Ask questions to The Digital Bits team (Bill Hunt, Jeff Kleist et.al.)

[HeavyHitter]

Does the Digital Bits still have the section of studio addresses? I couldn't find it.

[Constitution 101]

Originally Posted by Vincent Pereira

One thing folks seem to have forgotten is that the 2003 1080P transfer of TERMINATOR 2 that has been the basis for all of these various HD releases was an anamorphic HD transfer. As per the liner notes on the "Extreme Edition" DVD (which was sourced from this same original master tape), the actual High-Definition transfer was not letterboxed, but rather the 2.35:1 image was "stretched" anamorphically to fill the entire 1080 X 1920 pixel real-estate. All of the consumer HD versions have been letterboxed High-Def, which means that the "anamorphic" master tape had to be "unsqueezed" and downconverted to a letterbox image. This downconversion may itself account for some of the variances in image quality between the various HD releases that we've seen.

Vincent

This is the kind of post we need more of...

[Penton-Man]

Originally Posted by neo_reloaded

Could be Fringe. Supernatural drama, recently had Leonard Nemoy as a guest star. The actress in question would then be Anna Torv, playing the part of Agent Olivia Dunham. Love the show!

Yes , that’s whom I was referring to. It seems that no matter how they light her and despite what angle they shoot her, she has markedly decreased facial detail (which will serve her well in future years as an actress ) compared to the other cast members, esp. when you see adjacent imagery of her immediate boss (the Afro-American guy) who you can just about count the number of pores on his face or the elderly scientist with his wrinkles.

[Penton-Man]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

Hi Jeff and Bill

Can either of you gentlemen shed ANY light whatsoever on the status of Metropolis? I am not impatient, just curious about the parties involved and their pacing. I read a while ago that some previously lost footage had been found. Can we expect this footage to be incorporated? Are there any leagal/rights issues that could slow things down?

Thank you

The road leads to Berlin today.............
https://forum.blu-ray.com/showpost.p...postcount=8951

[Bobby Henderson]

Can anyone actually confirm if the T2 HD master created for the "Extreme Edition" DVD in 2003 was acquired HDV-style in anamorphic 1440 X 1080? I would be pretty shocked if that was the case. I have doubts.

Nevertheless, a 2003 vintage HD master is a tad bit on the old side when it comes to the improvements that have been made in telecine/datacine technology. In 2003, digital intermediate use for feature film production was only just then starting to become popular for major projects. Film scan/DI use for DVD release was a pretty rare thing. I don't know, but I suspect the director's approved HD master of T2 was not made using film scan/DI techniques. A good telecine setup was likely the tool used for image acquisition, as such equipment was for so many HD masters used for HD cable/broadcast and DVD release.

I think the common techniques used to create HD masters in 2003 are the reason why T2 looks soft and lacks a certain amount of detail. I'm skeptical excessive DNR use and what not is the culprit.

[HeavyHitter]

I'd still like to know what's causing the differences between the Skynet and Geneon release especially when the bitrates are almost the same.

[DarkDune]

Bill,

Ever think about posting images of the Digital Bits Demo theater here? It might be fun to see for Digital Bits fans.

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by Penton-Man

The road leads to Berlin today.............
https://forum.blu-ray.com/showpost.p...postcount=8951

YOU DA MAN.

So...when does it arrive on Blu?

Seriously though, thanks.

[Jeff Kleist]

I'd still like to know what's causing the differences between the Skynet and Geneon release especially when the bitrates are almost the same.

I actually just had some very interesting phone calls on that. More as soon as we can put together something definitive. We believe we've found the culprit, and DNR is NOT it.

We're going to be doing what a REAL scientist does, testing our hypothesis before we say anything and open it up to peer review afterwards

[Torsten Kaiser TLE]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

Hi Jeff and Bill

Can either of you gentlemen shed ANY light whatsoever on the status of Metropolis? I am not impatient, just curious about the parties involved and their pacing. I read a while ago that some previously lost footage had been found. Can we expect this footage to be incorporated? Are there any leagal/rights issues that could slow things down?

Thank you

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

YOU DA MAN.

So...when does it arrive on Blu?

Seriously though, thanks.

Hope Jeff and Bill don't mind --

There is no METROPOLIS High Definition master thus far, merely the Digital Betacam masters (PAL original and NTSC conversion from it, which Kino used) and the original 2K files and 35mm Neg, IP and Prints.

