U2 3D

U2 3D
A poster with "U2" and "3D" superimposed with bright concert images, on top of a dark image of the concert stage. Credits for the film are listed at the bottom.
Directed by Catherine Owens
Mark Pellington
Produced by Jon Shapiro
Peter Shapiro
John Modell
Catherine Owens
Starring Bono
The Edge
Adam Clayton
Larry Mullen, Jr.
Music by U2
Brian Eno
Cinematography Peter Anderson (3-D)
Tom Krueger
Editing by Olivier Wicki
Studio 3ality Digital
Distributed by National Geographic Entertainment
Release date(s) Premiere:
January 19, 2008 (2008-01-19) (Sundance)
Limited release:
January 23, 2008
Wide release:
February 22, 2008
Running time 85 minutes
Country United States
Language English
Budget $15 million[1]
Gross revenue $22,584,932[2]

U2 3D is a 2008 3-D concert film featuring rock band U2 performing in Latin America during the Vertigo Tour in 2006. The film features 14 songs, including new material taken from the Vertigo Tour's supporting album, How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb. The film comprises a mix of concert footage and political and social statements made during the shows. It is the band's second feature film, following their 1988 rockumentary Rattle and Hum. Among other cinematic firsts, U2 3D was the first ever live-action digital 3-D film.

The project was created as an experiment with a new type of 3-D film technology pioneered by 3ality Digital in 2003. After considering filming American football games in 3-D, the company decided to create a concert film with U2 as their subject. The band were hesitant to participate, but eventually decided to make the film, mainly as a technological experiment rather than a profit-making venture. Latin America was the main shooting location, with seven concerts shot at various venues, and two concerts were shot in Australia. The film's complex setup involved shooting with up to 18 3-D cameras at once, and capturing the footage digitally.

After the film's preview screening at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival, it premiered at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival and was shown at over 600 theaters internationally following its wide release in February 2008. U2 3D peaked at number 19 at the United States box office, and it earned $20 million in its first 12 months of release. The film received mostly positive reviews, with many critics praising it for its 3-D technology and innovation. Some critics said that viewing the film's 3-D effects was better than attending a live concert. U2 3D won several awards, and its positive reception convinced some of the filmmakers that the project created a paradigm shift in filmmaking.

Contents

Synopsis

U2 3D depicts a U2 concert in Buenos Aires during the band's Vertigo Tour. In the beginning of the film, a voice is heard chanting "everyone" in a crowd-filled stadium, followed by fans running through the venue before the start of the show.[3] U2 begin the concert with the song "Vertigo", followed by ten more songs in the main set. Images are shown throughout the concert on the stage's LED display. Political and social statements are made during some songs, including "Sunday Bloody Sunday", during which the word "coexista" (English: "coexist") is displayed on-screen along with various religious symbols, and "Miss Sarajevo", during which an excerpt from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is read aloud by a narrator.[4] The main set ends with the song "One", after which the group leaves the stage. They return for an encore and perform "The Fly", during which a succession of words and phrases appear on the stage's LED display and are superimposed into the film.[5] The band ends the show with "With or Without You" and leave the stage for the final time. As the closing credits begin, a live performance of "Yahweh" is heard as animations from the stage's LED display are shown. U2 reappear on stage in a post-credits scene performing the end of the song.[6]

Production

Background

In 2001, film producers Jon and Peter Shapiro created a 2-D IMAX concert film titled All Access, which featured live performances of several artists. While looking for a new 3-D technology medium, the Shapiros met producer Steve Schklair, founder of Cobalt Entertainment, in 2000.[7] Schklair had recently developed a digital 3-D filming technique known as "active depth cut", which allowed for smooth cuts between shots that would normally not line up when filmed in 3-D.[8][9] This was done using motion control photography and real-time image processing to create a realistic 3-D experience without subjecting the viewer to excessive motion sickness or eye strain. It was intended to be an inexpensive and effective way to film live events like concerts and sports. With the help of David Modell and Jon Modell, former owners of the Baltimore Ravens American football team, the digital 3-D technology was initially tested by filming several American football games during the National Football League's (NFL) 2003 season, including Super Bowl XXXVIII.[10] The company showed the footage to the NFL, hoping to create an NFL-based 3-D IMAX film.[11] While waiting to hear from the NFL, the Shapiros proposed the idea of creating a 3-D concert film for IMAX theaters.[8][12] Although All Access featured performances of several artists, the Shapiros wanted to create a film based on a single live act, and being fans of U2, they suggested the band as a possible subject for the film.[13] Schklair felt U2 would be a good choice for the film due to their large concert setups and the constant movement of the band during live performances, both of which would provide good depth of field for 3-D effects.[14]

A colorful, round stage inside an arena, with all four of the band members performing their instruments.
Test footage for the film was recorded at one of U2's Vertigo Tour concerts in Anaheim, California.

