, certainly, a great brand.

Tim: Yeah they are great. I've gotten to visit their headquarters and seen the awesome things they're doing, especially with their image processors.

Andy: Yeah, exactly. Yeah, I mean, it's terrific. And, Michael Seresin is the D.O.P on Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, and obviously Matt Reeves directing, and it was all very much shot in natural light. There's a real sense that these apes do exist, and it was not going for overly melodramatic lighting. It was very real. Everything was shot with vérité style, so it needed that support from the 3D, you know, so I think it works. I've seen a cut and it looks extraordinary.

Tim: That's awesome. I didn't get a chance to see it in 3D earlier when they showed us the clips...

Andy: Right... right.

Tim: ...but it looked incredible. And, going off of that, the performance capture: it looks like-- Not only has it improved, but so have the visual effects.

Andy: Absolutely.

Tim: What, for you, on this movie improved in terms of just the performance capture technology.

Andy: Well, this really is the first time that so many apes have been captured... once outside on location-- I think it is the first movie that has captured that amount of people at the same time. So that's incredible because really the great thing about performance capture is that is having everyone play off each other. In the first movie it was pretty much a domestic piece if you remember. I mean, Caesar was once-- You know, the first act was Caesar being brought up by Will (James Franco's character), and of course in the second act he goes into the sanctuary. This is a whole ape community that is brought to life. The cameras are now able to rigged very easily and over wide distances. The marker set-ups that we're using on our suits are, you know, they have a greater fidelity to our performances, and then the facial capture system (the head mounted cameras) they are much higher resolution.

Tim: Are they lighter?

Andy: I wouldn't say they are particularly lighter, but the cameras are much higher resolution. And then the visual effects side of it, what WETA is able to do now with interpolating the performance is unbelievable. I mean, it's another layer again. The skin texturing, all of the hair...

Tim: The hair is incredible. One of the things I noticed today.

Andy: Exactly. But, it's actually the nuance of performance that is absolutely transparent now between what the actor is doing and what you see on the screen with the apes' faces on. That is really WETA. WETA has broken so many territories and boundaries, rather... broken so boundaries with both facial and all the texturing over the course of the movies. What's great is that people are recognizing that and seeing it. It allows you to stay immersed in the story when your eye isn't taken away by something not looking one hundred percent.

Tim: Exactly. Okay, I'm going to transition... I just want to see do you have any TinTin updates?

Andy: Not at the moment. I mean, the desire is there from everybody to make another TinTin film.

Tim: Peter's just encumbered in...

Andy: Yeah, he has to finish the third Hobbit movie. You know, it's a huge last film.

Tim: Okay. I'm going to move on to what your expectations are for future performance capture films, like TinTin?

Andy: Well like The Jungle Book for instance.

Tim: The Jungle Book would be a perfect one.

Andy: The Jungle Book is going to be an entirally performance capture movie. As is another project which we at the at the Imaginarium, which is my company... my and Jonathan Cavendish's performance capture studio... we've been developing Animal Farm for a year and a half. And that is a perfect use of performance capture because not only do you get the actors playing all the scenes together and of course what they are metaphorically-- They are human beings portrayed as animals, but also you see a transition say for instance, with the pigs you see them growing from being four legged to two legged animals. You know, a great use of performance capture. So we've been evolving that over the last year and a half. What we intend to do is fairly hot on the heels of The Jungle Book is to bring that into play.

Tim: That would be a great one. I love Orwell. I remember reading that when I was a kid. That is a great one. I'm going to move on to my last question since I'm near out of time. Do you believe that the Academy Awards should create a category for Best Performance Capture Performance?

Andy: I've always said, actually, that I don't think that there should be because really at the end of the day performance capture is a technology; it's another set of cameras that captures an actor's performances. So it's not a two-dimensional camera, or a 3D rig--

Tim: So your saying you want actors to be treated equally?

Andy: Actors are actors, and they are delivering performances. It's just the method by which their performances are caught that's different. How one has to think of it these days is that instead of putting on a costume and make-up and playing a role, the costume and make-up is being applied after the fact. It's digital costume and make-up. The underlying performance is what is crafted and authored on the stage between the other actors, yourself, and the director in exactly the same way. So there is absolutely no difference. Really I've always believed that one is playing another acting role. And, I've never drawn a distinction between live action and performance capture acting.

