It Is Official: TRANSFORMERS 3 Will Be 3D!!

Michael Bay may have been against 3D. He still may be against 3D. But his TRANSFORMERS 3 finale WILL be in 3D! Bay himself confirmed that nugget of information to USAToday.

Bay has had a long standing tradition of bashing 3D, but you know what? I think it was all just show. I think as a filmmaker he wants to be cutting edge - his films certainly give that aura. So naturally he will eventually come over to stereoscopic 3D. And he has.

So the big question is: 2D to 3D conversion or native 3D? Does Bay have the guts to shoot in native 3D after all he has said, or will he hand over the reins of his movie to a conversion shop? Time will tell, but my instinct says he will go native 3D. We'll see!

Apparently the movie's storyline involves the US - USSR space race. Interesting.

Bay is quite certain that this pic will be the last: "As a trilogy, it really ends," he says. "It could be rebooted again, but I think it has a really killer ending."

On the box office side, LOOK OUT. This is a franchise finale movie and the first two have done exceptionally well ($709m and $836m worldwide). Add on the 3D premium and guess what? You have the makings of a billion dollar movie and potentially the power to move to third place all-time. Megan Fox or not. More when I get it...

Michael Bay is Not Impressed By 3D Conversion Tests of Transformers Films

Michael here. It seems like Michael Bay is against the idea of converting Tranformers 3 to 3D, and James Cameron is also speaking out against quick conversion jobs.

Check out the below quote from Bay, From Deadline.com:

I shoot complicated stuff, I put real elements into action scenes and honestly, I am not sold right now on the conversion process.... Right now, it looks like fake 3-D, with layers that are very apparent. You go to the screening room, you are hoping to be thrilled, and you're thinking, huh, this kind of sucks. People can say what they want about my movies, but they are technically precise, and if this isn't going to be excellent, I don't want to do it. And it is my choice.... I'm used to having the A-team working on my films, and I'm going to hand it over to the D-team, have it shipped to India and hope for the best? This conversion process is always going to be inferior to shooting in real 3-D. Studios might be willing to sacrifice the look and use the gimmick to make $3 more a ticket, but I'm not. Avatar took four years. You can’t just shit out a 3D movie. I’m saying, the jury is still out.”

And Cameron says: (also from Deadline)

After Toy Story, there were 10 really bad CG movies because everybody thought the success of that film was CG and not great characters that were beautifully designed and heartwarming. Now, you’ve got people quickly converting movies from 2D to 3D, which is not what we did. They’re expecting the same result, when in fact they will probably work against the adoption of 3D because they’ll be putting out an inferior product.

I love how Bay is never afraid to speak his mind about what he thinks is best for his movies. And I agree with Cameron that studios are taking the wrong message from the success of Avatar: Conversions, if they aren't going to harm S3D in the long run, need to be of a high quality.

Of course, my real hope is that we see more films shot natively in 3D. I know Bay says his shooting style is too aggressive for 3D cameras and that, according to Deadline, he found them too heavy and cumbersome for the fast pace action scenes he shoots. However, I think he could definitely find a way to make it work. Look what Nolan did with those huge IMAX cameras on The Dark Knight.

Michael Bay Actively Testing TRANSFORMERS For S3D!!

Jim here. Michael Bay is singing a different tune these days as the AVATAR effect is rebounding off of all major tentpoles the studios are involved in.

If you will remember, Bay had originally told me that 3D was a fad and he thought that he shot too aggressively for 3D. Well he is revisiting that statement right now under what is sure to be studio pressure. It definitely seems he is leaning toward a 3D conversion though.

MTV recently got some comments from Bay on what he has been up to with the franchise and this is what he said about 3D: "It's a process we're testing with some 'Transformers' scenes," he said. "How successful it is with my movie in terms of a lot of real stuff coming out of the frame, real dirt, real complicated little particles coming towards the lens, because hopefully that process will work. I've seen some tests that look great on other movies. I just want to see how it looks on my footage."

