When the iconic superhero returns to the big screen June 28 in Warner Bros. "Superman Returns," the movie will be released simultaneously in 3-D on the really big screens of IMAX theaters.
It's the first time IMAX has gone 3-D with a live-action film, and even old fans are excited.
To mimic human depth perception, the new IMAX 3-D format takes the regular two-dimensional movie footage and assigns it as either the sightline of the right or left eye. Then, using computers, a technical team shifts and renders a second spool of film to match the other eye's viewpoint, explained Greg Foster, chairman of filmed entertainment for IMAX.
Foster explained that newfangled polarized 3-D glasses fuse the images from the two separate spools of film at the bridge of a moviegoer's nose for a realistic perspective.
"We intend to help the audience literally fly with Superman," said Foster.
Because only Superman could leap IMAX screens — as high as eight stories tall — in a single bound, the effect is supersized.
Approximately 20 minutes of "Superman Returns" has been converted to 3-D. Little images of a pair of flashing green glasses in the corner of the screen alert viewers to put on their own glasses five seconds before a 3-D scene.
Size does matter, at least when it comes to the film used in IMAX theaters. The film stock is almost 10 times larger than the standard 35-mm. stock used in traditional cineplexes.
IMAX film is called 15/70 film, referring to the 15 sprockets per frame on 70-mm. stock. The company says the larger size allows more light from the projector to go through the film, and as a result, project more detail. Unlike regular 35-mm. film, the soundtrack is not embedded, but is on a separate magnetic tape that is synchronized to the movie.
Because of the film's size, IMAX projectors used to display the footage are also gargantuan, weighing 1,800 pounds apiece.
