Specs appeal
The 3D specs handed out at the first press screening of Up were a little on the clunky side, but the red and black items were, nevertheless, a sought after item on the Croisette.
Opening Cannes with an animation - and a 3D animation at that - is a radical departure for a festival that hasn't been hugely surprising in quite a while. And it marks a defining moment for the technology and the artform.
There are more and more 3D cinemas being built around the world, and Executive Producer on Up, John Lasseter, told me today that all of Disney / Pixar's movies will be made in 3D from now on.
Is it the third age for 3D, having been dismissed in the 1950s and 1980s? Lasseter is hopeful. And there are several other 3D projects touting for business in the Cannes marketplace.
An endorsement from the festival raises the artform out of the past, too easily dismissed as a gimmick. This is a defining moment for cinema and the business of cinema.
I'm 
Comment number 1.
At 13th May 2009, Doctor Bob wrote:Yes, I vaguely remember the 3D cinema at the Festival of Britain in 1951. Well, it hasn't caught on because it hasn't been possible on television until recently. I for one am unwilling to make a fairly expensive pilgrimage to the nearest IMAX cinema (or whatever it is) to watch 3D cartoons but if one came on TV and hooked me within a couple of minutes I might watch it - better, serious entertainment.
Complain about this comment (Comment number 1)