A series of TV production consortia have been formed to facilitate the transition to 3DTV, writes Adrian Pennington, with facilities group Technicolor taking a central role.
The consortia, which are based in Europe and North America, comprise 3D rig equipment manufacturers, broadcasters and producers with Technicolor as the lead post production arm.
“Broadcasters and producers realize that they need to pool resources to ensure that 3D TV productions achieve quality on time and on budget,” said Pierre Routhier, Technicolor’s Vice President for 3D product strategy and business development.
“What we’re saying to broadcasters and producers is that if you want us to perform colour and final post on a certain budget you have to follow certain rules,” Routhier explained. “Your key staff will go through training [at Technicolor] and we will certify your stereographer. If you follow the rules and pass certification we will perform post for ‘this time and this cost’. If you need to deviate or want to be more artistic then we’ll explore this with you.”
“TV Producers and broadcasters realize they don’t have the time to get 3D right all of the time and that they will have to limit their creative choices,” he elaborated. “If doing episodic TV there is no time to go and set-up rigs for every shot so we are going to set strict parameters. There will be set-ups for close ups, medium shots and long shots. If you deviate from this you are not going to be able to do it with the time and budget you have. If you want to be creative then plan one episode where you are going to go crazy and work on this while doing the other episodes.”
Exact details of the consortia will be released later this year.
Technicolor is also to launch a high-end post production conversion unit for feature film and television productions at locations in London (MPC), LA (Burbank) and India (Bangalore).
Technicolor has just launched Certifi3D, a software tool created to ensure that 3D material meets minimum comfort requirements before it is delivered to consumers.
www.technicolor.com
