Three of the godfathers of event filmmaking reassured CinemaCon attendees yesterday [30] that the best is yet to come in digital filmmaking.

George Lucas, James Cameron and Jeffrey Katzenberg were the star attraction at the Las Vegas event as they participated in a panel discussion that covered 3D and the theatrical experience.

Lucas spoke about the painstaking task of converting Star Wars into 3D and drew cheers when he said that for his money nothing could beat the communal theatrical experience.

Cameron said he wanted to make Avatar 2 and 3 at higher frame rates than the standard 24 frames per second to best utilise the digital platform and create lifelike imagery, while DreamWorks Animation chief Katzenberg said he had teams working on a process that would speed up animation rendering.

In other CinemaCon news:

  • One day after new MPAA chief Chris Dodd declared the fight against piracy one of his key goals, a coalition of studios, the MPAA, IFTA, SAG and the DGA among others sent an open letter to Congress backing efforts by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency to halt digital theft and counterfeiting across a range of US industries
  • IMAX Corporation’s announcement of the day concerned a deal with Indian chain PVR Cinemas to instal theatre systems in four sites. Subject to regulatory approval the first two will go in multiplexes in Mumbai and Bangalore within 12 months.
  • The US’ fifth largest chain Rave Motion Pictures has partnered with Christie Managed Services to service its entire Lobby Entertainment Network.

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