IDF in 3D: Intel Software Keynote

posted by Ron Schott (Owen Media) on August 24, 2008

When I was handed a pair of Shrek ears on Tuesday promoting today’s software keynote, I was pretty sure that I’d be treated to at least a couple seconds of the Mike Meyers-voiced ogre. But the show Renee James put on in her keynote went above and beyond - it seriously blew me away.

Toss off the red and blue 3D glasses and get ready for an incredible new experience with INTRU3D from Dreamworks. Thanks to increased computing power and advanced software development tools from Intel, Dreamworks’ CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg announced that from now on, all Dreamworks films will be released with 3D versions.

As if that wasn’t enough, Katzenberg announced to that audience that we’d get a sneak peek at a 3D scene from their summer hit Kung Fu Panda. I thought “how’s this going to work?” My question was immediately answered as a gigantic movie screen rolled in from stage right. “Cool, cool. But how am I going to see 3D?” Katzenberg answered that question by telling us that a pair of polarized 3D glasses was attached to the bottoms of every seat. I’m not going to go into detail about the scene, because some of you may not have even seen the movie yet, but it was pretty amazing.

I wondered why the screen didn’t roll away immediately after the scene ended, but soon found out… another 3D preview! This one was for an upcoming Dreamworks project called Monsters vs. Aliens. The scene we saw starred Stephen Colbert as the President of the United States (yeah, I know). In the scene, Colbert’s character arrives at the landing site of a U.F.O. to officially welcome the travelers from another planet. He, of course, harkens back to early cinematic lore and uses a keyboard piano to try and communicate with the large ship. When this doesn’t seem to work he flips the switch to synth and brings up the funk beat to belt out the theme song from Beverly Hills Cop. After apparently bombing his attempt at communicating with the aliens and angering the visitors, the President drops a few bombs of his own on the ship, basically doing nothing. The clip ended there, but you can find a trailer (though not a good quality one) here.

What all these bells and whistles and 3D animations really boil down to is that Intel’s software innovations and commitment to giving developers the tools they need are blurring the lines between the technical and creative realms, and helping developers deliver cooler stuff to you, the audience. The next big thing in this space will be the Intel Visual Studio, due out in beta form in Nov. Stay tuned to Intel.com for more details.

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tagged: 3D, IDF, Renee James, software