Why I make 3-D Movies

 

Back in 2005, I was getting ready to shoot Tales of the Dark Avenger: Forgive Us Our Debts in 3-D. One of the actors asked me why I was making it that way—said 3-D was just a distraction.

I started explaining what 3-D could bring to storytelling. I talked about depth, staging, and even brought up examples like Kiss Me Kate.

After a couple of minutes, he just said, “whatever,” and walked out the door.

He’s probably not the only actor who’s wondered why I make 3-D films. He was just the only one rude enough to say it out loud.

The real answer is simple: I make 3-D movies because I love 3-D movies.

I caught the bug as a pre-teen and never lost it. I watched everything I could, read books about it, and followed 3-D film festivals. Back in the 1980s, I dreamed about making 3-D films. So in a lot of ways, this was inevitable.

My first exposure to 3-D was a 1982 broadcast of Revenge of the Creature on WKBS Channel 48. I wasn’t all that impressed.

But later that summer, WOR-TV in New York aired Gorilla at Large in 3-D. Maybe I was sitting in just the right spot, but I swore that gorilla swung right out of the TV.

Years later, I saw that same broadcast again—and it didn’t work at all.

But as a kid with an overactive imagination, it worked perfectly.

Then Friday the 13th Part 3 came out. I wanted to see it, but at 11 years old, I wasn’t getting into an R-rated movie. Most of the early 80s 3-D revival films were R-rated, so I had to wait.

Eventually, I got to see Jaws 3-D. That opening shot—the severed fish head floating out into the audience—blew my mind.

That was it. I was hooked.

I got a book for Christmas called Amazing 3-D by Dan Symmes and Hal Morgan. I devoured it. I wanted to see every 3-D movie ever made—even if I had to watch them in 2-D and imagine the effect.

That’s really where it started. Watching flat versions and mentally “adding” the depth.

And eventually, imagining myself making them.

As a kid, what drew me in were the pop-outs—and I still love them. They’re half the fun.

But as an adult filmmaker, what excites me is what 3-D can do for storytelling.

Depth lets you stage action across multiple planes. Characters can move through the screen instead of just left to right. Someone can enter from the audience and move into the world of the film.

If you’ve ever seen House of Wax, you know that famous shot of Charles Bronson running into the screen. That’s the kind of thing 3-D can do.

My first two 3-D films—The Revenge of Rocco and Forgive Us Our Debts—were where I started experimenting with those ideas.

There’s a shot in Debts where a character walks from the edge of the screen back to a couch and sits, while another character remains in the foreground. It’s a simple shot, but it really shows the depth.

There’s also a pop-out where the Dark Avenger holds an envelope out toward the audience—for about 15 seconds. Most 3-D effects are quick. I wanted the audience to actually experience it.

Rocco has a shot where the Dark Avenger rises up into frame from out in the theater. I loved doing that one.

The problem was, those films were shot with two Digital 8 cameras. Editing them was a nightmare. Every shot had to be rendered twice, synced manually, processed in StereoMovieMaker, converted to anaglyph, and then reassembled. It took forever.

When I later moved to the DXG 3-D camcorder, I was finally able to apply those lessons in a more practical way.

You can see that evolution in later films. The gun pop-out in Murder Me Murder You and the baseball bat in Scream a Little Dream both build on that original envelope idea—holding the object in the audience space long enough for it to register.

But it’s not just about the obvious effects.

If you watch Scream a Little Dream in 3-D, look closely. In the cemetery scene, when Megan Magee gets out of her car, the masked killer is already in the background watching her. Characters are constantly moving through layers of depth. Julie McNamara literally walks into the screen before the baseball bat moment.

That’s why I make 3-D movies.

Not because it’s a gimmick.
Not because it’s a novelty.

But because, when it’s done right, it adds another dimension to how a story is told.

I'm going to keep on making 3-D movies, too. In fact, I'm right now doing a Kickstarter for my next one, a sequel to Scream a Little Dream with a new cast and story, but similar themes. You can find out more about it here:

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1987433891/scream-a-little-dream-2-in-3-d