Rotoscoping

[P3D Section of Epidemiology <dworrell@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

It may just be my misunderstanding, but rotoscoping is a
technique that uses live action film as a _template_ for
animation. It allows the animator to draw over the top of
the film (not really the film itself but a projection). It
was Ralph Bakshi (I hope I spelled that right) favorite
technique in _Wizards_ and _Lord of the Rings_ and was also
popular in the heyday of 80's MTV. It is not a 3-D
technique, although it could be approximated by applying
the same filter to a stereo-pair in PhotoShop. My
experiments have produced fair results at best due to
_ghosting_ of some pixel elements.

Personally I'd love to see some new, high quality feature
films released in 3-D. But I'm not holding my breath. We
all know how wonderful 3-D can be, and we're willing to
accept the hassle that viewing requires. The general public
isn't. When, not if, somebody much smarter than I develops
a high quality media (medium?) for stereoscopic display
that requires NO effort on the part of the viewer, 3-D will
become the standard. Who knows, perhaps in 20 or 30 years
(hopefully less) kids will wonder why there were ever
_flat_ movies (like they do about black and white today).

In the meantime let's keep the art alive by shooting 3-D!

Wishing I was in Rochester too ...
_______________________________
Dave Worrell
State of Alaska
Section of Epidemiology


------------------------------