OPEN SEASON: AN IMAX 3-D EXPERIENCE (opening Sept. 29) marks the second IMAX film with Sony Pictures Ent., following SPIDER-MAN 2: THE IMAX EXPERIENCE in 2004. OPEN SEASON, which also marks the first 3D-animated feature from Sony Pictures Animation, has been digitally converted into IMAX 3-D and IMAX DMR (Digital Re-mastering) technology, making it a more immersive experience akin to THE POLAR EXPRESS in IMAX 3-D.
With IMAX 3-D, viewers will duck for cover as acorns fly overhead and feel the roller-coaster-like thrill of going over waterfalls, which even surprised director Jill Culton, after her first experience with it.
"The amazing immersive quality of IMAX 3D will give moviegoers an opportunity to experience OPEN SEASON, the first full-length animated motion picture from Sony Pictures Animation, in a very special way," said Rory Bruer, president of Domestic Distribution Releasing.
OPEN SEASON: AN IMAX 3-D EXPERIENCE will play exclusively in IMAX 3D, IMAX Dome and IMAX Theaters worldwide, and Sony Pictures Releasing will be the exclusive distributor of the film to IMAX theaters worldwide.
The IMAX 3-D DMR process is based upon basic principals of how the eyes and brain work together to naturally create the three-dimensional world we live in. Most people see through two eyes and although both eyes automatically focus on a single center point they see it from two slightly different positions. This creates two slightly different images, which the brain fuses to give the world three-dimensional depth.
IMAX 3-D takes advantage of this natural process. An IMAX 3-D film actually consists of two separate strips of film projected onto the screen at the same time, one with images captured from the viewpoint of the right eye, and the other with the left eye. Special IMAX 3-D glasses allow the left eye to only see the left image and the right eye to only see the right, allowing the brain to do the rest by fusing the two images and creating a three-dimensional visual that appears to come off the screen. The distance, or separation between left and right viewpoints determines the intensity of the 3-D; too little or too much will distort.
The implementation of dual filmstrip technology is far superior to the old fashioned red-blue anaglyphic 3-D, which combines left- and right-eye images onto a single strip of film, compromising sharpness and color. IMAX 3-D technology eliminates this compromise and enhances the images by not only using the worlds largest film format (15/70mm), but also by using two separate strips of film for both image capture and projection.
When OPEN SEASON is shown in conventional theaters, only a single viewpoint is projected. The original 3D modeling of the film contains the data required to create that necessary second eye and IMAX uses this to carefully calculate the appropriate separation from the 2-D viewpoint to create the ideal 3-D viewing experience.
Both left and right eye images are then digitally re-mastered into the IMAX format using IMAX DMR technology and recorded onto two separate prints of 15/70 film for projection in IMAX 3-D for the worlds most realistic and immersive movie experience. With crystal clear, larger than life, 3-D images complemented by exhilarating state-of-the-art surround sound, audiences feel as though they are in the movie.
IMAX theaters specialized design and unobstructed views place audiences right in the on-screen action. Gigantic IMAX 3-D screens up to eight stories high eliminate the discomfort and decapitated edges of smaller-format 3-D systems. The screen, coated with a specialty high-performance metallic paint, has a slight curvature that extends beyond the field of geometric recognition, incorporating some of the audiences peripheral vision, enhancing audience members feelings of being in the film.
Founded in 1967, IMAX Corp. (www.imax.com) is one of the world's leading entertainment technology companies and the newest distribution window for Hollywood films. IMAX delivers among the world's best cinematic presentations using proprietary IMAX, IMAX 3-D, and IMAX DMR technology. The IMAX brand is recognized throughout the world for extraordinary and immersive entertainment experiences. As of June 30, 2006, there were 274 IMAX theaters operating in 38 countries.
Bill Desowitz, former editor of VFXWorld, is currently the Crafts Editor of IndieWire.
