SMPTE Hollywood Section to Discuss Wide Color Gamut

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Thu, 08/22/2019 - 10:47 -- Nick Dager

The Hollywood Section of SMPTE will explore the advent of wide color gamut and its impact on motion picture and television production at its monthly meeting September 25 at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Los Angeles.

The wide color gamut provided by the latest high dynamic range standards opens the door to richer, more lifelike imagery, but it also poses significant creative and technical challenges, especially during the current transitional period when most consumers will continue to view content on older displays and via existing distribution mechanisms. Addressing the issue is not as simple as making multiple versions. One hurdle is determining how best to preserve the creative intent of the director, cinematographer and colorist in formats where the color gamut is more restricted.

At SMPTE Hollywood’s September meeting a panel of color experts will discuss the creative implications of the arrival of wide color gamut. They will review how the industry has addressed similar transitions in the past, including the switch from black & white to color television in the late 1950s and 1960s. They will then describe various strategies for delivering an optimal experience to viewers accessing content through divergent display systems.

The panelists include David Stump ASC, cinematographer/visual effects supervisor/stereographer (The Last Stand, Immortals, Quantum of Solace, The Resident, Flight Plan, Fantastic Four), Kevin Shaw, president, Colorist Society International/colorist/consultant/instructor at Finalcolor, Joachim Zell, vice president of technology, EFilm, and Andrew G. Setos, CEO, BlackStar Engineering.

The moderator will be Debra Kaufman, freelance journalist, (USC Entertainment Technology Center, New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Wired, Reuters, Bloomberg, American Cinematographer, International Cinematographers Guild Magazine).

Setos, Kaufman and Linda Rosner of Artisans Public Relations are producing the meeting.

SMPTE Hollywood Section, September Meeting  https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-transition-to-wide-color-gamut-tickets-69376726657