WASHINGTON, DC—Feb 8, 2007
NAB2007 to Feature Sixth Annual Digital Cinema Summit
Conference to Examine Entire Digital Cinema Supply Chain
Technical, creative and business issues raised by the digital cinema roll-out will be the focus of the Digital Cinema Summit at NAB2007, it was announced today by conference partners NAB, the Entertainment Technology Center at University of Southern California (ETC@USC) and the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE). The two-day event will feature keynotes, case studies and panels examining real world successes and challenges across the entire digital motion picture release chain from production and post production through theatrical exhibition, to multi-platform, digital release. The Digital Cinema Summit takes place Saturday, April 14 and Sunday April 15 at the Las Vegas Convention Center.
Saturday's line up, programmed by SMPTE, focuses on the latest in stereoscopic (digital 3D) cinema techniques; technologies for creating digital intermediates (DIs); new, innovative workflows in the digital theater; the DC-28 Standards; and a final report from the international digital cinema deployment organization, World Screen. Chris Cookson, chief technology officer for Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc., will deliver a keynote address that explores what the industry can do to prepare for and empower the long-term promise of digital cinema image quality.
Sunday's program, produced by ETC@USC, will look at creating and distributing digital motion picture content for consumption in the movie theater and the new digital home. Sessions will address the digital pipeline, success and roadblocks in retrofitting theaters for digital cinema exhibition, 3D content, and recent Digital Cinema Initiatives (DCI) developments. The day will be feature two, in-depth case studies analyzing the production of recent, high profile, digital releases and a soon-to-be-announced keynote from a leading filmmaker.
"As digital technologies bring the various sectors of the entertainment industry closer together, the Digital Cinema Summit grows more germane to our NAB audience," said NAB Vice President of Science & Technology John Marino. "ETC@USC and SMPTE will draw back the curtain on key innovations that impact our post production, research and manufacturing, and Internet broadcast communities."
"Digital cinema has flourished from a few locations to thousands of screens worldwide, driven, in large part, by the development of new technologies," said Kimberly Maki, executive director, SMPTE. "Attendees to the Saturday Summit sessions will gain a deeper understanding of new technological developments and solutions, information they can take with them to the NAB exhibition floor."
"Digital Cinema represents the high-end and leading edge of the digital distribution continuum," said David Wertheimer, newly appointed executive director, ETC@USC. "What we are doing as an industry here is shaping how digital products get produced and distributed downstream. With our Sunday sessions, industry members will gain the information they need to remain ahead of the digital curve."
The Digital Cinema Summit is designed for content owners and distributors, filmmakers and crew, post production staff, theater owners, equipment manufacturers, technology companies, analysts and journalists. For detailed program info, click here.
