3D films are motion pictures made to give an illusion of three-dimensional solidity, usually with the help of special glasses worn by viewers. They have existed in some form since 1915, but had been largely relegated to a niche in the motion picture industry because of the costly hardware and processes required to produce and display a 3D film, and the lack of a standardized format for all segments of the entertainment business. Nonetheless, 3D films were prominently featured in the 1950s in American cinema, and later experienced a worldwide resurgence in the 1980s and 1990s driven by IMAX high-end theaters and Disney-themed venues. 3D films became increasingly successful throughout the 2000s, peaking with the success of 3D presentations of Avatar in December 2009, after which 3D films again decreased in popularity. Certain directors have also taken more experimental approaches to 3D filmmaking, most notably celebrated auteur Jean-Luc Godard in his film Goodbye to Language.
Motion capture is the process of recording the movement of objects or people. It is used in military, entertainment, sports, medical applications, and for validation of computer vision and robots. In filmmaking and video game development, it refers to recording actions of human actors and using that information to animate digital character models in 2D or 3D computer animation. When it includes face and fingers or captures subtle expressions, it is often referred to as performance capture. In many fields, motion capture is sometimes called motion tracking, but in filmmaking and games, motion tracking usually refers more to match moving.
A 3D display is a display device capable of conveying depth to the viewer. Many 3D displays are stereoscopic displays, which produce a basic 3D effect by means of stereopsis, but can cause eye strain and visual fatigue. Newer 3D displays such as holographic and light field displays produce a more realistic 3D effect by combining stereopsis and accurate focal length for the displayed content. Newer 3D displays in this manner cause less visual fatigue than classical stereoscopic displays.
TPG Inc., previously known as Texas Pacific Group and TPG Capital, is an American private equity firm based in Fort Worth, Texas. The firm is focused on leveraged buyouts and growth capital. TPG manages investment funds in growth capital, venture capital, public equity, and debt investments. The firm invests in a range of industries including consumer/retail, media and telecommunications, industrials, technology, travel, leisure, and health care.
Ellipsometry is an optical technique for investigating the dielectric properties of thin films. Ellipsometry measures the change of polarization upon reflection or transmission and compares it to a model.
A polarized 3D system uses polarization glasses to create the illusion of three-dimensional images by restricting the light that reaches each eye.
RealD 3D is a digital stereoscopic projection technology made and sold by RealD. It is currently the most widely used technology for watching 3D films in theaters. Worldwide, RealD 3D is installed in more than 26,500 auditoriums by approximately 1,200 exhibitors in 72 countries as of June 2015.
Toon Boom Animation Inc., also known as Toon Boom, is a Canadian software company founded in 1994 and based in Montreal, Quebec. It specializes in the development and production of animation and storyboarding software for film, television, the World Wide Web, video games, mobile devices, training and education.
Digital 3D is a non-specific 3D standard in which films, television shows, and video games are presented and shot in digital 3D technology or later processed in digital post-production to add a 3D effect.
The early history of private equity relates to one of the major periods in the history of private equity and venture capital. Within the broader private equity industry, two distinct sub-industries, leveraged buyouts and venture capital experienced growth along parallel although interrelated tracks.
InTru3D was a brand that identifies content that may be viewed in stereoscopic 3D. Motion pictures or other visual media bearing the brand are developed through animation technology developed by Intel in partnership with DreamWorks Animation in 2008. InTru3D enables animators to author films directly in 3D for what is described as "a more realistic 3D experience." Animated films authored with InTru3D are shown in theaters using 3D stereoscopic projection technology such as that provided by Real D Cinema and IMAX 3D which both require polarized glasses to view the 3D films.
MasterImage 3D is a company that develops stereoscopic 3D systems for theaters, and auto-stereoscopic 3D displays for mobile devices.
XPAND 3D developed active-shutter 3D solutions for multiple purposes. The company was founded by Maria Costeira and Ami Dror in 2005 as X6D Limited. The company deployed over 15,000 cinemas worldwide.
Novacam Technologies Inc. specializes in designing and manufacturing advanced metrology and imaging systems for industrial and bio-medical applications. Novacam's fiber-based optical profilometers and Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) systems are based on low coherence interferometry. The fiber-based nature of Novacam's detector probes is unique in the optical metrology industry.
ZScreen is a push-pull electro-optical liquid crystal modulator that is placed immediately in front of the projector lens or computer screen to alternately polarize the light from each video frame. It circularly polarizes the frames clockwise for the right eye and counterclockwise for the left eye.
An optical head-mounted display (OHMD) is a wearable device that has the capability of reflecting projected images as well as allowing the user to see through it. In some cases, this may qualify as augmented reality (AR) technology. OHMD technology has existed since 1997 in various forms, but despite a number of attempts from industry, has yet to have had major commercial success.
Suhail R. Rizvi is an Indian-American businessman and co-founder and Chief Investment Officer of Rizvi Traverse Management LLC. He has a Bachelor of Science in Economics from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, and sits on the Wharton Undergraduate Executive Board. A venture capitalist, his investments include Twitter, Facebook, Flipboard and Square. Due to his large stake in Twitter, both personally and for other investors, he was the subject of media scrutiny at the time of Twitter's IPO; he is notoriously private.
Michael V. Lewis is an American CEO and entrepreneur in media, entertainment and technology. After holding the position of Senior Vice President of InterMedia, a media investment banking and advisory company, he cofounded and was CEO of L-Squared Entertainment, an award-winning digital entertainment studio. In 2003, he cofounded and served as CEO of RealD, a global licensor of visual and 3D technologies that maintained the largest 3D cinema platform in the world. Michael is also a Marquee Donor to the Motion Picture Television Fund and is a member of the City Year Los Angeles Board of Directors.
Maxar Technologies Inc. is a space technology company headquartered in Westminster, Colorado, United States, specializing in manufacturing communication, Earth observation, radar, and on-orbit servicing satellites, satellite products, and related services. DigitalGlobe and MDA Holdings Company merged to become Maxar Technologies on October 5, 2017.
Humanetics is the largest manufacturer of anthropomorphic test devices (ATDs), commonly known as crash test dummies, as measured by market share. Headquartered in Farmington Hills, Michigan, the company is a subsidiary of Humanetics Group, itself owned by Bridgepoint Capital, a private equity firm.
$163.46 million (2016)