"Club Penton" - Ask questions to Hollywood insider "Penton-Man"

[Jeff Kleist]

A way to resume BD-J has very recently been developed. Mutant Chronicles, which came out today has it.

Given that these methods are, at the moment proprietary, it will take some time for a licenseable solution or for the in-house coders at other places to figure out how it's done and write their own versions. Say 6-12 months to propogate widely

[frank_t]

Originally Posted by Jeff Kleist

A way to resume BD-J has very recently been developed. Mutant Chronicles, which came out today has it.

Given that these methods are, at the moment proprietary, it will take some time for a licenseable solution or for the in-house coders at other places to figure out how it's done and write their own versions. Say 6-12 months to propogate widely

Now that's just excellent news

6-12 months, not so much, but the resume-ability would be welcome addition to Blu.

[4K2K]

Has Sony ever used text based subtitles for their Blu-ray titles, and if so could you tell me any of the titles please?

For the Immortal Beloved Blu-ray - ie. the one that reviews and blu-ray.com news says has moveable subtitles, did they use text based subtitles or did they use two sets of bitmap based subtitles, with one totally in the active picture area and the other not, allowing the user to select one or the other?

[Jeff Kleist]

No one to my knowlege has used text based subtitles, nor are they likely to as I've explained before, due to lack of ability to control quality. There are discs with 2 sets of bitmap subtitles in different positions however

[syncguy]

Originally Posted by Jeff Kleist

No one to my knowlege has used text based subtitles, nor are they likely to as I've explained before, due to lack of ability to control quality. There are discs with 2 sets of bitmap subtitles in different positions however

Okay. Wish to find out, how Immortal Beloved move subtitles. If someone has a copy this can be easily tested.

[GetGray]

Yes thanks.

Now if we could just get an anamorphically encoded Blu-Ray we'd be in business. Any chance of that happening?

Best,
Scott

[Doctorossi]

Originally Posted by GetGray

Any chance of that happening?

No.

[4K2K]

Originally Posted by Jeff Kleist

No one to my knowlege has used text based subtitles, nor are they likely to as I've explained before, due to lack of ability to control quality. There are discs with 2 sets of bitmap subtitles in different positions however

Are the subtitles produced in the individual players or in the SoC chips like those produced by Sigma Designs? Is there any site where we can see the difference in quality and resolution between the bitmap based ones and the resolution-independent vector based text ones?

What are the requirements for the HDMI 1.4 equipped Blu-ray players that they are currently working on in relation to output resolutions - will they be required to output at 4096x2160, and when output at that resolution, shouldn't the resolution-independent font types be capable of higher quality/resolution than the bitmap ones, which for 2.4:1 films will only have a maximum of 800 lines in total active picture height?

Is HDMI 1.4 the best type of connector that could be used for Blu-ray players and TVs in terms of reliability, bandwidth, output rates and resolutions supported, or could another type be better or be an additional option? And when they decided on HDMI 1.4, why didn't they decide to increase the bandwidth to higher than HDMI 1.3?

[Penton-Man]

Originally Posted by Doctorossi

Yay! Nice news, Penton. Glad to see this get one step closer to 'standard'.

I'd still prefer a movable/switchable option, but I'm not gonna complain!

Good.
Even though the 2008 – 2009 Premier league season has finished, did I mention to you that Sir Howard Stringer is a big Man U supporter? …not that he was a player option whom Sir Alex Ferguson ever considered for the game line-up to begin with.

Moving forward…………Pick one -
Do you know roughly how tall the Stay Puft Man in Ghostbusters was, in real life ?
Option #1 – 6 ft. tall
Option #2 – 4 ft. tall
Option #3 – 2 ft. tall
Option #4 – 20 ft. tall <-- there, I’m providing you an extra option here, so you should feel completely fulfilled now.

[Penton-Man]

Originally Posted by 4K2K

Will the subtitles be reduced in size to the same size relative to active picture area as they are in a cinema?

Perhaps you missed it, I mentioned way back on the subtitle poll thread or here in this thread that I would actively promote the notion of SPHE producing Blu-ray subtitles about equal to their theatrical equivalent, in size………and I really feel pretty confident that I will prevail in that endeavor.

- they certainly should not be noticeably larger in size than what is currently being done by other major studios which already have plenty of experience in the employment of the ‘all subtitle lines in the active picture all the time’ procedure.

[Penton-Man]

Originally Posted by syncguy

Thanks you very much Penton.

You have given leadership to make a landmark decision on subtitle placement to achieve universal content compatibility with all displays until the eternity.

You’re welcome.
And to all others that have expressed their gratitude on the last page……..shucks, you’re making me blush now.

[Penton-Man]

Originally Posted by Eternal_Sunshine

Penton, I'm ecstatic and need to thank you once again for going way beyond any call of duty by setting up this poll!

It's such a rare and beautiful thing for "the industry" in general and especially a giant corporation like SPHE to give their customers a chance to be heard – and really make a difference!

I also have to thank all those who voted for "option 1" – especially those who do not (yet) have a CIH setup! I have never felt so BLU (as in: a happy Blu-ray camper) since the end of the format war...

P.S. I can't access your Youtube-link for "copyright reasons"......

Duuuude……….. you really must rent or buy The Girl Next Door when it debuts on Blu-ray and pay particular attention to the scene which begins when the Director says….”As an artist I want it to come from a truthful place ……..Ferrari, Ferrari, …focus, think Meryl Streep, Sophie’s Choice” and then proceeds to a romantic dance involving the co-stars of the film with intercuts of the cast and crew (including minions ) running through the halls …………and their filmmaking.

