Forget IMAX movie screens for a 3D experience, a South Korean tech company is ready to give you a 270-degree film viewing you have never seen before.
CGV ScreenX has used their technology along with sidewalls as extra screens for the audience. Adding screens to increase viewer experiences is a little more complicated than it sounds.
"The wider scenes were shot using three cameras simultaneously filming different angles, according to Paul Kim, senior producer for ScreenX," The Wall Street Journal reports. "But that meant everything had to get out of the enlarged view-span, including most crew members and the lights."
Some problems with the new viewing experience are that films need to be shot in a specific way to keep camera angles from being obstructed. Lights needed to be placed overhead using cranes or on the floor to keep them out of view, according to WSJ.
"In a (traditional) shoot, you have one façade. Now we need an entire set for a scene. What was usually one wall now becomes 270 degrees," the producer told Korea Real Time. "It was a lot of trial-and-error."
Another issue that arises is that seating matters in the ScreenX theater. According to WSJ, moviegoers who sit closest to the side screens will not get the same viewing experience.
This also leads to the question of whether or not directors would consider filming to fit the format of the ScreenX technology.
"I think it's very likely this will make it to some screens here in the U.S.," Jerome Courshon, author of "The Secrets to Film Distribution," told Yahoo Movies. "If there's minimal content being shot for the ScreenX format, it's not going to make sense for an exhibitor to outlay the cost for their theater(s.)"
Upgrading a conventional movie theater would cost the owner "150 million and 200 million South Korean won (between $139,300 and $185,800) per screening room," according to the WSJ.
"The goal is to do it fast and with accuracy," Kim said, adding that the renovation takes three days on average. "When you gut it all down, it's not cost effective."
