Is 3D finding a new home in arthouse cinema?

As the number of Hollywood 3D movies continues to proliferate, there are signs that the process is gaining popularity among independent filmmakers…

By Ryan Lambie

For more than a century, makers of 3D films have been finding new ways of poking audiences in the eye. Since the first stereoscopic film appeared in 1903, the Lumière brothers’ minute-long L’arrivée D’un Train, the process has been roundly associated with novelty and spectacle.

In the 20s, 3D was used to depict the vastness of landscapes in films including New York City and the Grand Canyon, before seeing a brief resurgence in popularity in the 50s, with low budget genre pictures such as House Of Wax and It Came From Outer Space.

Fast-forward to the 21st century, and 3D is again being pushed by Hollywood studios as the next big thing and, in an echo of earlier years, is frequently employed to add depth to expansive vistas (most obviously in Avatar) and an extra layer of novelty to low budget horror pictures (see My Bloody Valentine, Piranha 3D, and the forthcoming Saw 3D).

Read the whole story here.