{"id":47575,"date":"2025-09-06T16:18:10","date_gmt":"2025-09-06T16:18:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/47575\/"},"modified":"2025-09-06T16:18:10","modified_gmt":"2025-09-06T16:18:10","slug":"could-3d-make-a-comeback-with-the-help-of-low-cost-ai","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/47575\/","title":{"rendered":"Could 3D Make a Comeback With the Help of Low-Cost AI?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tIs 3D<\/a> cinema set for another big revival? Audience trends and industry moves point in that direction, but it may be fueled by a potentially destructive force: artificial intelligence.<\/p>\n

\n\tNorth American 3D ticket sales jumped 34% from May, June and July 2024 to the same period this year, according to RealD\u2019s study of comScore data. With formats like RealD 3D, 4DX and IMAX 3D dominating premium exhibition, seven of the top ten new releases from May to July made a combined $222 million on 3D screens, or 13% of all tickets sold.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe upward trend reflects moviegoers\u2019 willingness to pay a pricey $18.51 for an average 3D ticket, around $4 more than 2D, per RealD\/comScore. It bodes well for a wide range of films, from James Cameron\u2019s epic \u201cAvatar: Fire and Ash,\u201d coming Dec. 19 from 20th Century Studios, to a restoration of Werner Herzog<\/a>\u2018s 2010 arthouse doc \u201cCave of Forgotten Dreams,\u201d out early next year from the Independent Film Company.<\/p>\n

\n\tAnd that\u2019s just the tip of the iceberg. Rollouts of new laser projection technology are improving issues with screen darkness, if not some viewers\u2019 headaches and nausea. Cameron\u2019s Lightstorm Entertainment is prepping a slate that includes two more \u201cAvatar\u201d sequels (due in 2029 and 2031, respectively), a Billie Eilish 3D concert project and bigger plans to be announced soon. Immersive venues like Cosm in LA and Dallas and the Sphere in Las Vegas are letting audiences experience old films in a spectacular new way. And event cinema is drawing more crowds to theaters. Add in AI technology that could dramatically lower 2D to 3D conversion costs, and a flood of new and first-time-in-3D revivals could be coming soon to a multiplex near you.<\/p>\n

\n\tImax Theaters president Mark Welton says the Imax 3D format \u201cis an important part of us,\u201d but he downplays its North American impact. \u201cDemand is very strong in the international markets, especially Asia-Pacific over the last few years,\u201d he says. Partly in response to this, domestic studios are stepping up their game. \u201cThey\u2019re putting more thought behind [3D],\u201d says AMC Theatres senior VP Ryan Wood. \u201cFor example, when \u2018How to Train Your Dragon\u2019 was coming, a lot of 3D was in their initial marketing.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tBut another 3D renaissance \u2014 following the format\u2019s early 20th century introduction, \u201950s heyday and post-2009 boom after \u201cAvatar\u2019s\u201d $2.9 billion success \u2014 would have to overcome several hurdles. For starters, 3D home video systems and Blu-ray\/DVD releases have all but dried up in the age of streaming, virtually eliminating ancillary revenue from the format.<\/p>\n

\n\tCameron\u2019s $2.3 billion-grossing \u201cAvatar: The Way of Water\u201d from 2022 \u2014 returning for a week on Oct. 3 \u2014 likely inspired the growing number of 3D conversions for big-budget films in select theaters. Official numbers are difficult to come by, but one industry estimate placed a live-action tentpole film\u2019s conversion cost at around $15 million in the early 2010s. In recent years, fierce competition, consolidation and more overseas labor brought that down to around $5 million. So studios are mainly placing safe bets on franchise films, including late 2025 entries \u201cTron: Ares,\u201d \u201cPredator: Badlands,\u201d \u201cWicked: For Good,\u201d \u201cThe SpongeBob Movie: Search for Squarepants\u201d and \u201cZootopia 2.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThe market contraction for original IP in 3D can also be felt at film festivals. Compared to an era with big-budget New York Film Festival premieres like Martin Scorsese\u2019s 2011 fantasy \u201cHugo\u201d and Ang Lee\u2019s 2012 adventure \u201cLife of Pi,\u201d the only 3D film in this year\u2019s Toronto lineup is Blake Williams\u2019 experimental short \u201cFelt.\u201d And the only 3D feature playing at any top fall fest is a 15th anniversary 6K restoration of Werner Herzog\u2019s \u201cCave of Forgotten Dreams,\u201d unveiled Sept. 1 at the Telluride Film Festival.<\/p>\n

