My Theatre Now Has Digital-So What

By Annlee Ellingson

November 13, 2007 2:43 PM Permalink Comments (0)

3D and alternative content: What d-cinema can do for you

Last week in this space we discussed the ramp up in digital cinema installations that will likely take place in the first part of 2008. One trade paper recently estimated that more than half the screens in the United States and Canada—as many as 20,000—could be digitized by the end of 2010. Over the next few years, I wrote on Friday, digital will be coming more and more often to a theatre near you.

But, whether you’re a moviegoer or even a movieshower (i.e., exhibitor), you may ask, so what? Sure, digital offers a pristine picture showing after showing, without the dirt, scratches or other degradation suffered by celluloid, but film projection done right can look pretty darn good. Why should you seek out/invest in digital cinema?

Beowulf is why. Or, rather, the fact that you can see Robert Zemeckis’ motion-capture epic in three dimensions. Like Chicken Little, Monster House, Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas and Meet the Robinsons before it, Beowulf will be playing in 3D in about 900 theatres in the United States. If this short history of digital 3D is any guide, these screens will generate three times the revenue of their 2D rivals, drawing twice the crowds at a $2 to $3 premium price. Stereoscopic cinema is unlike anything available in the home (yet), and it’s possible because of digital. (Beowulf, Imax would have me mention, is also playing on the giant screen in 3D—more on that to come.)

Meanwhile, tickets are now on sale to the general public for the Metropolitan Opera’s 2007-2008 Live in High Definition series. Eight performances, starting with Romeo et Juliette on December 15, will be broadcast live from the operahouse in New York City to 600 cinemas throughout the world. To meet demand, recorded presentations will encore on subsequent dates in some locations. Again, such an event would not be possible without digital.

I went to the debut of the Met concept last December. Unfortunately, I happened to be in one of two theatres in the country that experienced technical difficulties during the premiere broadcast of The Magic Flute, with the sound cutting out in patches. It was an irritating experience at best, maddening at worst, yet I remained riveted, partly for journalistic purposes, partly because when it worked, I was rapt. The live-event filming techniques and subtitles rendered the experience more engaging than if I had seen it in person.

Stay tuned to this column in the coming days and weeks for a comparison of Beowulf in digital 3D and IMAX 3D and an overview of the Met’s opening digital broadcast Romeo et Juliette.