Tim: Okay, that's awesome to hear because I wish you had been nominated for first Gollum, and then even now Caesar. Hopefully you can get a nomination.

Andy: Thank you.

Tim: And with that I'm out of time. I'd like to thank you for taking the time to chat with me.

Andy: You're welcome.

Tim: And I hope that Dawn of the Planet of the Apes is a huge success.

Andy: Thank you.

So awesome to sit down with such a great actor! Thank you Andy and 20^th Century Fox for allowing me the opportunity to sit down and talk with him. Funny thing, I interviewed Caesar from Dawn of the Planet of the Apes in Caesars Palace. It was a great interview, and I wish I could have got more time. Hopefully again in the future we'll get to talk. Maybe when The Jungle Book is being released. If you'd like more information about Andy Serkis' company The Imaginarium Studios you can check out the site at: theimaginariumstudios.com. And let's hope that Andy gets the well deserved nomination for his performance as Caesar this coming awards season. And, to make Dawn of the Planet of the Apes a huge success go to your favorite movie theater and see it in 3D and IMAX on July 11^th, 2014.

20th Century Fox Previews a Massive Summer 3D Blockbuster Line-Up at CinemaCon

Tim here, and I just finished the 20^th Century Fox CinemaCon presentation! They decided to show more than to tell during the presentation, and as a result we got to see a lot of footage from their upcoming movies, both 2D and 3D releases. For the 3D releases everything we got to see was in 2D because they are all still in post-production, so the 3D isn't ready yet. However, we saw the opening of X-Men: Days of Future Past, the beginning of How to Train Your Dragon 2, and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.

The footage from each of these projects looked spectacular, and it's likely the effects are incomplete. X-Men: Days of Future Past in particular looked great, and of course the beginning was an on the edge of your seat action pumped beginning to the picture. I won't go into any spoilerish details, however it is sure to set in motion the events of the movie with panache. The film was shot with 3ality Technica Rigs and the ARRI ALEXA. 

How to Train Your Dragon 2 is set 5-years after the events of the previous film and it looks like the Vikings have adopted Dragon racing into their new pastime activities. However, where's Hiccup? He's experimenting still with his dragon buddy Toothless. I got to see some of that sequence in 3D from the previous trailer and it looks great in the format. We can be sure that this will be great in the format like the last one. It also looks like a fun second installment. 

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes is definitely my most anticipated movie of the summer, and the footage shown justified those expectations. This was shot with 3ality Technica Rigs and the ARRI ALEXA also and the footage looks amazing. It's awe inspiring how gorgeous the picture looks and how seamless the VFX are when added to the real world environments. The CGI is so lifelike, and yet I'm sure it will be even better by the time the movie is released. Heck, in stereoscopic 3D this will hands down look breathtaking.

Fox also teased us with a few images from Ridley Scott's Exodus, which just finished shooting in native stereoscopic 3D with the 3ality Technica Rigs and the RED Epic Dragon camera. No footage sadly, but considering how well Scott used 3D on Prometheus it's easy to believe this will look just as sensational.

The big three summer blockbusters from 20^th Century Fox are all released this year on these dates: X-Men: Days of Future Past - 23 May 2014; How to Train Your Dragon 2 - 13 June 2014; Dawn of the Planet of the Apes - 11 July 2014. And finally Ridley Scott's Exodus hits 12 December 2014 in 3D.

Details Of DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES Revealed By Gary Oldman!

Ok so if you're a fan of the franchise then you may want to not read the following information that may or may not be revealed in subsequent trailers. One would assume that it may, but it may not as well so if you want a pristine viewing of DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES in July, keep that in mind.

Can't wait to see this native 3D production (3ality Technica rigs) see light in my local theater!

WARNING SPOILERS:

Gary Oldman gave some details on his character and the story around him in DOTPOTA which takes place 10 years after RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES.

Gary Oldman:
"He's (Oldman's character) the sort of designated leader if you will of this community of those who were lucky enough to survive the flu, the disease and ensuing social uprising from it - so they're sort of survivors... and he was a police officer, so he's more of the kind of elected leader. And they need power and there's a power station and some of my people go out and see if it's operational, if it's still out there, and then they discover that there's a whole community of apes living there. We believed that they were all completely fire-bottomed and wiped out.

