Items tagged with Film
Explosive U.S. Nuclear Bomb Test Footage Declassified And Uploaded For Your YouTube Viewing Pleasure
These videos are sure to explode all over the Internet; they are just the bomb. In all seriousness, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) weapons physicist Greg Spriggs went through the lengthy process to have United States nuclear test footage declassified for public viewing. The United States conducted 210 atmospheric nuclear tests between 1945 and 1962. The tests were usually conducted with multiple cameras at 2,400 frames per second. Roughly 10,000 of these videos have been hidden away in high-security vaults for the last few decades. The team hunted down and preserved these decomposing films. Their ultimate goal is to help scientists who rely on computer codes to determine whether...
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If augmented reality was an unknown to the world last month, it certainly isn't now, thanks to the insane popularity of Pokemon GO. That game has been responsible for opening many eyes to AR, and now, we've been seeing many comments floating about of how AR could prove more successful than VR. That's hard to argue, given everyone has a smartphone, but very few own a VR headset (which in itself will change once prices cater to the mainstream better). Well, hot on the heels of Pokemon GO's success comes MIT with one of the coolest AR projects we've ever seen. If not the coolest. The technology is called "Interactive Dynamic Video", and while you might be able to glean a bit about what it is from...
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Onward and upward, isn't that right? For Kodak, it sure hopes so. After falling from grace as one of the premier names in photography and printing, right into Chapter 11, the company has finally announced a new plan and settlement that will hopefully push it towards an exit from bankruptcy. Eastman Kodak Company today announced a comprehensive settlement agreement with the U.K. Kodak Pension Plan (KPP), its largest creditor. Under the agreement, which will be filed with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Kodak’s Personalized Imaging and Document Imaging businesses will be spun off under new ownership to KPP. The settlement agreement provides, among other things, for the spin-off of Kodak’s...
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Disney may be putting the infamous axe to LucasArts video games, but that doesn't mean the company doesn't have big plans for another segment of the mythical universe. A new report suggests that Disney is going to produce a new Star Wars movie each year starting in 2015... until the world tires of them, and thus, this plan fails to make money. It's the very definition of "milking a franchise for all that it's worth," and there will certainly be those who oppose and those who support such a plan. At least for now, these new films will largely be spin-offs -- alternatives to the "core" movies that have come before. But one has to wonder how many ways you can spin Star Wars before fans become exhausted...
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"Nothing lasts forever," as the saying goes, and the time has come to wave goodbye to a staple of the photography industry. Eastman Kodak has announced intentions to sell off the film business that made it an icon around the world. In an effort to raise cash for itself (and perhaps fund ongoing digital patent battles), its traditional print-film business and "several others" will be sold. Those others include things like kiosks that develop photos on-site, heavy-duty commercial scanners, and software used for enterprise companies to process thousands of forms at once. Heck, it's even selling off the business that takes those theme park photos as you waltz in. Kodak says that the selling will...
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Gorilla Glass is great, sure, but it's not flawless, and it's still possible to damage and crack. But what if electronics could repair themselves? It sounds like a pipe dream, and indeed it is, but it may not be as far-fetched as you think. Toray Advanced Film Co. will reportedly begin to sell a self-curing coat film, which is said to be able to "self-repair small scratches in earnest." So far, the company has supplied the film to a number of smaller applications, and evidently things have turned out so well that commercial production is in the pipeline. It seems that touch panels are first in line, and considering how many scuffs we've seen on our own phones around here, it makes sense to aim...
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Could the days of free 3D glasses at the cinema be numbered? Perhaps. As with most things trying hard to break into a market, Sony's movie studio had been footing the bill for the 3D glasses that were being distributed before 3D films. Seeing a 3D flick already cost more than a 2D flick, leaving many feeling as if those "free" glasses weren't so free after all. But even with the increased rates, the studio is still not pleased. In an effort to grab every last cent they can, Sony Pictures has reportedly suggested in letters sent to some American theater owners that they won't be paying for the glasses starting next May. The alternative? They're suggesting a "guest ownership model," which is already...
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The consumer love affair with 3-D technology has waxed hot and cold for the last century, and current data indicates that's not going to change. A surge in 3-D movie ticket sales several years ago jump-started the film and display industries' most recent attempt to push the technology but consumers simply aren't biting. A recent report from Slate catalogs a fresh year of data as a follow-up to an August, 2010 piece on slumping 3-D ticket sales. 12 months later, things have only gotten worse. A few years ago, theatre owners who invested in 3-D screens were realizing a substantial return on their investments thanks to significantly higher revenues on a per-screen basis. Now, those gains have...
