International 3D Society and Autodesk Announce Worldwide 3D Short Film Competition

“The Society is committed to honoring 3D excellence, and this competition will allow us to focus industry attention on the best short films and filmmakers,” said Jim Mainard, Head of Digital Strategy for DreamWorks Animation (DWA) and Society Chairman.

Powered by Nvidia and Fordela, the competition is open to any short subject work of 40 minutes or less. Filmmakers can upload their works to a secure 3D website at: 3DindyCompetition.com. Deadline for entries is November 16, 2012. Entries will be judged by a panel of Society voting member professionals.

“The winning filmmaker will be flown to Los Angeles to receive his or her award at our Creative Arts Awards Ceremony in February,” said Society President, Jim Chabin. “This is our chance to shine the spotlight on the star filmmakers of tomorrow.”

The Society was established to advance the arts and sciences of stereoscopic 3D and its professional innovators. The international organization includes committees in China, Japan, Korea, Europe, and members in 19 countries.

About the International 3D Society:

The International 3D Society was founded to advance the art and technologies of stereoscopic 3D content and its professional innovators through education, hands on demonstration and recognition. For more information please visit: www.International3DSociety.com .

International 3D Society sponsors include Signature Sponsors: Panasonic and Korea Telecom, as well as Founding Sponsors: 3ality Technica, Dolby, DreamWorks Animation (DWA), IMAX, MasterImage 3D, PIXAR, RealD, Inc., Sony Corporation of America, Vizio, The Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures and XPAND 3D.

About Autodesk

Autodesk, Inc., is a recognized leader in 3D design, engineering and entertainment software. In addition to the media and entertainment industries, Autodesk 3D software is used across a wide variety of professional fields, including: manufacturing, architecture, building and construction. The last 16 Academy Award winners for Best Visual Effects have used Autodesk software to design, visualize and simulate their ideas before ever being built or created.

SOURCE: International 3D Society

The commercial products that would allow this connected, computer-communicating network? They’re basic, but at the time seemed radical:

* The wireless Bellboy Pager, which was introduced commercially in 1962
* The Data-phone, which was supposed to revolutionize business communications
* The videophone—shown as a credit-card-reading vertical two-way television
* The card-reading phone or automatic dialer, which would dial a number from small plastic punch cards, introduced in 1961
* Oh, and package delivery via rocket (which had just been tested in 1959).

Watch the video at http://youtu.be/avHo0-qU8xo

In fact, it’s probably a safe bet that just one firm in the Toledo area can trace its roots directly back to the famous talk show host/TV mogul/entrepreneur.

“It was Oprah who came up with the idea of hidden television,” said James Baker, owner-founder of Toledo-based Hidden Television.com.

“She was doing a show in 2006 and featuring examples of space-saving gadgets,” Mr. Baker said. At the time, Mr. Baker was in the business of selling high-quality two-way mirrors for security, scientific, and other uses.

“Literally, her manager called me out of the blue,” Mr. Baker said. “Her manager said, ‘Oprah wants to know if you can put a flat-screen TV behind two-way glass for her in order to hide it,’ ” he added.

Mr. Baker said that after immediately responding “Yes,” without actually having hidden a TV before…

Read more at http://www.toledoblade.com/Technology/2012/05/13/Local-firm-s-order-from-a-star-builds-business-concealing-TVs.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYc7c-HuGRM&fmt=18

(NOTE: The colors may look different on some systems, based on such variables as different web browsers, i.e. Netscape / Firefox / Flock vs. Internet Explorer, or which Flash player, e.g. Version 9 vs. Version 10.)

In view of the upcoming demise of the analogue-based NTSC color TV system which had been in effect since 1954, here are recreations of key major electronic color bar designs, going back to the earliest days of the NTSC color system in 1954 (note how the -I and +Q matrices are initially bunched together before the 100% white bar is placed in-between them), all through the development of EIA RS-189A color bars (with and without PLUGE) and the iconic SMPTE bars (originally classified ECR 1-1978, later renamed EG 1-1990). Also seen towards the end is the new generation of color bars for the digital-based HDTV system which will be the only means of transmission after June 12, 2009.

The tones heard go from the lowest to the highest with each different color bar design: 400 Hz, 440 Hz, 480 Hz, 600 Hz, 750 Hz, 900 Hz and 1 kHz. Volume set at -12 dB.

Agreeing with that second viewpoint is Jason Pontin, editor-in-chief and publisher of Technology Review, which is published by MIT. Speaking at a retreat hosted by Beet.TV, Pontin said that the closed experience offered by apps wasn’t working for content providers.

For more on these courses go to http://www.kingston.ac.uk/undergraduate-course/video-television-technology-2012/ or http://www.kingston.ac.uk/undergraduate-course/media-technology-2012/

For more information contact s.scotcher@kingston.ac.uk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m5VOTDNrj1s

Alioscopy Announces Adobe Photoshop Creative Suite 6 Extended Alioscopy-Ready

Alioscopy enables millions of Adobe Photoshop digital imaging artists to generate Alioscopy-ready “no-glasses” 3D content. With Alioscopy’s patented technology integrated into Adobe Photoshop CS6 Extended, millions of artists in the global Photoshop community will benefit from a streamlined, all-inclusive workflow to generate “no-glasses” 3D content—one of today’s fastest growing trends in digital signage, trade show and events, advertising and education

San Diego, CA (PRWEB) May 07, 2012

Alioscopy® USA, a 3D technology provider today announced that Adobe® Systems Incorporated has integrated its Alioscopy auto-stereoscopic, 3D multi-view algorithm as a new feature in Adobe® Photoshop® CS6 Extended software. As more and more digital imaging artists create content in stereoscopic and auto-stereoscopic 3D, Alioscopy offers a unique patented process for generating 8-view images for viewing and play-back on auto-stereoscopic 3D HD LCD displays.

