San Diego 3D technology company PassmoreLab has offered to convert existing 2D films to stereoscopic 3D, for theatrical or television release, with no up front costs. In an unprecedented deal, PassmoreLab will take existing 2D content and convert it into stereoscopic 3D for a back-end royalty of 50 percent of moneys derived from the 3D release. All up front costs of the conversion will be paid in full by PassmoreLab using its facilities in South Africa and San Diego.
According to PassmoreLab owner, Greg Passmore, "The content owner provides us masters, we convert it to 3D with care and attention to detail and prepare the 3D masters for release. This allows legacy animation to be re-released and generate new revenue streams without any effort or cash from content owners. We especially love converting animation since this hits a sweet spot of 3D demographics."
This is a significant opportunity as 3D is clearly becoming a very popular and profitable format in the entertainment industry. In July of 2006, Columbia Pictures released "Monster House" in 2D and 3D. It grossed $22 million on opening weekend and more than 11 percent of that gross came from the 3D version which was only shown on 5 percent of the screens. Likewise, when Disney released "Meet the Robinsons" in standard and Disney Digital 3D in March of 2007, one third of its $88.4 million in box office receipts came from the 3D version which was shown on 11 percent of the screens.
Those kind of box office numbers make converting 2D to 3D a very attractive endeavor. PassmoreLab has already started conversion on a number of projects including Sunrise Productions "Jungle Beat" series. Sunrise Producer, Phil Cunningham, is excited about the opportunity to work with PassmoreLab on this effort, "PassmoreLab is an amazing partner to team up with. The work they do is cutting-edge, amazing."