The latter part of your Q is key right now for not only the one, but three reasons - mainly legal and restoration - and the financing of it. This will surely take time.

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by Torsten Kaiser TLE

Hope Jeff and Bill don't mind --

There is no METROPOLIS High Definition master thus far, merely the Digital Betacam masters (PAL original and NTSC conversion from it, which Kino used) and the original 2K files and 35mm Neg, IP and Prints.

The latter part of your Q is key right now for not only the one, but three reasons - mainly legal and restoration - and the financing of it. This will surely take time.

Thank you very much.

[Torsten Kaiser TLE]

Originally Posted by Bobby Henderson

Can anyone actually confirm if the T2 HD master created for the "Extreme Edition" DVD in 2003 was acquired HDV-style in anamorphic 1440 X 1080? I would be pretty shocked if that was the case. I have doubts.

Nevertheless, a 2003 vintage HD master is a tad bit on the old side when it comes to the improvements that have been made in telecine/datacine technology. In 2003, digital intermediate use for feature film production was only just then starting to become popular for major projects. Film scan/DI use for DVD release was a pretty rare thing. I don't know, but I suspect the director's approved HD master of T2 was not made using film scan/DI techniques. A good telecine setup was likely the tool used for image acquisition, as such equipment was for so many HD masters used for HD cable/broadcast and DVD release.

I think the common techniques used to create HD masters in 2003 are the reason why T2 looks soft and lacks a certain amount of detail. I'm skeptical excessive DNR use and what not is the culprit.

The Extreme Edition is based on a 23.796psf (1920x)1080 10bit 4:2:2 YUV master on HD-D5. The transfer was done on a SPIRIT DATACINE in HD at IVC in Burbank. 2K or higher was not an issue; so, no DI realm. The softness is one of the major weaknesses of the transfer mainly due to (monitoring) equipment used and the element used itself. I have not seen the new Blu-ray, but with regard to the old (HD-DVDs and BD) I can say that encoding also plays a big role why this film comes across as being even more soft.

[Jeff Kleist]

Torsten- When doing your comparison, there are actually 2 seperate encodes, with the EU edition having a lower bitrate than the US one for the Skynet Edition to accomodate extra languages

[Grubert]

Originally Posted by Penton-Man

That reminds me, there is yet another ‘quirk’ that can be attributed to digital noise reduction when in fact that is not the case. It is well known amongst experienced cinematographers that some people just have very soft faces on-camera.

There is a dramatic television series that has a blonde with such features naturally (without digital manipulation) which is a perfect example of this.
Does anyone know which actress and what TV show I’m speaking about?

Risking the fear of Trekies going wild on this thread again , it’s a supernatural type drama that even has a recent connection to Star Trek if you speak ‘Vulcan’ or is it Vulcanese?

Gotta run.

I called it a year ago, practically to the day:

https://forum.blu-ray.com/showpost.p...postcount=3093

[Mr. Cinema]

Adventureland just announced by Disney. Retail Price: $44.95.

I also heard they will now charge $39.99 for new catalog titles.

How are higher prices supposed to increase mass adoption? Does anyone think raising prices will help the format?

[Doctorossi]

Originally Posted by Mr. Cinema

How are higher prices supposed to increase mass adoption? Does anyone think raising prices will help the format?

Maybe it'll remind everyone what a relative bargain other studios' discs are and increase sales of those by attrition.

[Mr. Cinema]

My other question about Disney got lost in the shuffle.

Jeff, do you think Criterion will release more live action titles than Disney this year?

[Jeff Kleist]

I doubt Criterion will release more live action than Disney

As for pricing, see what I put up a few days back about how they're testing different packages and formulas. Obviously this is definatley a concern, but remember that last minute re-pricings after retailer and consumer feedback are not unusual (see basically every LOST title to date )

[PeterTHX]

Originally Posted by Grubert

I called it a year ago, practically to the day:

https://forum.blu-ray.com/showpost.p...postcount=3093

Um, I thought he was talking about Anna Torv.

In any case, Hayden must look "soft" because there's all sorts of unflattering paparazzi photos of her out there (a lot of bikini stuff lately) and she looks fine without makeup/etc. Just short.

[Jeff Kleist]

Don't forget the mispelled tattoo (doh!)