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Jan 5, 2009 8:40 am US/Central
Animated Movie Getting 3-D Super Bowl Promo
LOS ANGELES (AP) ―
Talk about a monster of a promotion.
Some
150 million 3-D glasses will be given away for Super Bowl viewers to
watch a 90-second 3-D sneak preview of the big-screen animated feature
"Monsters vs. Aliens." While 3-D telecasts are nothing new, this marks
the first time one has been done for such a large audience.
DreamWorks
Animation chief executive Jeffrey Katzenberg called the stunt "perhaps
the biggest media-advertising event in history." He wouldn't give a
hard figure on the cost, but said it "involves tens of millions of
dollars."
Katzenberg promised the quality of the 3-D will be
superior to what has been done in the past. He said the glasses will
use Intel InTru 3-D and ColorCode 3-D, which updates the old red-blue
Anaglyph system.
The technology will also allow those without the
glasses to see an almost ordinary image on the TV screen. But,
Katzenberg added, it still doesn't come close to the 3-D quality
moviegoers will see in theaters when the film opens stateside March 27.
"Monsters
vs. Aliens" follows a group of ragtag Earthling monsters who are out to
save the world following an alien invasion. The film features the
voices of Reese Witherspoon, Seth Rogen and Kiefer Sutherland.
The
glasses will be distributed free at Pepsi/SoBe Life Water displays at
28,000 locations including grocery, drug and electronics stores and
big-box retailers.
The promotion was unveiled Saturday during
NBC's telecast of the AFC Wild Card Playoffs between the Indianapolis
Colts and San Diego Chargers. NBC, which will air the Super Bowl on
Feb. 1, has its own interest in making sure the glasses are used, as it
will air a 3D episode of its series "Chuck" the following night.
"Monsters
vs Aliens" is co-directed by Rob Letterman ("Shark Tale") and Conrad
Vernon ("Shrek 2"), who supervised production of the promotion that
will air during the Super Bowl.
The directors said they will be
watching the telecast from home. "With beer," Vernon said, laughing.
"We're going to test the effects of beer and 3-D," said Letterman.
(© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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