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If we didn't know any better, we would assume that James Cameron, the guy who directed Avatar, Titanic, and loads of other mega-hits, was a paid spokesperson for 3D. Every place we turn, it's James talking good about 3D, with never a negative thing to say about the format. Without a doubt, James is the most prominent proponent of 3D, and even with the famed Roger Ebert saying that he "hates" 3D and thinks consumers should too, Cameron is plugging away. 3D HDTVs Pushed Hard at CES 2010 in Las Vegas At this point, it's pretty transparent. Basically, Cameron has now stated a a technology forum in South Korea that 3D will "will replace 2D as the standard, mainstream format for film, television and...
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Here's a tidbit that the 3D pundits might find interesting: 3D movies have generated 33% of total box office revenue since the release of Avatar last December in the U.S. 33%. That's one-third of all movie revenue in America. Talk about stepping in and making an impact! Just two years ago, finding a 3D theater was a chore; now they're everywhere, and even though they're certainly priced higher than the average 2D film, it seems that customers are still buying in. According to a new report from the International 3D Society Study (watch out for bias, obviously), 33% of domestic box office revenues since Avatar's release have been from 3D films, with four of them ("Clash of the Titans," "How to...
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Remember 'How Stella Got Her Groove Back?' We're not saying this comeback is anywhere near that monumental, but Polaroid is a pretty huge brand in the grand scheme of things. It's an icon in the consumer electronics/digital imaging industry, and while it certainly peaked years ago, there's nothing like a second wind to get consumers buzzing again. After filing for Chapter 11 and being picked up by Summit Global Group, it seems the company is itching to return the brand to its rightful place atop the throne. Granted, competition is a lot tougher today and consumer desires are vastly different, but hey, if Apple can go from near-dead to nearly unstoppable, why not these guys?In an announced made...
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It's a question worth asking, but the answer is still probably a couple of years out, at best. Will 3D finally make a lasting impression? Unless you've been living under a rock over the past year, you will have noticed that the movie industry, the consumer electronics industry and big time TV makers have all been pushing 3D with an almost comical amount of force. Just two or three years ago, most folks would laugh at you (or scoff at you, one) if you asked them if they'd be excited about watching a film at the local cinema in 3D. Mention the same question but with "TV" instead of "local cinema," and your pal may have requested that you see a doctor.It's rather amazing how marketing teams from...
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Kodak. A name synonymous with "camera." A legend and an icon in the industry. And yet, even it can't resist technological changes forever. As the world continues to go digital and the idea of shooting on "film" becomes more far-fetched with each passing day, Kodak has been forced to slam the axe on its KODACHROME Color Film. In a tear-jerking announcement made today by the company, it will "retire" said film later this year, which means you should probably stock up now before leftover units start going for 4x MSRP on eBay.If you'll recall, KODACHROME got going some 74 years ago, which means it'll probably die shortly before its milestone 75th birthday. The product first saw commercial success...
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YouTube, the world's largest video site, has partnered with MGM to begin showing full-length films from the studio's archive. Recently the video giant has been trying to play catch up to video site Hulu. The partnership hopes to boost revenue to both Youtube and MGM along with giving more direct competition to Hulu, the NBC owned site that features free full-length shows from Fox, NBC, and CBS, along with various full-length movies. Jim Packer, co-president of MGM Worldwide Television, is optimistic, saying, "They have a lot of people walking through their front door everyday. And if they are smart in how they grow this, YouTube should have a successful business also." The video presentation...
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You want IOPs? Got that... You want Petaflops? Check. Blades? Yeah we got a few of those hanging around too... next to the fiber-optic shelves. News.com has the 411 on the kind of power it takes to run a state of the art production house like Lucasfilms. A couple of those racks ought to do the trick keeping ol' HH with 99.999% up-time. Wonder if the boys over there ever donate their left-overs? "Inside the data center in San Francisco's Letterman Digital Arts Center, Lucasfilms director of IT operations Kevin Clark stands in front of a rack of the company's state-of-the-art Verari servers, which use AMD Opteron dual-core/dual-processor technology with...
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As Yahoo! News reports, AOL is fully commited to continuing the drastic changes that are being made to its service. The latest change for AOL is their decision to jump into the online film distribution market, as they are announcing plans to start selling movies and TV shows through their service. Movies will likley retail from $9.99 to $19.99, while shows will be available for $1.99, or will be offered free with advertisements included. "Conroy said AOL's decision to charge for some programs is consistent with its desire to offer users choice - download-to-own offerings alongside free, ad-supported items. He said AOL is becoming one of...
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Going along with yesterday's update on Google Maps, some Asian governments have voiced their opinion on the technology... they don't like it. There's still some debate has to how serious of a security risk the satellite images are, as the images are a few years old. Living in New Hampshire, I have no concerns as most of my state lacks detailed images. Area 51 has higher quality pictures... could the government be hiding something in the granite state? Well, time to find my tinfoil hat, later folks! FujiFilm FinePix F10 @ eCoustics "The new 6.3-megapixel FujiFilm FinePix F10 ($399 MSRP) is a rather unassuming digital camera with a silvery metal finish and plain vanilla styling. Yet looks...
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