Cameron, Katzenberg and Lucas sit around and talk 3D

I think most of us are sick of it at this point, but I also believe we’re all starting to realize that 3D is not going away. It may cease to be plugged in every TV spot, but as the technology gets more advanced, we might actually start to hate it less.

The few times that 3D has worked without many complaints have been in James Cameron’s AVATAR, which no live action 3D film has to live up to since, and in a few select Dreamworks Animation features where Jeffrey Katzenberg and his team figured out how to make it actually enhance films like HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON, a process that rival Pixar hasn’t quite mastered yet.

The two of them were joined by 3D noob George Lucas, currently converting all his STAR WARS movies to 3D for a theatrical release for the third time, at the CinemaCon exhibitors convention to talk about the format.

James Cameron comments on what improvements he’s going to make with the technology for AVATAR 2 and 3.

“When you author and project a movie at 48 or 60, it becomes a different movie,” he said. “The 3D shows you a window into reality; the higher frame rate takes the glass out of the window. In fact, it is just reality. It is really stunning.”

Katzenberg explains how the tech is evolving for his animators.

Animators currently wait hours and even days for computers to render full animation based on their initial, low-resolution footage. But with the new processes, Katzenberg said, “our artists will be able to see and create their work in real time. I can’t tell you how transformative that will be for our storytelling. … That is an extraordinary and revolutionary change in the process.”

Lastly, Lucas attempt to combat criticism of his upconverting, explaining that it takes forever and it costs a ton.

“We have been working on conversion (for roughly seven years). It’s not a technical problem, it’s a creative problem getting really talented creative people to work in 3D.”

Converting the original Star Wars to 3D will cost more than the original movie’s budget, he added, saying, “It is not cheap. It is not fast. If you want do it right, you can do it right.”

How backwards is that thinking? Working seven years on conversion? The process is practically already antiquated as most new blockbusters will be filmed in 3D format. You know what you could have done in seven years? Filmed an entirely new movie trilogy.

3D seems like it’s here to stay, and I can only hope my eyes and wallet will be able to handle it as it takes over.