Zack Snyder’s “Sucker Punch” may not be getting a 3D conversion, as MTV productions can’t seem to find a 3D conversion house that can finish the project properly in the time frame (which translates to “we don’t have the money in the budget”).  Anything can be done properly in any time frame if studios are willing to front the cash and not take short cuts.

Transformers 3 is also going to be in 3D, as we all have known.  But instead of shooting 3D, they are opting for conversion.  Which makes sense since 70% of it is CG anyway and will have to be converted regardless.

Shrek Forever After
May 21
The fourth and final adventure of the giant animated green ogre in the land of Far, Far Away, starring the voices of Mike Myers, Cameron Diaz, Eddie Murphy, and Antonio Banderas.

Toy Story 3
June 18
Woody, Buzz and their toy-box pals are dumped at daycare when Andy heads to college and they encounter new friends and foes. Features an all-star voice cast of Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Michael Keaton, Whoopi Goldberg, Timothy Dalton, and Joan Cusack.

Despicable Me
July 9
A wicked villain’s plans to steal the moon are thwarted by a trio of orphan girls who befriend him. Stars the voices of Steve Carell, Russell Brand, and Julie Andrews.

Cats & Dogs: the Revenge of Kitty Galore
July 30
A fur-flying action comedy following a truce between canines and felines attempting to stop the sinister plans of a spy cat. Voices by Alec Baldwin and Bette Midler, also starring Chris O’Donnell and Roger Moore.

Step Up 3D
August 6
The third installment of the dance franchise set in New York with street dancers Rick Malambri and Sharni Vinson in a showdown against the world’s best breakdancers.

Piranha 3D
August 27
A horror film about a sheriff who attempts to save the town from masses of prehistoric piranhas unleashed in Arizona’s Lake Havasu. Stars Elisabeth Shue, Ving Rhimes, and Christopher Lloyd.

Legend of the Guardians: the Owls of Ga’Hoole
September 24
Based on the children’s book series about a group of wise owls forced to fight an army of brainwashed owl soldiers. Features the voices of Helen Mirren, Sam Neill, Hugo Weaving, and Geoffrey Rush. Directed by Zach Snyder (300, Watchmen).

Alpha and Omega
October 1
Animated family adventure about two mismatched young wolves thrown together by circumstance, featuring the voices of Dennis Hopper, Christina Ricci, Danny Glover, and Hayden Panettiere.

Saw VII
October 22
Just in time for Halloween, Tobin Bell returns as Jigsaw in three-dimensional horror.

MegaMind
November 5
A villain loses his drive to be evil after accidentally killing his nemesis, until he creates a nefarious superhero. The animated satire about superheroes stars the voices of Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill, Will Ferrell, and Tina Fey.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part I
November 19
Harry, Ron, and Hermione must finish Dumbledore’s work in defeating the Dark Lord as Voldemort takes control of the Hogwarts. Stars Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint, with Ralph Fiennes joining the returning cast of Alan Rickman, Maggie Smith, Bill Nighy, and Helena Bonham Carter.

TRON Legacy
December 17
The sequel to the 1982 cult classic about video games turned into high-tech gladiatorial battles finds Flynn’s son attempting to release his father trapped in this cyber world. Stars Jeff Bridges, Olivia Wilde and Michael Sheen.

Yogi Bear
December 17
The cartoon misadventures of Yogi and his sidekick Boo-Boo in Jellystone Park. Stars the voices of Dan Aykroyd and Justin Timberlake.

This list doesn’t include indie releases or smaller productions, which are starting to pop up.

Of course, no one gives Third Magazine credit for breaking the story 6 months ago. But that’s what it is like being the little guy in a big industry.

It will be nice to see a strong horror franchise utilize 3D, and actually plan for it in production rather than tack it on at the last minute to boost marketing.  Personally, I’m not a huge fan of remakes or reboots, but I did love the original Nightmare on Elm Street franchise, so I am excited to see how it gets treated in 3D.

Phish in 3D was shot in October 2009 during Festival 8.  The footage of the 2-day show also includes songs from one of their famous “Halloween” shows in which they cover a classic album (in this case it was The Rolling Stones Exile on Main St.).  For those of you that were too busy watching cartoons and laughing a lot on 4/20, the 3D concert is being released in more theaters on April 30th.  Check phish3dmovie.com for more details.

But remember, you don’t have to pay the high price.  You don’t have to see every movie in 3D.  Enjoy the ones you want to see in 3D and check out the others in 2D.  It will be a while before everything is in stereoscopic 3D.  The people that are predicting that 2D will vanish in the next few years are the same people that thought we’d be in flying cars in the year 2000.

The film, shot on RED cameras in high-definition 3D, and using PassmoreLabʼs proprietary 3D rigs and stereo synthesis conversion, follows two professional female surfers as they surf Hawaii’s North Shore and famous beaches along California’s coast, exploring surfing’s influence on modern culture while experiencing Mother Nature’s majestic power in the creation of our ocean’s waves.

PassmoreLab’s passion for science-based adventure content, coupled with the studio’s willingness to travel to far-off destinations to tell nature’s astounding stories, is evident in Physics of Surfing, and is also revealed in the incredible cinematography of their two new forthcoming Digital 3D films – The Extreme Nature of Bats and MicroWorlds – due to be released this spring.

It is Greg Passmore’s penchant for challenging locations and rugged production that sets Physics of Surfing apart from other surfing films.  As the newest addition to the rich history of surf cinema, Physics of Surfing showcases magnificent scenery and spectacular surfing action, while illustrating the principles of physics, as well as surfing’s spirit, history and culture.

