FILM TECH
So impressive is the new Power 5dv digital movie projector that the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences presented its creator Brian Critchley (below) with two Emmys for innovative engineering - the first time such an award has been given for projection design.
Your average film-based projector flashes some 24 frames per second, while the 5dv, manufactured by UK-based Digital Projection, refreshes the image 1,000 times per second. And where LCD machines draw a picture by progressively scanning lines, the 5dv illuminates the entire picture at once. The 5dv's superior image is generated by digital light-processing technology. At the heart of the system lies a computer chip that holds up to 800,000 tiny mirrors. Digital Projection's engineers have fortified the micromirror, which was developed by Texas Instruments, with advanced optics, illumination, and signal-processing technologies. The result is a bright, clear, warm filmlike image that rivals its celluloid counterpart and trumps LCD technologies by eliminating the black space between pixels.
Eventually, Digital Projection's machine will displace at least some of the theater industry's hoary mechanical infrastructure. In the meantime, the 5dv is being used for smaller screenings and postproduction work. George Lucas is viewing large-format dailies from the Star Wars prequel with it. And, as a slick set element, the projector is employed on NBC Nightly News and Dateline to display live video and composite graphics during newscasts.
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