Hasta La Gadget!

The Aston Martin DB5 is a classic piece of machinery, and it was featured in earlier James Bond films like Goldfinger and Thunderball over 50 years ago. The car also made an appearance in the latest Bond movie, Skyfall, where it exploded into flames during an intense action scene. However, what you saw in the movie was actually a 1:3 scale 3D-printed model of a DB5.

The filmmakers didn’t want to destroy an original Aston Martin DB5 (for obvious reasons), so they relied on a company called Voxeljet who used a massive VX4000 3D printer with 283 cubic feet of space to create three 1:3 scale models of the Aston Martin DB5, one of which saw its immediate death from an explosion in the movie.

In order to actually operate different parts of the car like the hood, doors, and the trunk, the makers constructed the replicas from 18 different components. After all the parts were made, they were sent off to Propshop Modelmakers in London to be assembled, finished, lacquered, and chromed to make them look exactly like the original.

It’s not said how much it cost to make one of these 3D-printed replicas, but one of the models that wasn’t destroyed in the movie was auctioned off for $100,000. Voxeljet says that this opportunity has opened up another door for the company, and says that more filmmakers may be using 3D-printed objects instead of 3D graphics in the future for better realistic scenes.

[via Gizmodo]

James Bond Skyfall crew turned to 3D printers for Aston Martin DB5 stunt double is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Peter Jackson’s version of The Hobbit has been causing a stir, because people expect its high frame rate—48 frames per second, no less—will make it look a bit like a 70s soap opera. At least you’ll be able to tell for yourself, because 450 theaters across North America are equipped to show the film at its high frame rate. More »

The next Star Trek big-time motion picture event “Star Trek Into Darkness” has been announced to be working with none other than Dolby Atmos for superior sound. The production teams at Bad Robot and director J.J. Abrams have let it be known that they’ll be integrating the Dolby Professional Reference Monitor PRM-4200 into their pre and post-production workflows and that the Dolby Atmos audio system will bring the whole Star Trek into Darkness soundtrack experience to a whole new galaxy. This film has been announced to be hitting theaters on May 17th, 2013.

This announcement has Paramount Pictures, a division of Viacom Inc., bringing this news to ShowEast 2012 where they’ve made it clear that they’re aiming for the latest in technical achievements as well as cinematic storytelling with this new beast of a film. With the Dolby hardware and software they’ll be using here, the biggest and the best can be a reality, especially since Academy Award winner Andy Nelson and multiple Academy Award nominee Anna Behlmer are up in the re-recording mix laboratory for the Dolby Atmos mix.

Academy Award winner Ben Burtt and multiple Academy Award nominee Matt Wood are the supervising sound editors for this project as well, bringing a revolution to the sound experience with a “new level of creative control” afforded by Dolby. This experience is said to be bringing the “full impact of the sound mix” regardless of the configuration of the theater in which you’re experiencing Star Trek Into Darkness in 2013.

“We are in the incredible and lucky position to have access to the latest technology, the best possible tools, and the most talented artists in the business. We are therefore thrilled to announce that we will be employing the amazingly immersive Dolby Atmos audio system to bring the Star Trek into Darkness soundtrack to life.” – Abrams

Oddly this does not mean that every theater will have a certified Dolby Atmos experience – a list of theaters selected to show “Star Trek into Darkness in Dolby Atmos” will be released closer to the release date of the film. This film was written by Damon Lindelof, Alex Kurtzman, and Roberto Orci and is produced by the same trio along with Abrams. The film will be produced by the four through Bad Robot Productions and, again, will be directed by Abrams. SlashGear will be continuing to cover Star Trek Into Darkness until it’s released – stay tuned!

Star Trek Into Darkness teams with Dolby Atmos is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

What a day for Star Wars fans – not only was it revealed that Disney had purchased LucasFilm Limited, but we also found out that Star Wars Episode VII is currently in the works for release in 2015. Those are both major announcements, especially the one about Episode VII since George Lucas said constantly that he was done making movies in the series after Episode III was released. It turns out that he was telling the truth, as he won’t be making Star Wars Episode VII, instead only acting as a consultant.

So, what now? What’s in store for the Star Wars franchise now that it’s part of Disney‘s portfolio? There are undoubtedly a ton of questions bouncing around in the heads of Star Wars fans after today, but luckily, we’re getting some explanation from the man himself, George Lucas. He and Kathleen Kennedy, who has been named the new president of LucasFilm, have taken some time to talk about the future of the franchise in a brand new YouTube video, which you can check out below.

Concerning the buyout, Lucas says, “There’s lots and lots of opportunities at Disney we wouldn’t have at any other studio.” Kennedy agreed with that notion, pointing to Disney’s success with Marvel and Pixar and adding, “In many ways, it’s the best company possible to take Star Wars into the future.” Lucas is turning over the Star Wars universe to Kennedy, saying that he’s already got treatments of the seventh, eighth, and ninth movies ready to be turned into films.

It sounds like there’s more beyond another trilogy in the pipeline too, as Lucas says there are even more movie ideas in the LucasFilm vault. Kennedy seems eager to get right to work on these new Star Wars movies, saying that LucasFilm is in the beginning stages of developing Episode VII. We have to say that we’re pretty excited to see what Disney can do with the Star Wars franchise – are you?

George Lucas speaks on Star Wars Episode 7 and Disney deal is written by Eric Abent & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Samsung just sweetened the streaming video pot for current and would-be owners of its modern Smart TVs. Viewers who’ve been craving Amazon Instant Video can download an app today to watch movies and TV shows through their 2012 set’s internet link, in the event options for Blockbuster, Hulu Plus, Netflix and Vudu weren’t already enough. It’s not necessarily a cut-and-dried port, either — Samsung is flaunting a redesigned interface tuned for big-screen distances and quick access to queuing, recommendations and captioning. Amazon junkies who wanted a larger canvas than their Kindle Fire HD now can’t get much larger.

Continue reading Samsung 2012 Smart TVs get Amazon Instant Video streaming app, synchronicity with your Kindle Fire

Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD, Samsung, Amazon

Samsung 2012 Smart TVs get Amazon Instant Video streaming app, synchronicity with your Kindle Fire originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 24 Oct 2012 22:49:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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