SEMINAR

ON
DIGITAL CINEMA

By:
Mahaveer.j.Aski
4SN06EC022
E&C Dept,SIT
OVERVIEW:
• What is digital cinema?
• DLP Cinema technology
• Standards development
• Claims to significant events
• Why digital cinema?
• Economics
• Problems facing by D-cinema
• Conclusion
• References
What is Digital Cinema?
 Digital Cinema is a complete system to deliver
”cinema-quality“ programs to “theaters”
(including consumer homes) throughout
the world using digital technology.

 Digital cinema covers every aspect of the movie

making process, from production and post-production
to distribution and projection.
 A digitally produced or digitally converted movie can
be distributed to theaters via satellite, physical media,
or fiber optic networks. The digitized movie is stored by
a computer/server which "serves" it to a digital
projector for each screening of the movie.

 Projectors based on DLP Cinema® technology are

currently installed in over 1,195 theaters in 30
countries worldwide - and remain the first and only
commercially available digital cinema projectors.

 DLP technology was invented by Dr. Larry Hornbeck of

Texas Instruments in 1987
DLP Cinema® technology
Many Data projectors and HDTVS using DLP technology rely
on a single chip configuration like the one described below
 White light passes through a color filter, causing red, green,
blue and even additional primary colors such as yellow cyan,
magenta and more to be shone in sequence on the surface of
the DLP chip. The switching of the mirrors, and the proportion
of time they are 'on' or 'off' is coordinated according to the
color shining on them. Then the sequential colors blend to
create a full-color image you see on the screen.
 These mirrors are literally capable of switching on and off
thousands of times per second and are used to direct light
towards, and away from, a dedicated pixel space. The duration
of the on/off timing determines the level of gray seen in the
pixel. Current DMD chips can produce up to 1024 shades of
gray.
DLP technology enabled projectors for very high
brightness applications such as cinema and large venue
displays rely on a 3 chip configuration to produce
stunning images, whether moving or still.
 In a 3 chip system, the white light generated by the
lamp passes through a prism that divides it into red,
green and blue. Each DLP chip is identified for each of
these three colors; the colored light that the
micromirrors reflect is then combined and passed
through the projection lens to form an image.
Standards development

 The Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers began

work on standards for digital cinema in 2001. It was clear by that
point in time that HDTV did not provide a sufficient technological
basis for the foundation of digital cinema playback.

 Digital Cinema Initiatives (DCI) was formed in March 2002 as a

joint project of many motion picture studios
(Disney, Fox, MGM, Paramount, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Universal and Warner Bros. Studios)
to develop a system specification for digital cinema.

 The primary purpose of DCI is to establish and document

specifications for an open architecture for digital cinema that
ensures a uniform and high level of technical performance,
reliability and quality. By establishing a common set of content
requirements, distributors, studios, exhibitors, d-cinema
manufacturers and vendors can be assured of interoperability and
compatibility.
 In cooperation with the American Society of
Cinematographers, DCI created standard evaluation
material and developed tests of 2K and 4K playback and
compression technologies. DCI published their specification
in 2005.
Claims to significant events

 The first secure encrypted digital cinema feature

was Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones  in
1999 by Cinecomm Digital Cinema (then led by Russell
J. Wintner).This first digital delivery and exhibition of a
full-length feature film to paying audiences is widely
considered to be the defining moment for digital
cinema's commercial viability. 

 The film was transmitted and then shown digitally in

theatres both in Paramus, New Jersey and Los Angeles,
California. The system functioned well but was
eventually replaced because of the need to create a
standard data package for D-cinema distribution.
 In August 2006, the Malayalam digital
movie Moonnamathoral, produced by Mrs. Benzy
Martin, was distributed via satellite to cinemas, thus
becoming the first Indian digital cinema. This was done
by Emil and Eric Digital Films, a company based at
Thrissur using the end-to-end digital cinema system
developed by Singapore-based DG2L Technologies.
WHY DIGITAL CINEMA?
 When you see a movie digitally, you see that movie
the way its creators intended you to see it: with
incredible clarity and detail.
 In a range of up to 35 trillion colors. And whether
you're catching that movie on opening night or months
after, it will always look its best, because digital movies
are immune to the scratches, fading, pops and jitter
that film is prone to with repeated screenings.
 Main advantage of digital movies are that, expensive
film rolls and postprocessing expenses could be done
away. Movie would be transmitted to computers in
movie theatres, hence the movie could be released in a
larger number of theatres.
 Directors
-The director’s vision can now actually be seen by audiences
-Post-production can all be done digitally (no film transfers)
 Distributors
-Duplication costs removed
-Better piracy prevention
-Larger numbers of theatres can now view simultaneously
-Transportation costs can be replaced by much lower
transmission costs
 Exhibitors
-More flexible scheduling (e.g. more simultaneous
screenings)
 Audiences
-Higher quality entertainment (better picture and sound)
-Easier access to screenings (more simultaneous showings)
Economics
 Impact on distribution
Digital distribution of movies has the potential to save money
for film distributors. To print an 80-minute feature film can
cost US$1,500 to $2,500, so making thousands of prints for a
wide-release movie can cost millions of dollars. In contrast, at
the maximum 250 megabit-per-second data rate (as defined
by DCI for digital cinema), a feature-length movie can be
stored on a off the shelf 300 GB hard drive for a minuscule
fraction of the cost. In addition hard drives can be returned
to distributors for reuse. With several hundred movies
distributed every year, the industry could save billions of
dollars.
 Costs
On the downside, the initial costs for converting theaters to
digital are high: up to $150,000 per screen or more. Theaters
have been reluctant to switch without a cost-sharing
arrangement with film disributors.

While a theater can purchase a film projector for US$50,000

and expect an average life of 30–40 years, a digital cinema
playback system including server/media block/and projector
can cost 3–4 times as much, and is at higher risk for
component failures and technological obsolescence.
Problems Facing D-Cinema:
 Different experience from theatre to theatre (or home to
home)

 Not enough standardization

-SMPTE DC28 trying to solve this but currently no OEM
products really support DC28 for real-time
applications
-Interoperability between display types (e.g. DLP and ILA)
still to be addressed.

 Huge storage and bandwidth requirements

– Up to 200 terabytes per film during post production stage
CONCLUSION
 Digital cinema is future of cinema industry. Gradually
cinema industry is moving from conventional projection to
digital cinema.

 Overall digital cinema has better image and sound quality

than the conventional projection.

 Digital distribution of movies has the potential to save

money for film distributors.
References:
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_projector
• http://www.wepapers.com/Papers/80029/Di
gital_Cinema
• http://www.dlp.com/cinema/dlp-cinema/
• Digital cinema By Brian McKernan
THANK YOU