The Modells' prior involvement with U2 facilitated their collaboration for the film project. In 1997, the Modells became interested in featuring LED display video technology at Ravens Stadium at Camden Yards. At the time, the first and only giant LED display in existence was being used by U2 on their PopMart Tour, so David Modell toured with the band on and off for a period of six months to learn about the technology. During that time, he befriended Catherine Owens, who served as the group's art director since their 1992 Zoo TV Tour.[15]

After unsuccessful attempts to contact U2 manager Paul McGuinness,[8] Peter Shapiro contacted Owens in 2004 to propose the idea of filming a U2 concert in 3-D. Owens was researching art content for the upcoming Vertigo Tour at the time, and thought the concept could be used to screen 3-D video as part of the band's concerts. Shapiro claimed that the technology had not been developed to that extent and simply wanted to document the tour itself in 3-D, but Owens was not interested in making a film of the band, fearing it would interfere with the tour, so she declined the offer.[16] Shapiro later returned to Owens with 3-D footage of the NFL games, which piqued Owens' interest in the project. After viewing the footage, Owens expressed an interest in directing the film, despite having no previous filming experience.[17] According to bassist Adam Clayton, U2 were initially not interested in making another concert film, but Owens "pushed it down [their] throats".[18] Once the band viewed the test shots, frontman Bono expressed interest in the project and convinced the other three members of the band to become involved.[19] Since U2 experimented with video technology in the past, they were interested in the 3-D film project mainly as a technological experiment rather than as a means to make profit.[17] They wanted to create the film to share the live experience with fans who could not afford concert tickets.[20]

Pre-production for the film was officially started in early 2004 by the company 3ality Digital, which was formed from Schklair's Colbalt Entertainment and his partnership with the Modells and the Shapiros.[7] Midway through the year, Bono agreed to let the 3ality crew film test footage, which was accomplished using a single 3-D camera at the soundboard of one of U2's Vertigo Tour concerts at Arrowhead Pond in Anaheim, California in March 2005.[8][12][21] U2 were not satisfied with their 1988 rockumentary feature film, Rattle and Hum, which featured backstage footage and interviews. The filmmakers decided that U2 3D would only have concert footage.[22] The producers originally wanted to shoot the film in Los Angeles where all the filming equipment was located,[12] but after being unimpressed with the venue from the Anaheim footage, Owens and the rest of the band decided they needed to film with a more energetic audience.[23] Bono suggested shooting the film at concerts in Latin America because he felt that the passion of the audiences in those countries would best resemble that of the audiences in the band's native Ireland, especially because the band had not played in the region for eight years.[17][24] U2 toured Latin America on the fourth leg of the Vertigo Tour in February and March 2006, with eight shows in five cities, all of which would be filmed for the movie, except the first show in Monterrey, Mexico.[25] Filming in Latin America enabled the band to share the outdoor stadium concerts with audiences in the United States, where the band only performed at indoor arenas on the Vertigo Tour.[18]

Filming

A view of the stage being filmed, with "COEXISTA" spelled out on the video screen, using an Islmaic crescent as a "C", a Star of David as an "X", and a Christian cross at a "T". A camera in the middle shows the concert being filmed. The view of the stage from the audience's perspective, surrounded by fans, with the words "PUEDES CORRER" visible on the video screen. A camera on the right side shows the concert being filmed.
Filming began with shooting two concerts in Mexico City (left), followed by an additional two shows in São Paulo (right).