[Jeff Kleist]

Are the subtitles produced in the individual players or in the SoC chips like those produced by Sigma Designs? Is there any site where we can see the difference in quality and resolution between the bitmap based ones and the resolution-independent vector based text ones?

Individual players ARE those chips. They're produced by the software running on those chips
Generating on the fly vector text is also processor intensive, and the cheaper players will have trouble handling it

There are no plans for 4K support in any consumer player I'm aware of, nor do I see it becoming a feature except on pro gear for a long time to come

I don't believe there was a reason to increase the bandwidth

Seriously these are qs for KJack

Stay Puft was 6ft, it was a guy in a suit The proportions are off for a little person so that's what I'm going for

[DenonCI]

Originally Posted by Penton-Man

Good.
Even though the 2008 – 2009 Premier league season has finished, did I mention to you that Sir Howard Stringer is a big Man U supporter? …not that he was a player option whom Sir Alex Ferguson ever considered for the game line-up to begin with.

Moving forward…………Pick one -
Do you know roughly how tall the Stay Puft Man in Ghostbusters was, in real life ?
Option #1 – 6 ft. tall
Option #2 – 4 ft. tall
Option #3 – 2 ft. tall
Option #4 – 20 ft. tall <-- there, I’m providing you an extra option here, so you should feel completely fulfilled now.

Option 2?

[Jeff Kleist]

Here's a good/bad(news) piece on classics in general on video that kinda nutshells what we've been talking about

http://www2.macleans.ca/2009/08/06/s...reen-classics/

One of the things WB COULD do is to rent the TVs in Best Buy during Christmas (thought they're probably already sold, maybe something can be done) and other places with GWTW and Oz. Choke back the bile and let them stretch it out so it fills the screen so Joe Sixpack can see how good these movies can look. Make sure it runs the splitscreens so people can see the difference.

At the very least, send around the brigade to do staff trainings at these stores. Most of the kids working at BB are convinced that anything not shot on HD cameras "isn't really HD". A little money spent now on this classic push might do a lot down the line in keeping things viable

[Tok]

The only track I care about is the native language track. Why can't the native language track be the only one offered in lossless? I fear as the studios try to cost cut and have one sole disc for multiple regions that video will be sacrificed to contain multiple lossless 'dubbed' tracks.

[Doctorossi]

Originally Posted by CraigW

Why can't the native language track be the only one offered in lossless?

Probably for the same reason that most modern movies more closely resemble Rocky IV than they do Raging Bull.

We can't all have taste or the term would lose its meaning.

[Eternal_Sunshine]

Originally Posted by Penton-Man

Perhaps you missed it, I mentioned way back on the subtitle poll thread or here in this thread that I would actively promote the notion of SPHE producing Blu-ray subtitles about equal to their theatrical equivalent, in size………and I really feel pretty confident that I will prevail in that endeavor.

- they certainly should not be noticeably larger in size than what is currently being done by other major studios which already have plenty of experience in the employment of the ‘all subtitle lines in the active picture all the time’ procedure.

More good news!

Originally Posted by Penton-Man

Duuuude……….. you really must rent or buy The Girl Next Door when it debuts on Blu-ray and pay particular attention to the scene which begins when the Director says….”As an artist I want it to come from a truthful place ……..Ferrari, Ferrari, …focus, think Meryl Streep, Sophie’s Choice” and then proceeds to a romantic dance involving the co-stars of the film with intercuts of the cast and crew (including minions ) running through the halls …………and their filmmaking.

It's on my list... I keep my fingers crossed that the Blu-ray (from Fox ) will be region free... or Girl Next Door is released in Europe soon. I've had a crush on Elisha ever since she played Jack Bauer's daughter in 24...

[SpaceDog]

Originally Posted by Jeff Kleist

Here's a good/bad(news) piece on classics in general on video that kinda nutshells what we've been talking about

http://www2.macleans.ca/2009/08/06/s...reen-classics/

One of the things WB COULD do is to rent the TVs in Best Buy during Christmas (thought they're probably already sold, maybe something can be done) and other places with GWTW and Oz. Choke back the bile and let them stretch it out so it fills the screen so Joe Sixpack can see how good these movies can look. Make sure it runs the splitscreens so people can see the difference.

At the very least, send around the brigade to do staff trainings at these stores. Most of the kids working at BB are convinced that anything not shot on HD cameras "isn't really HD". A little money spent now on this classic push might do a lot down the line in keeping things viable

It seems every other thread in the main forum is about whether this title or that title is worth it on blu-ray because it's "old" and "not hd". There does need to be education for retailers and consumers about what blu-ray can do for classic films. Studios that have a deep classic catalog would do well to throw a classics trailer on discs so that people get a real idea about the upgrade.

I'm looking forward to NxNW (and all Hitchcock), My Fair Lady, Wizard of Oz, To Kill a Mockingbird, and many others. Some I picked up on DVD and was blown away by the quality and attention to detail (wallpaper in MFL, as an example) others I've held off on hoping for a blu-ray edition.

The idea that some titles might only be available in roughshod burn as you go editions is quite upsetting to me.

[Sponge-worthy]

Originally Posted by Eternal_Sunshine

More good news! I've had a crush on Elisha ever since she played Jack Bauer's daughter in 24...

She still does!