(Oldman's character) experienced great loss, personally and there's only one answer for him and that's to wipe them out. I see him as sort of the hero of the piece.

(Director Matt Reeves) was more interested in not just keeping the franchise alive but he wanted to make it more of a human story; he wanted to explore what had happened and keep it more focused on the human side of it before the story becomes the PLANET OF THE APES as we know it from the original."

More info when we get it! DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES opens on July 11.

Source: MTV

PLANET OF THE APES 3 Re-ups Director Matt Reeves!

Seems DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES is causing quite a stir internally at Fox as the studio has decided to re-up director Matt Reeves for the 3rd movie of the rebooted franchise.

This is great news for fans of the Apes Universe, including myself. Reeves (LET ME IN, CLOVERFIELD) is perfect to tap again for it and obviously he has taken well to native 3D using 3ality Technica's rigs. Let the man do it again and again I say.

From Deadline: "This time, (Reeves) will write the script with Mark Bomback, one of the writers who scripted the sequel. Amanda Silver and Rick Jaffa were the scribes who resurrected the franchise with Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes, the Ruper Wyatt-directed film that grossed $482 million worldwide in 2011. The directing deal is done and the writer deals are being worked out right now. It is likely that Reeves will go right into the third film, a priority for the studio."

Here is the storyline for DAWN:
A growing nation of genetically evolved apes led by Caesar is threatened by a band of human survivors of the devastating virus unleashed a decade earlier. They reach a fragile peace, but it proves short-lived, as both sides are brought to the brink of a war that will determine who will emerge as Earth’s dominant species.

For all of our DAWN coverage including the latest trailer, click here.

DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES opens on July 18, 2014.

Source: Deadline

New Trailer For DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES !

Fox and director Matt Reeves have released the first trailer for the NATIVE 3D production DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES. It's definitely looking intense and we haven't yet begun to see anything substantial yet!

As we've just posted, DAWN is a native 3D production using the rigs and services of 3ality Technica.

But what we can all definitely see that we have surely crossed the "uncanny valley" yet again with DAWN and Caesar looks amazing! The evolution of Andy Serkis into a silicon chip is just about complete! I can't believe the details in his eyes and the random nature and believe-ability of his facial tics. These are things that we humans are already very used to and may not even notice them in other humans, but take that away from a CGI character? Forget it; it's glaring and we see it right away.

I am so looking forward to this second movie of the franchise. Fingers crossed for an amazing story to match the visuals and 3D!

Here is the storyline for the movie:
A growing nation of genetically evolved apes led by Caesar is threatened by a band of human survivors of the devastating virus unleashed a decade earlier. They reach a fragile peace, but it proves short-lived, as both sides are brought to the brink of a war that will determine who will emerge as Earth’s dominant species.

DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES opens on July 18, 2014.

EXCLUSIVE: Both Ridley Scott's EXODUS And Matt Reeves' DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES To Be Released In Native 3D!!

Yes! I believe MarketSaw is the first to have this information for you. I'm very excited that Ridley Scott's EXODUS and Matt Reeves DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES will both be released in Native 3D! While we have known for some time now that both EXODUS and DAWN were going to be 3D, we didn't know if they were going to be conversions or not. They're not.

I've further found out that both of these stereo projects will be using the industry leading 3ality Technica rigs for the productions! These guys are at the top of their game, nailing tentpole after tentpole with an upcoming list that also includes X-MEN: DAYS OF FUTURE PAST, POMPEII, THE HOBBIT: THE DESOLATION OF SMAUG and HERCULES.

I've heard from two very reliable sources (not 3ality Technica obviously - they are under NDA) that this is happening and I couldn't be happier!

The photos are taken from the set of EXODUS (Christian Bale is standing beside the 3ality Technica rig that is holding the new 6K RED DRAGON cameras!) and the sets are impressively massive and detailed.

Dariusz Wolski is again teaming up with Ridley as his cinematographer (they simply nailed PROMETHEUS - gorgeous picture!) and they are at it again with EXODUS and they are shooting with 6K cameras.

