Last week, 10 minutes of footage from ‘The Hobbit’ was shown at CinemaCon, and while the film itself supposedly delivers, something else entirely was the talk of the town afterwards. Peter Jackson filmed the project at 48 frames per second, a potentially revolutionary new method of making movies (this is twice the normal rate of 24 frames per second). The reviews, however, left something to be desired. Some claimed that the film appeared to lose its cinematic nature and resembled television, while others complained of headaches. There were defenders of the new format to be sure, and they speak highly of how it’ll improve 3D technology and make it easier to watch, but this was hardly the love-fest that Jackson and others were likely hoping for. Entertainment Weekly has a response from Jackson on the issue that you can read here, but after the jump I’ll speculate on if we’re on the verge of a 48 frames per second invasion or not.
My best guess here is that certain filmmakers like Peter Jackson and James Cameron will embrace the format, with the potential for other A-listers to come aboard in the short term. If 48 is to be the new 24, there will need to be widespread acceptance of it, and that won’t come for a while. As important to note as anything is the added cost to movie theaters that will be required to show films in this way, so that could delay a transition as well. I won’t be able to comment on its quality until I see it, but I’m honestly not against this change. I just want to see it before I make up my mind…
-Thoughts? Discuss on the Forum!
Joey Magidson
May 4, 2012 at 5:26 pm
48 frames per second intrigues me, I won’t lie…
Joey Magidson(Quote) (Reply)