“Locations have their own unique conditions, and we have become very comfortable shooting in demanding environments,” said Greg Passmore, president of PassmoreLab and director of the film.  “To get the completely immersive 3D surfing experience that I was looking for in this film, we had to go where the waves were and then become really inventive to get the shots.”

Pro Surfers Julie Cox and Kyla Langen, the two featured surfers in the film, are both longtime surfing competitors and aficionados.  Cox, a talented longboarder who has competed in contests around the globe, consistently places in the top 10 of international events held in Australia, New Zealand, and Japan.  Langen has surfed professionally in over twenty countries and works with the Cousteau Foundation’s CELP program as a youth instructor.  Both women are also surf coaches.

Unlike other surfing documentaries, Physics of Surfing is an educational film that uncovers the physical science of ocean waves and the art of surfing.  In this captivating presentation, the filmmakers explore how energy moves through water, building and combining its force, traveling thousands of miles over the course of weeks until the ocean floor underneath disrupts the wave’s formation and causes it to pitch up and collapse.  The film also investigates the science behind various surfing styles and how surfers instinctively address such notions of gravity and buoyancy while using the energy of motion to ride waves.

Audiences will experience the exhilaration of surfing, while learning how surfers play with nature’s purest form of energy and power.  They will even see how the modern technology of surfboard design affects a board’s performance on the wave.

The musical legacy of surfing is also a rich and exciting element of surf culture and Physics of Surfing honors this with a truly inspired soundtrack.  Produced by Dusty Watson, it includes tracks from instrumental surf-rock mainstays Slacktone and Southern California’s legendary skate-punk band Agent Orange.  Since the late 70s, Agent Orange has had an enormous influence on the skate-punk/surf-rock scene and Slacktone are widely regarded as the greatest exponents of the genre.  Rounding out the musical lineup is punk supergroup Osaka Popstar – the standard bearers of old-school punk in the 21st century – featuring members of the Ramones, the Misfits, and Black Flag.

PassmoreLab’s Physics of Surfing is scheduled for release to Science Centers and Museums in April.

About PassmoreLab
PassmoreLab, the “World’s Largest 3D Content Provider”, is a San Diego-based multi-media production studio that specializes in 3D production.  The studio custom-designs and builds its own RED camera 3D rigs for both conventional and rugged film productions, shooting everything from feature films, television and science documentaries, to underwater diving, extreme sports and cave exploration http://www.passmorelab.com/PL2minTRAILER.mov.  State-of-the-art facilities include a full 3D production studio, video/film post-production, optical development lab, and a software development environment.  Production includes 2D, 3D, high dynamic range time lapse, stereoscopic microscopy and cutting-edge simulation technologies for real time SFX.  PassmoreLab has additional offices in Russia and the Philippines.  For more information, visit www.passmorelab.com.

Clinton Stark wrote up a good summary of the panel discussion over at SilverStarCreek.com.  I think the best quote to come out of the panel, which he highlighted, is

“A whole bunch of 3D cameras are coming, which means a whole lot of bad 3D films.”

This is probably true, but this is a good thing.  When filmmaking becomes accessible to the artistic non-studio people, we often get to see some brilliant work.  Although it is usually less than 1% of the backyard indie films that are produced.

More highlights from the discussion:

• “Don’t fatigue the audience, still important to tell a story.”
• 3D is “akin to optical illusion compared to normal cinema.”
• “When people see each other in 3D they start reaching out; there is something different about that world – not quite the same as real world”
• 3D tools have come a long way compared to the good old days (i.e. 6 months ago, now “you can change convergence in post. Rotation is easy, etc. … easily fixed now that it’s really gotten much easier to finish your movie”
• Charlotte Huggins: “These are just all fonts.” (3D)
• “Where does human vision break down from 3D to 2D and how do you apply that sports?”
• Broadcast doesn’t know how to send 3D (cable can); all setting up networks, but live television is a challenge.
• The NFL has been making 3D football for four years
• Star Wars converted; George Lucas shots were already lined up; can’t even tell it wasn’t shot in 2D

Now this one I could see being bundled with 3D branded Blu-ray players and televisions during the holidays. Many people were concerned about the release of the 3D DVD version of Avatar because there really wasn’t any solid news on its release. All anyone heard was news of the standard DVD release.

Well for those of you Avatar fans, it looks like James Cameron put to rest any rumors that we would be waiting years to see the movie come to 3D blu-ray.  In an interview posted on the Wall Street Journal blog section Cameron says:

“It’s all right on schedule,” said Cameron. “We’ll do the Blu-ray and the standard def DVD April 22^nd, that’s our plan as of right now, and that’ll be pretty much bare bones. And then we’ll do a value-added DVD and a 3-D Blu-ray in I think November sometime.”

Cameron also talked about wanting to do a sequel to Avatar but wants to do it much faster and cheaper. We also have been hearing rumors of some of his other movies which are or have been converted to 3D.  Maybe we’ll see them appear for the holiday season as well.

Source: Wall Street Journal

But this brings me to my second point. The number of 2D theaters will be shrinking. So what? Cinemablend’s article doesn’t seem to make any argument regarding why consumers should prefer 2D over the 3D other than price. If that is the only reason, it’s a non-issue. Because the more common the technology becomes, the more the price well regulate. Movie prices have been rising faster than inflation since the first “talkie” came out. There’s no stopping it.

In the end, it comes down to fear of change. I have a feeling that there was probably an outcry when color cinema started. There were probably people that were upset that all movies were making the transition to color. Well, entertainment changes as technology changes. I think this is a positive thing. Enjoy it.