We all know that TRANSFORMERS 3 will be in stereoscopic 3D. It really is a moot point by now. Imagine the smiles when you tack on the 3D premium for the already established franchise! Imagine the smiles on us when we see the action in 3D too. :-) It sure isn't about the plot now is it?

Toldya! Warner Confirms MarketSaw Exclusive: Tentpole S3D Conversions Announced!! ...And TRANSFORMERS 3D??!?

Jim here. Gotta love our sources!

Warner has officially confirmed MarketSaw's exclusive post and announced that the tentpoles up for S3D conversion will be none other than CLASH OF THE TITANS and HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS part 1 AND 2.

The official release date for TITANS is now April 2.

I am particularly happy to hear that HP will fully go S3D after only having portions of previous movies converted. I think that franchise was made for the format and we are finally seeing that happen. Can a conversion compete with the likes of AVATAR? Well, there are few properties with the awareness of a HARRY POTTER so it will be interesting to compare them to say the least!

Further S3D conversions for the studio include GUARDIANS OF GA'HOOLE (September 24, 2010) and CATS & DOGS: THE REVENGE OF KITTY GALORE (July 30, 2010).

Paramount also hit the news (via Variety) and it seems my post about how AVATAR will affect other directors is ringing true! Michael Bay is being cornered by the studio to make TRANSFORMERS 3 in S3D - the only real question that now remains is whether he has the kahunas to shoot in native 3D or rely on a third party to convert it in post production. I knew this was coming and that's why I was so shocked to hear what he told me at ShoWest last year: He thinks 3D is a gimmick and a fad. BUT he was curious as to how AVATAR will turn out. It turned out well Mr. Bay! :-)

So will we see TF3 in S3D? Of course we will. There was never any real doubt in my mind. Just like other projects that are claiming to be 2D right now. It's only a matter of time!

Oh and Nikke, I used Toldya, not Toldja - ok? :-)

The Impact Of AVATAR On Directors Like Michael Bay

Jim here. Do you remember my questions for Michael Bay last spring at ShoWest about 3D? Bay essentially dismissed 3D as almost laughable. Then he backtracked somewhat to leave the door open to see whether AVATAR does well. He did attempt to explain why he thinks he can't use 3D on the Transformers movies, but we all know that it can be done.

AVATAR's final battle scenes lock that one up don't they? Some of the most complex battle scenes you will ever see were in AVATAR - in full, glorious 3D.

I don't mind when a director thinks of himself as old school. Heck Bay has been around the block and has earned the right to say anything he wants - and yes, this post is hopefully going to put some pressure on the powers that be to consider S3D for future Transformers movies because I believe that the fans are the ones missing out here. Do you know where I am going with this?

I have uploaded my questions and answers for Michael Bay so you can have a listen again to put things in perspective:



So while Bay is saying 3D is a gimmick (I was stunned to hear him say that), he is leaving the door open for future use. Wise move. You can be fairly certain that Paramount will be breathing down Bay's throat for S3D for Transformers 3 given the outrageous cash that AVATAR is generating. Can you imagine what TF2 would have made with the extra impact that 3D brings? And then add on an extra 25% box office on top of that increased box office?

Now let's be CLEAR here: I am not saying that Bay is going to deliver a significant plot here that compares with a Cameron movie - he has not done that yet. What I am saying is that with his visuals in 3D it could be quite an achievement. I am not going to lie here - I like Michael Bay movies. They have their place in my library. Some days I feel like a no holds barred action movie and he fits the bill. But until he embraces 3D, he really is making his movies in a second class fashion. And if I know Bay, he does not want to be second class in anything.

Don't fool yourself. AVATAR has changed the game in amazing ways. This generation will expect and WANT to have more of this caliber movie! TINTIN is really going to capture this attention as it is using the same technology as what Cameron used and is being delivered by two of the greatest storytellers of all time. If Bay does not embrace this technology and run with it, his movies will start to fade and fade fast compared to what is coming in the next decade.

