Archived: Insiders Thread

[Penton-Man]

Will the guy from SF check his PM's, please ?

I'm getting hungry.

[phloyd]

Originally Posted by Penton-Man

Your right, apparently Stacey was the first prophet of the notion that the HD DVD version would have seamless branching……………..

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showp...&postcount=327

With Amir, endorsing it indirectly with his “I don't know how to keep him from disclosing things like this ……….So there, you have your answer.”

Even when challenged later, he says……….
“It is not like you were right with your previous assumption that there was no seamless branching in the HD DVDHD.”
Well I personally think mr.seder was indeed correct.
^
from…………………………….
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showp...&postcount=348

Anyway,
I guess you will find out next week.

Indeed.

If Bad Santa features seamless also (it appears to have two versions included) we will have Sony (Close Encounters), Lionsgate (The Descent), Warner (this one), Fox (AVP) and Buena Vista (Bad Santa) having used this feature. As well as Interscope with the NiN BD.

(Feel free to correct my assumptions that these titles have used seamless branching).

Personally I think this feature is extremely important. Along with other feature related features like high bitrate video and lossless audio, this kind of thing actually enhances ones experience when watching the movie in question, as opposed to other features that are correctly names extras. As such, having this is key. I hope to see it used more often moving forward and becomes a key differentiator between the formats!

[lupin23rd]

Not sure which (if any) insider would be privy to this, but I'm curious why Warner and Fox are still using the stupid "HD-DVD" cases on their movies.

Paramount smartened up (crap case on MI3 but the usual BD case on Shooter) before they defected, but Warner is still doing the same and today I noticed with my first Fox title, they are doing it too.

Can we make them use the cases with the lock / latch please

I can't afford to spend $15 just to ship a $6 package of "official" cases up here (I purchase a lot of Warner titles) every time I run out!

[Penton-Man]

Originally Posted by phloyd

Indeed.

If Bad Santa features seamless also (it appears to have two versions included) we will have Sony (Close Encounters), Lionsgate (The Descent), Warner (this one), Fox (AVP) and Buena Vista (Bad Santa) having used this feature. As well as Interscope with the NiN BD.

(Feel free to correct my assumptions that these titles have used seamless branching).

LOL,
Hey I haven’t even seen either of the high-def format editions of Return to House on Haunted Hill yet.
I based my prediction (on 8/27/07) on what a WB colleague told me at a barbecue with a glass of wine in his hand.

Let’s see first if I have to eat crow with that title before we move onto other titles from other studios regarding seamless branching.

[phloyd]

Originally Posted by Penton-Man

Hey I haven’t even seen either of the high-def format editions of Return to House on Haunted Hill yet.
I based my prediction (on 8/27/07) on what a WB colleague told me at a barbecue with a glass of wine in his hand.

Let’s see first if I have to eat crow with that title before we move onto other titles from other studios regarding seamless branching.

What you learned I believe was confirmed both by paidgeek and yet another Warner contact I know of.

Also based on my (limited?) knowledge of the technical side of it all, I think HD DVD has to put some fairly impressive tools in place to achieve this and it probably really isn't worth the time/money for them to do it.

So I am cautiously optimistic

[Penton-Man]

Originally Posted by phloyd

What you learned I believe was confirmed both by paidgeek and yet another Warner contact I know of.

Well if the geekster later confirmed it, then my intestines be happy for future crow-less ingestions.

And come to think of it, since I’m collecting on owed dinners from other studio insiders, it seems to me that you, paidgeek, owe me a dinner for a boundary thing or what not and......

if the Zapper is reading this, I prefer to dine at a restaurant close to where they had the funeral mass for Joe DiMaggio in North Beach. (We normally stay at the Marriott Fisherman’s Warf [as they be dog friendly], in case you desire to order a complementary fruit basket to the room for the wife and me ).

[qwer1304]

Dear insiders!

I'd appreciate very much your thoughts on what applications the 200GB BD and HD discs will be targeting.

Many thanx.
D

[gand41f]

Originally Posted by phloyd

Indeed.

If Bad Santa features seamless also (it appears to have two versions included) we will have Sony (Close Encounters), Lionsgate (The Descent), Warner (this one), Fox (AVP) and Buena Vista (Bad Santa) having used this feature. As well as Interscope with the NiN BD.

(Feel free to correct my assumptions that these titles have used seamless branching).

Personally I think this feature is extremely important. Along with other feature related features like high bitrate video and lossless audio, this kind of thing actually enhances ones experience when watching the movie in question, as opposed to other features that are correctly names extras. As such, having this is key. I hope to see it used more often moving forward and becomes a key differentiator between the formats!

Not an insider but The Descent was confirmed not to use seamless branching, it actually included two versions of the movie.

enjoy
gandalf

[crey014]

Originally Posted by UltimateFighter

Can any insider comment on New Line now releasing Pan's Labryinth on HD-DVD and Blu-Ray at the same time(Dec 26). Have we lost our time exclusivity with them? Was the whole region coding thing actually real? Thanks

I'd like to second this question, please.

