All Six Star Wars Films in Stereo 3D

Still not as good as a 3d holographic?

Straight from the source: ILM Visual Effects posted on their Twitter something that is surely going to have people blogging up a storm tomorrow if not tonight–Starting 2012, all six, count ‘em, Star Wars films are going to be in 3D. Un-effing-believable. A major feat, yes, but surely there will be an outcry against it from the people in the industry already tired of 3D. Also, what about the declining numbers of people going to see Stereoscopic movies these days?? Something has to be said as well about movies that acquire the 3D makeover and how cookie-cutter they look. Maybe we should stay tuned to see if ILM is going to unveil something to improve the tiring experience of watching these, dare I use the term, films .

Yes, I’m not afraid to admit it I have fallen off the Star Wars band wagon long ago, but i’m not biased against the idea because of that. I’m just skeptical that if it isn’t an experience of Epic proportions, which Star Wars was in its own time, then it’s just wasted effort. This is obviously not the case for one of the more successful series of all time.

Sure, the movie will always have a special sentimental spot in my mind but I’d rather have the dated effects live in eternity the way I always remembered them. At this moment this idea seems a bit farcical, like a ploy to get into the pocket books and wallets of moviegoers before the fad is over, unless ILM comes out with some stunning never-before-attempted techniques for retro-fitting all six of ‘em. Seems like a lot of money down the tubes as well. Wha’dya think? I’m open to entertaining any side of the story.

Having said that, already I find that John Knoll has done an interview for Variety and then some:

After more than five years of teasing, Lucasfilm disclosed today that work is under way on converting the “Star Wars” saga to 3D.

All six pics will get theatrical re-release in stereoscopic starting with “Episode I: The Phantom Menace,” which returns to theaters in 2012.

Exact release date has not been announced, but a Lucasfilm spokesperson said the pic will open wide and “as close to day and date (worldwide) as possible.”

The prospect of six “Star Wars” pics released in 3D should stifle speculation that the format is a fading fad. It also promises to reintroduce the franchise to young auds who are used to 3D and only know ‘Star Wars’ from homevideo and the “Clone Wars” Cartoon Network skein.

20th Century Fox will once again distribute. Fox domestic distribution prexy Bruce Snyder called the series “perfectly suited” for 3D and said “I expect this to be as much fun for people that have not experienced ‘Star Wars’ as it was for people who were there in 1977 staring at the screen with mouth agape.”

Spacing of the re-releases has not yet been determined, as that will depend on the pace of the conversion effort.

There are no plans yet for a homevideo release.

John Knoll, visual effects supervisor for Lucasfilm’s Industrial Light & Magic, is overseeing the conversion, which is being done by outside vendors with close oversight by ILM.

Knoll said Lucasfilm is committed to ensuring that the 3D conversion delivers results as good as a movie shot and authored in 3D. Knoll said that it’ll be used to make the experience more immersive and he’ll avoid some of the more jarring, exaggerated uses of 3D that have marked previous stereoscopic pics.

“Having seen a lot of stereo material, I have very strong opinions about what I like and don’t like about stereo,” Knoll told Variety. “I’m going to be applying my aesthetic. It’s not going to look like (conversions) we’ve seen in the past.”

Knoll said there are no plans to add or fix visual effects on the movies. Over the years, Lucas’s digital tweaks on the original trilogy pics have generated pushback from fans.