Two days in 3D at MIPTV 2012

12 Mar 2012

PARIS, FRANCE: 3D television will jump to the fore at MIPTV 2012, taking place from Sunday 1 to Wednesday 4 April in Cannes, with a dedicated 3DTV Focusprogramme on Tuesday 3 and Wednesday 4 April.

Erwin Schmidt, the 3D producer of Wim Wenders' award-winning film Pina, and the president of the International 3D Society, Jim Chabin, will deliver keynote speeches and kick off two days of conferences with integrated 3D screenings, matchmaking sessions, and a 3D Producer Boot Camp - all part of an initiative by MIPTV to encourage 3DTV content creation and provide TV programming executives with expert feedback on the latest developments and global opportunities in 3D television.

The MIPTV 3DTV Focus also includes a pavilion of 3D producers, featuring 10 specialised production companies from South Korea creating 3D programming in a number of genres.

To open the 3DTV Focus programme, MIPTV will welcome German producer Erwin Schmidt from the independent production company Neue Road Movie, founded in 2008 by the internationally renowned movie director Wim Wenders. Erwin Schmidt was the 3D producer of Wenders' Oscar-nominated dance film Pina. In his MIPTV address, Schmidt will outline how he sees 3D as a creative tool offering a new visual language. He will also unveil a new European 3D documentary series featuring exceptional buildings and entitled Cathedrals of Culture. Currently in development, the TV series is directed by 10 internationally-renowned filmmakers and executive produced by Wenders.

"3D needs to be treated as its own cinematic language, as an extension of the existing vocabulary, and should not be reduced to a pure visual effect. Then it is able to deliver an experience that is beyond the spectacular; then it enriches and expands the experience of the viewer in a way a flat screen could never do," commented Erwin Schmidt.

President between 1999 and 2002 of the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (which presents the Emmy Awards), Jim Chabin is currently president of the International 3D Society, whose aim is to promote 3D technologies and the creation of 3D content. The International 3D Society honoured Martin Scorsese this year for his 3D movie "Hugo" with the 3D Creative Arts Award, which is presented each year in Hollywood.

"In the next few years, 3D content will migrate from tens of thousands of theatrical screens to hundreds of millions of smaller screens worldwide," said Jim Chabin. "With the rapid advancement of 3D technology in handheld devices, games and consoles and flatscreens, my presentation at MIPTV will cover what 2D and 3D content creators need to think, prepare and act on with 3D in mind in 2012."

Other highlights of the MIPTV 3DTV Focus programme include the session Sports & Action Spotlight. The interactive presentation will showcase the growing importance of 3D in the world of sport, notably the highly-anticipated 3D broadcast of the London Olympic Games beginning 27 July, with 10 hours of 3D coverage every day across all sporting disciplines. In addition, the 3D Producer Boot Camp, a dedicated workshop for programming and production executives with live 3D capture and playback, will be open to participants on the morning of Wednesday 4 April.

"There are over 50 3D channels available worldwide and with over 20% of US households expected to own 3DTV equipment by 2015, MIPTV wants to encourage the global TV content community to discover the growing creative and business opportunities in 3D television," underlined Ted Baracos, Reed MIDEM Television Division's Director of Market Development.

Participants scheduled to feature on the MIPTV 3DTV Focus conferences include Chris Forrester, contributing editor, Advanced-Television.com (UK), Tom Morrod, senior principle analyst, TV and Broadcast Technology, IHS Screen Digest, (UK), Peter Angell, production & programming, HBS (France), John Cassy, director, Sky 3D, BSkyB (UK), Duncan Humphreys, creative director, Can Communicate (UK), Ghislaine Le Rhun-Gautier, head of 3D Project, Orange (France), Anthony Geffen, CEO, Atlantic Productions (UK), Eric Klein, CEO, HighTV 3D (Hong Kong), Young Su Oh, director of Convergence Policy Bureau, KCC (South Korea), Mark Ringwald, director, Acquisitions & Scheduling, 3net (US), Spencer Stephens, chief technology officer, Sony Corporation (US), David Wood, deputy director, Technology and Development, EBU (Switzerland), Laurent Baldoni, 3D Mania, (Spain), Cosetta Lagani, head of 3D-TV, Sky Italia (Italy), Jacquie Pepall, producer, director, 3D Consultant, Dimension Media (UK), Matthew Bristowe, head of Production, Prime Focus 3D, Prime Focus (UK), Torsten Hoffmann, managing partner, 3D Content Hub (Australia), Jonathan Tustain, editor, 3D Focus (UK) Stephan Heimbecher, head of Innovations & Standards - Technology, Sky Deutschland (Germany).

The MIPTV 3DTV Focus is organised in partnership with Sony Corporation, The Korean Communications Commission (KCC), The Korea Radio Promotion Association (RAPA) and The FraunhoferHeinrich Hertz Institute's 3D Innovation Centre.

For more information about MIPTV, www.miptv.com.

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