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TheSVD

macrumors 6502a
At 2K, the big screen will still bring you to the theater. But that is less of a draw for non-visually-intense movies.

Maybe at 4K it would pull you more, as there's nothing on the table about next generation discs.

But at most, what one normally knows about a screening is whether the theater is digitally capable or not. Not the production or projection resolution.

but still, it is not a deciding factor and therefore would not be a cost effective investment. I doubt anyone goes to the cinema complaining about the quality, and i bet they would still go even if they could have equal quality at home. Cinemas will upgrade when they have to, not just because people can have the same equipment at home.

And okay, props to that, but its not like they're going to say 'nahh dude lets not go there.. theres no digital projection!"

and +1 to what that guy said ^^^
 

cube

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I am not saying it would be cost effective. I'm saying it's dubious to go digital now.
 

cube

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So if the big screen is not going to draw you in for non-visually intense movies, what makes you think the higher resolution will?

Because for "portrait"-like pictures, you would know you can't get that detail at home.
 

cube

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I'm still in doubt where 4K or 8K would even be visibly better on a movie theater screen unless you're sitting in the front row. I've seen the graphs that estimate the angular resolution of the human eye and viewing distance, and plot the 720p/1080p lines on it to see how close you need to sit at what screen size to actually see any benefit. Has anyone extrapolated these graph to movie screens and 8K?

4K is reported upto about 2 screen heights distance, so the full 8K would be upto about 1 screen height distance.
 

cube

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In 2001 there were 3840x2400 21" monitors, so it's safe to assume that you could use 8K in a 42" monitor at your desk.

They were very expensive and they needed a special graphics card with 2 cables, that's why they didn't work.

HDMI 1.4 only goes up to 4096x2160 at 24 fps.
 

cube

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What about the possibility of showing many different movies during weekdays?
 

panoz7

macrumors 6502a
Nov 21, 2005
904
1
Raleigh, NC
What about the possibility of showing many different movies during weekdays?

I think everybody here recognizes that there are benefits to digital projection, both for the theaters and the viewers.

It's your original premise (that theaters must upgrade to 4k and 8k projectors soon or they risk becoming obsolete) that I, and I think others, object to.

I'm all for higher resolution, as long as it doesn't a) cost a fortune, and b) exceeds the resolution that my vision can resolve. Otherwise, I don't really get the point, and would rather that directors going forward focus on creating better movies instead of movies that are slightly sharper.
 

cube

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It's your original premise (that theaters must upgrade to 4k and 8k projectors soon or they risk becoming obsolete) that I, and I think others, object to.

I am not saying they should upgrade, but that cinemas should go directly from analog to 8K, if it takes so many years to pay the projection systems back.
 

cube

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So, a Sony 4K projection system cost $85000 vs. $35000 for film in 2007 ?

There are some "4K-ready" DLP systems. I have no idea how much moving them to 4K will cost.

I read you can make huge savings in DLP vs. LCOS because of the different lamp power.
 

Ruahrc

macrumors 65816
Jun 9, 2009
1,345
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4K is reported upto about 2 screen heights distance, so the full 8K would be upto about 1 screen height distance.

So, say the average movie screen is what, 20-25 feet tall? I am not sure the front row is much closer than that to the screen surface. 4K probably only reaches the front half of the theatre, and even that may be a stretch. So 8K would be great for the 12 people sitting in the front row where they could see all the great resolution but have a headache and nbeck strain due to all the head-turning they'll need to do being in the front row?

Because for "portrait"-like pictures, you would know you can't get that detail at home.

As stated above, if 4K isn't visible for >50% of the theatre, what detail are they getting that they can't get now? And who is watching a movie for "portrait" like pictures? And if detailed portrait pictures were so integral to the movie experience, wouldn't that classify as visually-intensive (where again IMO screen size and field of view coverage is generally more important than resolution)?

I am not saying they should upgrade, but that cinemas should go directly from analog to 8K, if it takes so many years to pay the projection systems back.

The problem is that to go straight to 8K, there need to be 8K movies. And all the extra cost of production and the projection euipment will have to be passed on to the consumer, who won't go to a theater and pay $50+ for a ticket to an 8K movie, the resolution of which he cannot even see unless he is one of the lucky few people to sit in the front row...?

Ruahrc
 

Designer Dale

macrumors 68040
Mar 25, 2009
3,950
101
Folding space
I have to admit that I'm a bit lost here. I like to go to the movies to get out of the house and be with people. I enjoy cinema for its guts; acting, script and those things that make me think about stuff. Resolution is nice, but what I find myself doing for days after a good film is thinking about the story line. Singing in the Rain and Maltese Falcon are great films and they are in scratchy black and white. I can't conceive of them is ultra high rez or :eek: 3D...

Dale
 

KeithPratt

macrumors 6502a
Mar 6, 2007
804
3
This thread encapsulates the very essence of human progress — man has idea to jump six steps forward; man ignores four pages of sound logic as to why his idea doesn't work.

If you had posted this in the video sub-forum, there's an issue that would have been brought up that's only been alluded to here — depth of field. Focus-pulling on Super 35 is hard enough as it is, and increasing the resolution and propensity for shallower depth of field will only make this harder. And you can add to that that 3D and shallow depth of field are not friends. It's not just a headache for focus pullers but also a literal headache for most viewers.

To add to the VFX argument, have a look at this article about rendering on Avatar. What do you reckon would be their response to you asking them to model and render everything at sixteen times the resolution tomorrow?

Although your point and attitude have been shifted throughout the thread, I still don't think you're properly appreciating just how much goes into making and distributing a movie — in particular how small a part the camera and projector play in practical terms.

Keep chasing that rainbow, but if you genuinely think it's as simple as swapping out the cameras and projectors, you're yet to realise a rainbow is not something you can actually grab a hold of.

(Oh, and check out the Phantom 65. It's been around for years.)
 

cube

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I know there is a lot between the camera and the projector. My point is that with 8K TV on the horizon, shouldn't there be some more future-proofing going on?
 
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