6Sight Future of Imaging Conference presents top innovators of 3D imaging

First will be a look at the state of the art of 3D technology from Lenny Lipton, a pioneer of the electronic stereoscopic display industry and the founder of StereoGraphics Corp. With “Hollywood and Your Television,” Rick Dean, vice president, technology development, at Lucasfilm spin-out THX Ltd., discusses commercial 3D content development and its influence on the emergence of 3D-capable televisions in the home. Dean is also a board member of 3D@Home Consortium.

“I will present a background overview of 3D that is partly technical and partly historical,” says Lipton. “This will help the attendees get up to speed on product and system development for stereo 3D consumer photographic applications.”

Lenny Lipton is widely considered the father of the electronic stereoscopic display industry, having earned 35 patents in the field. He won an award from the Smithsonian for the invention of CrystalEyes, the dominant product for desktop stereoscopic displays for 20 years. As the CTO of Real D, he invented the ZScreen, which is the basis of the Real D projection system deployed in 3,500 theaters in 25 countries. He was an editor at Popular Photography magazine, and has written 4 books, including “Independent Filmmaking” and “Foundations of the Stereoscopic Cinema.” He has traveled on behalf of the United States Department of State as a cultural liaison, is a Fellow of the SMPTE, and the cochair of the subcommittee on stereoscopic cinematography for the ASC Technology Committee. His film work has been exhibited at the Tate Liverpool Museum and the Whitney Museum of American Art, and is collected in the Pacific Film Archive of the University of California. Incidentally, he wrote the song “Puff the Magic Dragon” while a freshman at Cornell.

“Movie makers have always wished to tell stories using the best tools they have at their disposal,” says Rick Dean. “My presentation, ‘The Immersive Experience, from Silent Movies to 3D,’ will address the many evolutions of moving image technology. The latest is 3D, and it adds another way to deliver the immersive experience.”

Dean has more than 20 years of experience in the motion picture industry. He guides the strategic development of new technologies and THX certification programs. Dean has worked on such groundbreaking entertainment projects as the DVD and D-cinema releases of “Star Wars,” Episodes I, II, and III. Dean transformed the THX mastering program from Laser Disc to standard definition DVD, D-cinema, and the emerging high-definition DVD formats. Prior to joining THX, Dean was vice president of engineering at Deluxe Labs, Video Division. During his tenure at Deluxe Labs, he oversaw and performed mastering operations for Twentieth Century Fox.

The 3D@Home Consortium is an international, rapidly growing industry group whose purpose is to ensure the best possible viewing experience as 3D technology and content matures for home entertainment and gaming. The consortium accomplishes its mission through industry steering teams focused on content creation, content storage and distribution, communications, and 3D displays. The consortium is managed by the FlexTech Alliance and Insight Media.