In Photoshop CS6 Extended, anyone with a stereoscopic camera (left and right lens equipped) will be able to upload two-view images to Photoshop and convert it to multi-view (8-view) for display on an Alioscopy 3D screen—currently available in 21’’, 24”, 42”, and 47” configurations. Additionally, artists will be able to generate 3D objects directly in Photoshop or in other 3D software packages and apply the Alioscopy multi-view algorithm to create Alioscopy-ready content.

By integrating Alioscopy’s patented technology into Adobe Photoshop CS6 Extended, millions of artists in the global Photoshop community will benefit from a streamlined, all-inclusive workflow to generate “no-glasses” 3D content—one of today’s fastest growing trends in digital signage, trade show and events, advertising, and education.

“Creating and integrating 3D in Photoshop over the past few years has opened many new doors and possibilities for Photoshop artists,” said Zorana Gee, Adobe Photoshop Senior Product Manager. “By incorporating the Alioscopy 3D multi-view algorithm and camera model into Photoshop CS6 Extended, we’re offering artists yet another way to generate compelling 3D images and content which adds a whole new immersive dimension to content creation and editing,” added Gee.

To learn more about how to create Alioscopy-ready auto-stereoscopic 3D content in Photoshop Creative Suite 6 Extended, and view a demonstrational tutorial, go to:
http://www.alioscopyusa.com/content/alioscopy-partnership-adobe

YouTube tutorial

Years in development, Alioscopy technology helps digital content creation artists, brand retailers, tradeshow exhibitors, service businesses and museums attract and captivate their audience with 3D content that has incredible depth and dimension on an LCD display fitted with a lenticular lens. Potential customers stop to view auto-stereoscopic 3D content at least twice as long as traditional 2D media, and Alioscopy-generated content in “no-glasses” 3D offers still, animated, and interactive imagery that simply can’t be ignored.

“Adobe Photoshop is a ubiquitous digital content creation tool with over a million users worldwide, and we’re thrilled to license the Alioscopy no-glasses 3D algorithm as an integrated feature in the new Photoshop CS6 Extended,” said Pia Maffei, chief operating officer for Alioscopy USA. “The majority of Alioscopy customers turn to Adobe daily to create, augment, and finish their digital images, animations, and photographs. The Alioscopy 3D toolset is a powerful way to import, convert, create, and edit ‘no-glasses’ 3D content that will be Alioscopy-ready,” added Maffei.

The National Communication Authority (NCA) is seeking public comments on its Draft Minimum Requirements for Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) receivers as part of the transitional process from analogue to free-to-air digital television technology regime in Ghana.

A letter signed by NCA Director-General Paarock Essuman VanPercy said the transition would focus on television broadcasting services in the frequency bands 174–230 MHz and 470–862 MHz, adding that DTT would offer improved spectrum efficiency compared to analogue TV.

“It also offers enhanced video and audio quality, interactivity, as well as increased programme choices,” he said.

The statement said the standards for DTT receivers such as set-top boxes, integrated digital television sets, and other, would ensure that, all DTT receivers sold on the Ghanaian market conformed to the minimum receiver standard.

“The Authority shall upon publication of the minimum receiver standard, define a conformance regime and shall require all set-top boxes and integrated digital TV sets sold in Ghana to pass a conformance test to be certified.

The letter said ‘in pursuance of the Authority’s mandate under section 27 of the Electronic Communications Act, 2008, Act 775 and Section 4.1 of the National Telecommunications Policy 2005 (NTP’05), the Authority hereby invites views and comments from Existing and Prospective Broadcasting industry players; consumers of broadcasting and communications services and the General Public on the Draft Minimum Requirements for Free-to-air Digital Television Receivers.’

The NCA said the Draft Minimum Requirements for free-to-air Digital Television Receivers could be accessed on its website, www.nca.org.gh, adding that public consultation begins with immediate effect and ends at 5pm on 25th May, 2012.

The statement said all responses or comments should be electronically transmitted as e-mail attachments, in Microsoft Word format to secretariat.dbmc@nca.org.gh.

Berclair Television has closed after 53 years of traditional electronics retailing that seems so endangered: Small box, brick-and-mortar and unchained.

Give it a read at http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/sns-mct-closing-of-berclair-television-marks-end-of-20120504,0,7593834.story

TheStar.com, out of Canada, reports that a Queen’s University researcher is hoping to revolutionize video-conferencing with a human-scale 3D pod that allows people in different locations to communicate as if they are standing in front of each other.

Described as Star Trek-like, the TeleHuman, a decade in the making by Roel Vertegaal, a professor in Human-Computer Interaction, and colleagues at Queen’s Human Media Lab, allows two people to stand in front of life-size cylindrical pods and talk to 3D hologram-like images of each other. Cameras that capture and track 3D video and then convert it into the life-size surround image is what make the process work.

Since the 3D video image is captured in 360 degrees, a person can walk around the pod to see the back or sides of the person they are talking to — unlike the current flat, one-dimensional screens utilized in Skype chats.

“We had a yoga instructor come out and present yoga poses on the display and had other people judge and copy them; with a display like this you can actually do that, whereas with traditional Skype conference you cannot,” said Vertegaal, director of the Human Media Lab.

Want to read more and see a picture (remember, it’s hologram-like), go to http://www.thestar.com/business/article/1172924–star-trek-comes-to-life-life-size-3d-hologram-created-by-queen-s-university-researcher