\n\tAt a spry 82 years old, Herzog just received a lifetime achievement award in Venice and has two new features \u2014 the Kate and Rooney Mara-led \u201cBucking Fastard\u201d and the doc \u201cGhost Elephants\u201d \u2014 plus two new books. The German auteur\u2019s \u201cCave\u201d presents the oldest-known paintings in the world with his distinctive, sometimes deadpan narration.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cTo me, it looks almost like a new film,\u201d he says. \u201cThe [epilogue] about radioactive albino mutant crocodiles, which is where the film goes completely wild, into the realm of poetry, fantasy and illusion, is so wonderful. To see that in such a good 3D rendering makes me very happy.\u201d But he\u2019s less pleased about the possibility of his other docs and features being converted to 3D.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cFor God\u2019s sake, don\u2019t touch my movies! Let them be 2D,\u201d Herzog exclaims, saying he has no plans to film a feature in 3D again. \u201cBut let\u2019s assume I\u2019m going to be on a spacecraft to Mars. We\u2019ll never colonize Mars with a million people \u2014 that\u2019s a pipe dream, a delusion and an obscenity \u2014 but we\u2019ll eventually have a few astronauts up on Mars. I would love to be among them, to have a 3D camera with me and do daily reports in 3D.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tMars trips aside, Outsyders CEO Paul Becker has the opposite view on reformatting old 2D films. After key positions at 3D conversion house DNEG in recent years, he co-founded Outsyders in early 2024. It\u2019s one of a few new companies with a business plan hinging on machine learning \u2014 a branch of artificial intelligence \u2014 for 3D\u00a0conversions, which can reduce costs to a small fraction of current pricing. \u201cWhat I\u2019m working on with the studios is: We can get this to be very cheap, but [they] have to invest in it\u201d to operate on a larger scale. \u201cWhat\u2019s going to work are new alliances that aren\u2019t project-specific.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tAs seen on Labor Day weekend, when \u201cJaws\u201d came in second at the box office with nearly $10 million, \u201ca studio\u2019s value is not the current films they\u2019re making; it\u2019s their archives,\u201d Becker says. \u201cThey need to think about machine learning technology, so we\u2019ll be able to see every movie ever made on screens in 3D \u2026. This format is effectively future-proofing films, because [with future VR goggles], everything will be in 3D. If you don\u2019t have that content, you\u2019re not going to make as much money.\u201d And in the short term, Becker thinks it would get more baby boomers to return to theaters, even for 3D romcoms.<\/p>\n

\n\tThat\u2019s music to the ears of RealD CEO Elizabeth Frank, whose company has installed its 3D platform on more than 30,000 screens in 75 countries. Frank is hoping distribs will provide them with more new content. \u201c[It\u2019s] the most profitable premium format that exhibitors and studios have, because consumers are willing to pay almost a third more for a ticket. The technology, license fees and business model are very exhibitor-friendly, yet it\u2019s fallen off their radar. So, in the reintroduction of the existing business to our partners, there\u2019s a real opportunity to have more showtimes and marketing to capture consumer interest.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThere\u2019s a good chance you\u2019ve already seen machine learning in action onscreen. Outsyders first tested its technology by converting Imax\u2019s doc \u201cThe Blue Angels,\u201d released in January. \u201cIt was shocking how much work could be done through machine learning,\u201d Becker says. \u201cWe were able to get the show done with exponentially less manual labor, put really talented artists on it and [have] a lot more time to focus on the creative.\u201d His 50-person staff later worked on Disney\u2019s live-action and CGI remake of \u201cLilo & Stitch,\u201d which has grossed more than $1 billion worldwide, including $55 million in 3D from May to July in North America alone. He\u2019s now doing late-stage work on Disney\u2019s \u201cTron: Ares,\u201d out Oct. 10.<\/p>\n

\n\tAs for AI taking jobs from people in the industry, Becker says he understands their concerns, but emphasizes that he\u2019s hiring people. \u201cI\u2019m bringing in all the people that my co-founders and I worked with before [who] were being held back by technology and\/or budgets.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tBut in addition to the ethical issue of taking jobs from post-production workers, Herzog\u2019s objection to converting his work raises more questions: will filmmakers have their work changed to 3D or other formats without their consent? \u201cLate Fame\u201d director Kent Jones selected Ang Lee\u2019s 2016 3D drama \u201cBilly Lynn\u2019s Long Halftime Walk\u201d for NYFF when he was the fest\u2019s director, and he has some thoughts.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cWhy stop at film? Why don\u2019t they grab images of every painting in the world and make those three-dimensional, too? That\u2019s one thing that\u2019s been missing from romcoms: 3D,\u201d he jokes. \u201cThe idea that every new technological \u2018advancement\u2019 that comes along is progress is just ridiculous, because all it\u2019s about is commerce.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Is 3D cinema set for another big revival? Audience trends and industry moves point in that direction, but…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":47576,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[261],"tags":[35296,291,289,290,18,19,17,82,25311],"class_list":{"0":"post-47575","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-artificial-intelligence","8":"tag-3d","9":"tag-ai","10":"tag-artificial-intelligence","11":"tag-artificialintelligence","12":"tag-eire","13":"tag-ie","14":"tag-ireland","15":"tag-technology","16":"tag-werner-herzog"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47575","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=47575"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47575\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/47576"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=47575"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=47575"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=47575"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}