Principal photography began in February 2006; two shows were filmed in Mexico City to capture medium shots during a practice run for the crew to learn the choreography of the band's performances.[26] The crew captured additional medium shots using two camera setups at the following two concerts in São Paulo, Brazil, and then captured overhead footage of drummer Larry Mullen, Jr. using a single camera setup at the next concert in Santiago, Chile.[10] While preparations were underway for the band's two concerts in Buenos Aires, the film crew asked the band if they could perform a set without an audience to capture close-up footage that could not be filmed at concerts without interfering with the show. The band agreed and performed a 10-song set as the crew captured close-ups using a wide-angle lens. Owens dubbed the session the "phantom shoot".[27] During the Buenos Aires shows, all nine camera setups were used, capturing shots of the band from the B-stages.[24] The Buenos Aires shoot was the largest of the project, requiring a crew of 140 people.[10]

In March 2006, the Vertigo Tour concerts were postponed when the daughter of U2 lead guitarist The Edge became ill.[28] During the interim, footage from the seven filmed shows were edited together, and the crew realized that several elements still needed to be filmed, such as shots of the stage's LED display and the concert audience. When the band resumed their tour on its fifth leg in November 2006, an additional two shows were filmed in Melbourne, Australia to capture the necessary footage, including close-up shots. At the time, the songs appearing in the final cut of the film had already been selected and therefore only specific songs from the concerts were filmed.[29]

Filmed concerts[25][30]
# Date Country City Venue
1 February 15, 2006  Mexico Mexico City Estadio Azteca
2 February 16, 2006
3 February 20, 2006  Brazil São Paulo Estádio do Morumbi
4 February 21, 2006
5 February 26, 2006  Chile Santiago Estadio Nacional de Chile
6 March 1, 2006  Argentina Buenos Aires River Plate Stadium
7 March 2, 2006
8 November 18, 2006  Australia Melbourne Telstra Dome
9 November 19, 2006

The film's production featured the first ever 3-D multiple-camera setup and was shot using every digital 3-D camera and recording deck that was in existence.[12][31] According to producer Jon Modell, the film shoot used more technology than any other at the time.[8] The crew had only two days to set up the filming equipment before each concert, which required running fiber optic cables and hooking up an electrical generator to supply power at each venue. Due to the project's large scale, 3ality Digital worked with film director James Cameron, who was the company's biggest competitor at the time.[8] The digital 3-D filming equipment consisted of nine custom-built Fusion stereo camera rigs developed by Cameron and camera operator Vincent Pace.[32] Each of the nine camera rigs included two Sony CineAlta HDC-F950 cameras fitted with Zeiss digital zoom lenses, making U2 3D the first 3-D film ever shot using a zoom lens.[26] The cameras captured high-definition video with a 4:4:4 RGB color model onto HDCAM-SR recording decks.[10] The digital recording decks enabled the crew to film an entire concert; older 3-D filming technology required capturing footage on physical film stock that had to be replenished every three minutes of shooting.[22] The two cameras on each rig were spaced eye-distance apart to create a 3-D effect in post-production.[26] Using a beam splitter mounted to the camera rig, one camera shot through a 50/50 mirror, while the other camera shot off of the image reflected from the mirror.[29] A total of 18 cameras and nine camera setups were used in filming, with each rig weighing an average of 200 pounds (91 kg).[26] To keep the weight of the camera rigs as low as possible, only the front of the cameras were mounted in the mirrors, with the back of the cameras mounted onto the dolly, with the parts joined by cables.[29] All of the concert footage was shot with the twin-camera setups, except for the final two shoots in Melbourne, where a single CineAlta camera with a steadicam for close-ups was added.[29]

The film's setup included the first spydercam that used the Fusion camera rigs.[33] Five crew members were required to work on each rig at a time to ensure that the focus on both cameras on each setup were synchronized at all times.[17] One camera was destroyed when a security guard at a concert tossed buckets of water onto the hot crowd. The crew to waterproofed the remaining cameras.[26] When filming began, Owens's film directing experience was limited to the music video for U2's "Original of the Species" from 2005, so the live shoots were directed by Mark Pellington, who previously directed a video for U2's song "One". Owens was in charge of all the remaining aspects of the film, including creative direction and editing during post-production.[34]

The concerts were filmed in a style which Owens described as "very unorthodox"; no storyboards or shooting scripts were used to capture unstaged footage of the band's performances.[34] Instead of the crew directing the band in how to perform, the band performed each of their concerts as usual, with the filming crew capturing footage in real time for the full 2 1⁄2-hour concerts.[14][17] The shoots were planned so that the filming would not interfere with the band's performance or the audience's view. To avoid capturing footage of other camera rigs, the crew alternated each night filming either left-to-right or right-to-left, or filmed entirely from the back of the stage.[26] Since several different shows would be edited together to create one performance, the band was required to wear the same clothes each night to allow for continuity in the final cut of the film.[24] Lighting for the shoots involved the same lighting used at all the regular concerts, except for the use of additional spotlights focused on the audience, and dimmer lighting on the stage's LED display.[19][35] The audio for U2's performances was recorded using microphones placed on the main stage and around the two B-stages, where the band performed several songs. To record the audience, additional microphones were placed at various locations depending on the type of venue. Originally, 96 different audio channels were used for recording the music. The audience microphones increased the total to 110 channels.[36]

Editing

A black digital cassette tape, with its gray case on the left reading "HDCAM SR".
HDCAM-SR tapes captured the footage which was later uploaded to computers for editing.