For someone who imports BDs from America, the Paramount decision really affected me because the studios releasing region-free discs has decreased. I could support HD-DVD because of no region coding but why support an inferior format, me thinks.

I was wondering on how vigilant the other regions are in playing catch-up with American releases? Australia/NZ doesn't even have Stranger than Fiction and The Prestige (region coded titles). I understand that some films (esp from Sony Classics) have different distributors worldwide. This fact is esp frustrating since it will be close to impossible for me to see The Lives of Others and Volver in blu.

[jfanning]

Originally Posted by crey014

I was wondering on how vigilant the other regions are in playing catch-up with American releases? Australia/NZ doesn't even have Stranger than Fiction and The Prestige (region coded titles). I understand that some films (esp from Sony Classics) have different distributors worldwide. This fact is esp frustrating since it will be close to impossible for me to see The Lives of Others and Volver in blu.

You can always import them from Europe since they are in the same region (although a little more expensive than from the US)

[Papi4baby]

Back on topic guys come on

To Paid, or Penton, or whoever can answer this.
Is it true that Universal has a contract with HDDVD, and that it is coming at an end this 4 quarter? A small hint would be enought. If this has been covered mod you can delete or do as you wish. Thank you again insiders.

[akbungle]

Originally Posted by UltimateFighter

Can any insider comment on New Line now releasing Pan's Labryinth on HD-DVD and Blu-Ray at the same time(Dec 26). Have we lost our time exclusivity with them? Was the whole region coding thing actually real? Thanks

Sorry, no insider has answered this and it has been asked more than once so I'll give the answer as I know to be the case.
New Line said specifically that new theatrical releases would require the Blu-Ray exclusive time window, but since Pan's is done with it's worldwide theatrical run their is no need for the window.
For instance when Blade gets released, provided HD-DVD is still around, it will be released on both formats on the same day. Hope that helps!

[phloyd]

Originally Posted by gand41f

Not an insider but The Descent was confirmed not to use seamless branching, it actually included two versions of the movie.

The Descent has three versions of the movie. There is the PiP version, and in 'normal' mode there is both the R rated and Unrated versions, I believe using seamless branching.

I actually own this one and should check the seamlessness of the branching, but I have not watched the film yet so I don't want to watch the two different endings before seeing the actual film

In any case, confirmation that the R/Unrated versions are seamless or not would be useful...

[Rio]

Originally Posted by phloyd

I actually own this one and should check the seamlessness of the branching, but I have not watched the film yet so I don't want to watch the two different endings before seeing the actual film

You can check this without watching a movie, if you have BD drives in a PC.

There are playlist files (*.mpls), those are pointing which video files (*.m2ts) are used. Since mpls file is an binary file, it's difficult to understand it completely without spec book, but at least you can see file name (file number) of m2ts files by checking it with some sort of binary editor.

Usually, main feature consists of 1 or 2 m2ts files when it doesn't have seamless branching. If the main feature is chopped into many m2ts files, it is highly likely a seamless branching title.

[Rio]

Originally Posted by kjack

(1) The 60i secondary video gets converted to 24p before being mixed with the main video, or (2) the 24p main video gets converted to 60i, mixed with the secondary video, and the result converted to 24p.

Thank you Kieth for the answer!

[Penton-Man]

My choice for the hottest thread of today goes to………………………………..
https://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread.php?t=19272

where I just posted.
https://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread...611#post266611

[Kris Deering]

Originally Posted by Penton-Man

https://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread...cue#post184890

^
Do some here remember the above post from several weeks ago?
Well several days later, if you recall, I confirmed to inquiring minds on this thread that I was referring to the title….Return to House on Haunted Hill – in regards to the presence of seamless branching with this particular feature.

I’m told that on AVS literally the next day or so, Amir claimed that the HD DVD version of this title would also demonstrate seamless branching , which was in direct contradiction to my original post back in late August – where I broke this news (8/27/07) before anyone else in my own cryptic fashion.

I guess everyone should be able to find out for themselves next week when this title debuts to consumers and which “insider” will have to dine on the proverbial barbecued crow.
Of course Amir’s definition of “seamless branching” may also be on the order of his definition of “science fiction”.

Amir, if you’re reading this. I shall miss you.

Interesting, I talked with someone that has done QA on this title and he said the HD DVD does indeed have seamless branching. Looking forward to getting this one in to look at.

[Penton-Man]

Originally Posted by Kris Deering

Interesting, I talked with someone that has done QA on this title and he said the HD DVD does indeed have seamless branching.

Well geez Kris, my stomach thanks you for that information.
B.T.W. – is this the same guy that is intimately familiar with the videomaster of Blood Diamond ?

[Josh]

I hope its not the same "seemless branching" they claim DVD can do. It may be branching, but there is nothing "seemless" about it.

[phloyd]

I checked the Descent disc and it does appear to have two different m2ts files for two different endings.

The other thing I found interesting is that the PiP encode is significantly smaller than the normal feature encode.

In any case, the indication is that The Descent does use branching to give the alternate theatrical and unrated versions.

And as Josh notes, while I am sure that the HD DVD version of the Warner title has branching, is it seamless? Only time will tell