Here are some details on the RED DRAGON:
- Dragon's full frame resolution is 6144x3160 and it's sensor size is 30.7x15.8mm, which is an aspect ratio of 1.94:1.
- What does 6K work out to for still shooters? 19.4 megapixels, print resolution of 20.48x10.53 inches at 300 DPI.
- Dragon's ISO 2000 appears "cleaner" than the Mysterium X at ISO 800. Basically less than half the noise of the MX sensor.
- Dragon's currently been measured at 18+ stops of captured dynamic range. Noticeably more than modern film stocks.
- The Dragon Upgrade itself represents a new sensor, new ASIC boards, and other new technologies.
- Max frames per second at full resolution? 100fps at 6K for Epic Dragon, 60fps at 5K for Scarlet Dragon.
- What about IR and the OLPF? There's a new IR OLPF designed specifically for Dragon.
- What about power consumption and heat? The Dragon sensor uses less power and generates less heat than the Mysterium X Sensor.
Above is a quick look at how the Red Dragon sensor compares to standard motion picture film formats. Notable observations to take from this are:
- Dragon's 6K is noticeably wider than S35, but nearly exactly as tall as S35 Academy. Useful for anamorphic shooters.
- Dragon's 5K is a smidge wider than S35 Full Aperture and a smidge shorter as S35 3-perf. Likely providing enough room for all S35 designed lenses.
- Dragon's 4K is just a bit thinner than S35 Academy.
- Dragon's 3K is noticeably wider than S16, and just a bit taller.
6K is the maximum resolution of Epic Dragon. 6144x3160 or 19.4 megapixels at a 1.94:1 aspect ratio.
6K is 9.36x more pixels than 1080p.
6K is 8.78x more pixels than 2K.
6K is 2.2x more pixels than 4K.
6K is 1.4x more pixels than 5K.
At 300 DPI you can make a 20.48x10.53 inch print from a full 6K Dragon image.
At 150 DPI you can make a 40.96x21.067 inch print from a full 6K Dragon image.
6K is 14% more resolution than 5K for a pristine full debayer down to 4K. Meaning it's a 66.7% down sample/debayer to 4K.

More info when I get it! I'll check with 3ality Technica to see if I can get any information about the rigs / tech / crews they are using despite their NDA. The 2014 3D movie calendar will be updated shortly...

DRAGON specs from RedUser. First photo via JustJared.

New 3D Announcements: THE WOLVERINE, X-MEN: DAYS OF FUTURE PAST, DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES And PERCY JACKSON: SEA OF MONSTERS!! And More!

Wow - another landslide of 3D movie announcements, this time from Fox. THE WOLVERINE, X-MEN: DAYS OF FUTURE PAST, DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES and PERCY JACKSON: SEA OF MONSTERS all will be presented in 3D when they are released between 2013 to 2015 (dates below).

Needless to say I'm excited. We are finally seeing the X-Men move to 3D after all these years! And of course the modern reboot of THE PLANET OF THE APES should have been in 3D from the get-go.

Further, there is fairly good speculation that Bryan Singer's X-MEN: DAYS OF FUTURE PAST will be shot in native 3D and at 48 frames per second - like Peter Jackson's THE HOBBIT movies and James Cameron's upcoming AVATAR sequels. Singer himself expressed his love of the format while hanging out with Jackson and Cameron at THE HOBBIT: AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY's premiere (pictured at Phillipa Boyen's home).

If that isn't rumor fodder enough for you, then consider what Sir Ian McKellan teased recently on the matter:
"Whether we'll be filming X-MEN in 3D and 48 frames per second we'll have to wait and find out."

So yes, if it looks like HFR 3D, smells like HFR 3D and feels like HFR 3D - it probably is. Here's hoping!

Here are the release dates for the movies from Fox:

THE WOLVERINE – July 26, 2013
PERCY JACKSON: SEA OF MONSTERS – August 16, 2013
DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES – May 23, 2014
X-MEN: DAYS OF FUTURE PAST – July 18, 2014
THE FANTASTIC FOUR – March 6, 2015

One has to assume that THE FANTASTIC FOUR will be released in 3D as well. After all it is a Marvel license too and with the success of THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN in 3D  (with Sony) and THE AVENGERS massive hit earlier this year, it should be a no-brainer.

Sources: IGN | ExhibitorRelations