Apple wants to fix 3D movies

Universal's makes a risky $6b investment, Immersed Visor sort of works, and Apple thinks you will want to watch 3D movies alone.

Author

Nate Essin
October 18, 2024 • Reading Time: 11 minutes

Apple thinks they can save 3D movies

3D movies have had a rough go of it from headache inducing blue and red glasses, the 3D TV boom and bust in the 2010s, to immersive video in headsets like the Apple Vision Pro.

Don’t get me wrong. I like 3D movies. I am the guy who pays an extra $5 to wear those silly polarized glasses in the movie theater and my next monitor might be a glasses free 3D display.

3D film has been on life support for several reasons:

  1. Flat screen displays are much more accessible (we carry them in our pockets) and they will probably always have better viewing angles because of physics.

  2. Once you’re sucked into a film it doesn’t matter how many dimensions it has.

  3. Unlike 2D films which employ a shallow depth of field for a dreamy look, 3D films require the entire frame to be in focus. Elements in the foreground and background must be sharp to allow the viewer to see them without eye strain or headaches.

  4. People get nausea and headaches when their brain perceives they are moving and their inner ear says they are standing still.

3D movies are just not the same as 2D movies. Directors have to think differently about camera placement, framing, focus and motion to account for the additional dimension and reduce motion sickness.

For this reason, films that are shot with a 3D first approach won’t be as appealing

when viewed in 2D. While films shot with a 2D first approach and viewed in 3D tend to give viewers nausea, eye strain, and headaches.

Apple thinks they can make you want to watch 3D movies. They have been releasing short films in 8K resolution surrounding you top to bottom and left to right with 180 degree video featuring spatial audio. And no, Apple didn’t invent 180 degree video, they just standardized an extremely high quality version of it they call Immersive Video. (The Verge’s Victoria Song says watching Immersive Video in the Apple Vision Pro is isolating, something I’m trying to fix.)

This week, Apple released “Submerged”, their latest Immersive Video short about a WWII submarine under attack. They spent big on their first scripted film shot in the Apple Immersive Video format and hired director, Edward Berger, a German filmmaker with an Academy Award in 2022 for “All Quiet on the Western Front”.

In an interview with the director that sounded as if the Apple Marketing team had a gun to his head, Berger said, “This immersive technology pioneered by Apple is going to change the future of filmmaking.”

He couldn’t be more wrong.

Apple’s Immersive Video format is not immune to the problems that have plagued 3D movies for decades. Last night, I attended our local Houston VR meetup where Eric Liga, our chapter leader and VR veteran, said he watched the film and felt motion sick during a scene shot from a top down view.

Apple’s 8k, 180, 3D camera rig

Berger’s “future of filmmaking“ could be more fragmented with a small slice of film viewers opting for 3D content. Apple Vision Pro’s Immersive Video and the Meta Quest have created a new demand for 3D content among headset owners, a plus side for 3D filmmakers.

What do you think? Can Apple make 3D movies work? Hit reply and I’ll publish responses in the next issue.

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Universal’s risky $6b investment

Why am I writing about theme parks?

In 2020 I reasoned that I could build better VR experiences if I learned how to combine environmental design with storytelling. Instead of starting with architecture or video game design, I earned a certificate in Theme Park Design from a course taught by Steve Alcorn, a former Disney imagineer.

Universal is investing $6b in Epic Universe, 5 different' “worlds” accessible by portals inspired by the metaverse. 3 of these worlds are IP based: Nintendo, Harry Potter, and How to Train Your Dragon (the heck?). The other worlds are not tied to any specific IP, but follow a theme. This is unusual in a world where we’ve seen heavy investments in existing IPs over the past few decades.

Take Dark Universe for example. There is a hodge bodge of spooky characters that have been completely fabricated. The only recognizable IP is Frankenstein, which enjoys a very odd copyright status.

This strategy is an interesting one. The world looks cool, but there is nothing here that might convince someone to buy a plane ticket. However, if Universal releases new IP that fits the theme, it can find a home here.

This strategy isn’t completely new. Disney has operated with a Frontier Land, World of Tomorrow, and Fantasy Land since day one. It will be interesting to see if Universal’s $6b investment strikes a chord with visitors.

More Headlines

Look mom, I’m on a podcast

Ricky Houck, host of the MetaRick podcast invited me back on the show to catch up, talk about our industry, and the launch of this newsletter!

Ricky’s a highly disciplined builder focused on incremental change. It’s evidenced here in this screenshot with the subtitles, logo, and design that are lightyears ahead of our first podcast together.

Check it out wherever you get your podcasts:

Immersed Visor works! Sort of.

The first time I covered the Visor, I called Immersed founder, Renji Bijoy, “Sketchy”. I stand by that, but I won’t be so harsh this time.

The immersed team finally got the visor running for Ian Hamilton at UploadVR. The resolution is too low for use as as computer monitor (it’s stated purpose) and it runs at a headache inducing 60 hertz refresh rate due to overheating issues. (A typical head mounted display refreshs the image 90-120 times a second.)

It’s not fun to kick a man when he’s down and now I just feel sad for him. He’s clearly trying to make this work and is under tremendous pressure from investors and preorder purchasers. He looks tired and is talking a million miles per hour like he’s been working all nighters and surviving on a diet of ground coffee and 4 hour energy.

So yeah. The visor is there. It works. Sort of. It has heat sink issues. It probably won’t hit the market until it’s irrelevant.

Renji Bijoy cools the overheated Visor headset with a Starbucks frap

Procrastination Station

Video taken from my balcony

The Union Pacific Big Boy passed by my house the other day. The engine and coal car together weigh over 1.2 million pounds - making it the largest train in the world.

That’s it for this week

Hannah and I are headed to Sean’s wedding in Fort Worth tomorrow and next week I’m flying to Minneapolis to spend quality time with my sister, Joanna May (who is doing some amazing work in the world of Open Source game development.)

What did you think about this issue? Hit that reply button and let me know!

- Nate

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