The young Austrian company emotion3D achieved its first commercial success with the preparation of a new advertising spot for the BMW X3. emotion3D won a valuable contract with BMW thanks to its powerful software solution for post-processing 3D films.

The 3D advertising clip will be shown in numerous showrooms worldwide, at selected locations in auto-stereoscopic 3D, i.e. without the need for the user to wear special 3D glasses. emotion3D converted the 3D cinema version of the advertisement to a 3D film format for “glasses-free” displays, enabling viewers to be drawn into a futuristic virtual world.

The 3D market has a future. Nearly all box office hits are now released in 3D. Due to the increasing demand for 3D films, the need for professional editing tools for 3D film material is growing correspondingly – a trend that emotion3D recognized in 2009 as a business opportunity.

This market demand motivated emotion3D to develop an innovative software solution for post-processing 3D film-material, which synthesizes camera perspectives at positions between the filmed cameras. This enables film sequences to be optimally customized to any kind of 3D display – not only traditional ones that require the user to wear glasses, but also the latest generation of “glasses-free” 3D displays.

The Coup

Less than a year after founding the company, the firm secured a deal with BMW to re-format the BMW X3 advertising spot for “glasses-free” 3D viewing. emotion3D stood out from the competition due to the considerably higher quality and efficiency of its service. Christian Breit of BMW Group emphasises: “The video contained some challenging sequences. Only emotion3D could satisfy our high quality requirements. Additionally, emotion3D was the most attractive bidder. “

Virtual Perspective

The maturity of emotion3D’s technological innovations testifies a clear focus on commercial success, convincing not only customers but also end users of the high quality, efficiency and affordability of its solution. The core of emotion3D’s film-editing lies in the ability to generate additional virtual camera perspectives in 3D videos. “Films that have been recorded with two or more cameras contain information about the scene geometry, specifically the relative distance of objects away from the camera. Based on this a so-called Depth Map can be computed. This enables us to artificially generate new pictures with virtual perspectives, as though they had been recorded by additional cameras in different positions during filming”, explains Mr Florian Seitner, CTO of emotion3D. This technology is used to convert from 3D cinema film to the format required by the novel 3D displays that give viewers a fascinating visual experience without 3D glasses, which has applications not only in the film and advertising industry, but also in high-value consumer goods. BMW uses this innovative “glasses-free” 3D presentation medium in selected showrooms.

To grow further, the innovative and dynamic company intends to further strengthen its market position. As Dr Tom Wilson, CEO of emotion3D explains: “So far we’ve been using our software solution in-house to provide a service, and have refined the tools based on customer feedback to the stage where we now can put these into the hands of filmmakers”. The software product will be launched in April 2011 at the NAB (National Association of Broadcasters) show to the international market of film producers under the brand “Stereoscopic Suite X1”.

www.emotion3D.tv