The bottom line is that directors like Michael Bay will have to adapt. Even against their will. I doubt Bay is NOT impressed with AVATAR - he has to see what is there for him. Bay is too good a director to not understand this.

Will S3D kill off 2D entirely? Someday perhaps. But I don't want 2D to completely go away - I enjoy movies - period. It is just that I enjoy 3D movies MORE. I expect to see 2D movies for quite sometime. But I DO expect 3D screens to outnumber 2D screens soon and tentpole films to favor 3D. That is coming, mark my words.

If I was a director, I would get off my butt and do something original and innovative in S3D and stop waiting for Cameron to pull off another magic show. Bay is capable of doing wonderful things in 3D. Jackson, Spielberg and Ridley Scott WILL be doing wonderful things. The time is now to stand up and show what you are made of.

AVATAR was the line in the sand. Everyone wants to be on the right side of that line and it is clearly S3D.

Exclusive: Michael Bay NOT attached to "The Birds" And Not Interested In Transformers 3 In 3D (So far...)

**Update: April 4 - Got the video for you; see below...

Jim here. I had the opportunity to ask Michael Bay a couple of 3D related questions today at ShoWest. And had some startling revelations:

1. He is NOT attached to THE BIRDS. Despite a clear history of his supposed involvement with the project - he emphatically shot down that he has "nothing to do with it".

2. When asked about TRANSFORMERS 3 being in 3D, he states that no he won't be doing that - BUT throws in the caveat that it is because the ways he shoots is too aggressive for 3D cameras. He says that they haven't come up with a system where he could be precise enough.

Well, listen guys - I suspect that once he sees AVATAR he tune will change drastically. In fact, I would like to suggest that Bay knock on Cameron's door and take a look at the work in progress. Perhaps he will. Perhaps he will see just what is possible with stereoscopic 3D today through Cameron as has Spielberg, Jackson, Soderbergh and Scott have (to name a few).

Here is the video of the question - and others - courtesy of Frosty over at Collider. We had a slight technical problem with our video capture, but it's all good. You just don't get to see my smiling face while I question him...

Confirmation: "Transformers 2" Will NOT Be In 3D

Hi all - Jim here. I have some bad news for stereoscopic 3D fans who were looking forward to seeing TRANSFORMERS 2 in 3D: It's not going to happen.

If you will remember back in May we discovered that TRANSFORMERS 2 is heavily rumored to be shot in 3D as Dolby listed the movie in their ShoWest 2008 newsletter (originally found here) along side these other previously confirmed 3D flicks in their project hopper:

2008
Bolt
The Dark Country
Horrorween
Igor
Journey to the Center of the Earth 3D
The Smurfs

2009
Avatar
A Christmas Carol
Coraline
Frankenweenie
Ice Age 3
Monsters vs. Aliens
Tintin
Transformers 2

(To my knowledge, IGOR and THE SMURFS are NOT in stereoscopic 3D. If anyone has evidence to the contrary - please contact me).

Turns out that this in-the-know source (Dolby) may have been accurate back then, but since then Michael Bay has decided not to pursue it for the second iteration.

I have an inside source that contacted me and relayed that TRANSFORMERS 2 will definitely not be available in stereoscopic 3D and that this information was provided by both Digital Domain (effects company that Bay partly owns) and Michael Bay himself. This person is in a position to know this information first hand. It is accurate.

MarketSaw's list of upcoming 3D movies - rumored, planned, in production and in theaters - has been updated.

*Sigh* Next time I hope! We were conjecturing in various post comments that someone would have noticed the distinctly different camera set up that 3D demands over a normal configuration - that definitely would have leaked out given the lacklustre security around Trans2. Transformers 3D - kinda flows off the tongue don't you think?