Ang Lee Is Embracing a Faster Film Format. Can Theaters Keep Up? - The New York Times: It may sound like techno-babble, but Mr. Lee’s blend of visual formats is a major departure for movie exhibition, particularly when it comes to the speed. Films have been presented almost exclusively at 24 frames a second since the 1920s. To a degree, that rate gives cinema its otherworldly quality — the blur when cameras pan from side to side, for instance.
To achieve a sharper picture and limit the eye strain that can affect 3-D viewers, some filmmakers are experimenting with higher speeds. Peter Jackson tried 48 frames a second with “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” in 2012; James Cameron is considering higher-speed cinematography for “Avatar” sequels. But no mainstream director has pushed as far as Mr. Lee, who has a history of embracing new technology.
“I thought Billy’s journey, which is both intimate and epic, and told almost entirely from his point of view, lent itself particularly well to the emotion and intensity that this new approach fosters,” Mr. Lee said in a statement. He added that technology “should always be in service of artistic expression, to make it strong and fresh, because story and drama matter most.”
Marc Platt, one of the film’s producers, said in an email that “movies today need to give audiences compelling reasons to escape their devices, and that means taking risks.”
The film is considered a risk partly because the hyper-reality lent by the cinematography technology could be unsettling to viewers. “Test subjects that have seen some footage have commented that 40 minutes after seeing battle footage, they’re still shaking,” Ben Gervais, a production systems supervisor on the film, told Variety in April.
To achieve a sharper picture and limit the eye strain that can affect 3-D viewers, some filmmakers are experimenting with higher speeds. Peter Jackson tried 48 frames a second with “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” in 2012; James Cameron is considering higher-speed cinematography for “Avatar” sequels. But no mainstream director has pushed as far as Mr. Lee, who has a history of embracing new technology.
“I thought Billy’s journey, which is both intimate and epic, and told almost entirely from his point of view, lent itself particularly well to the emotion and intensity that this new approach fosters,” Mr. Lee said in a statement. He added that technology “should always be in service of artistic expression, to make it strong and fresh, because story and drama matter most.”
Marc Platt, one of the film’s producers, said in an email that “movies today need to give audiences compelling reasons to escape their devices, and that means taking risks.”
The film is considered a risk partly because the hyper-reality lent by the cinematography technology could be unsettling to viewers. “Test subjects that have seen some footage have commented that 40 minutes after seeing battle footage, they’re still shaking,” Ben Gervais, a production systems supervisor on the film, told Variety in April.