Post-production on the film began in February 2006, requiring two years to complete and taking place concurrently with ongoing principal photography.[13] Editor Olivier Wicki was chosen for post-production. He worked closely with Owens, with whom he had previous previously collaborated on U2's "Original of the Species" music video. Wicki developed ideas on how to edit each track before editing the footage.[21] Over 100 hours of footage was filmed featuring performances of 26 different songs.[37] To appeal to a mainstream audience, Owens sought to have only 14–15 songs out of 26 appear in the final cut, most of which were considered among U2's most popular songs.[38] Ultimately, 14 songs were selected for the final cut, including one song shown during the film's closing credits. The 14 songs included 12 of the band's singles, as well as two non-singles from How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb, the studio album supporting the Vertigo Tour. Although "City of Blinding Lights" was the opening song for all nine filmed concerts[25][30] and for most of the tour,[39] "Vertigo" was selected as the film's opening song. Other songs that were performed at most of the filmed concerts that did not make the final cut include "Elevation", "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For", "Original of the Species", and "Zoo Station".[25][40] "With or Without You" was chosen as the last song before the closing credits, although none of the filmed concerts ended with its performance, and it was only used to close one unfilmed concert in the tour.[39]

When selecting songs for the film, the crew had to ensure that the performances of each track fit with one another. For example, the band wanted their performances of "Mysterious Ways" and "Until the End of the World" to be included, but the songs were left out since Owens and the band felt that those songs were out of place with the rest of the film.[37] Owens stated that the main focus of the film was based upon the band's relationship with one another and their relationship with the audience, and the challenge of selecting the songs was to create a narrative within the band's performance.[41] After the songs were selected, the footage was edited for eight months in New York City in 2-D using Avid systems.[42][43] Video post-production continued in Burbank, California at 3ality Digital's 20,000 square feet (1,900 m2) 3-D production facility, which opened prior to the completion of filming. Wicki worked with 3ality Digital to create the film's 3-D and computer-generated effects.[43] Footage from the nine filmed concerts, most of which was taken from the concerts in Buenos Aires, was edited together with the footage from the "phantom shoot". Although the Mexico City shows were considered to be practice runs for the crew, footage from those concerts was used, including the scene where Bono reaches out to the camera during "Sunday Bloody Sunday".[12]

Creating the 3-D effect involved taking the edited 2-D footage for the right eye, and matching it up with footage for the left eye.[44] Editing the Melbourne footage that used only a single camera involved a separate process to create 3-D effects, known as "virtual second eye perspective".[29] The film was edited on BOXX workstations running Windows XP, and footage was converted from 2-D to 3-D using several software programs, including Assimilate Scratch, IRIDAS SpeedGrade, Shake, Nuke, and Adobe After Effects. The primary editing software, 3action, was created by developers at 3ality while the film was being shot. It allowed the post-production team to change convergence points in each shot, and to create multiple convergence points.[34][45] Using dual Digital Visual Interface ports, a timeline was created on the computer with left-eye footage on one layer and right-eye footage on another layer. The two layers were edited together with color grading added, then it was output in a 3-D stereoscopic format for review.[32]

The band had developed a style of editing in their previous concert films that involved fast cutting between shots, which Owens wanted to retain in the film.[22] Because fast cutting in 3-D would lead to motion sickness or eye strain, the film was edited incorporating dissolves of at least four frames between shots.[15][26] Many of the transitions were created by layering several frames of footage on top of one another into composite images. Each of the layered frames featured a different depth of field to enhance the 3-D effects, and up to five images were layered together in a single shot, making it the first 3-D film to feature layered composite images. Software did not exist at the time to layer the 3-D images, so new software had to be developed. U2 3D was the first 3-D film to feature this layering technique.[22] Because the film was captured in high-definition video, each frame used nearly 20 megabytes of data on 3ality's servers, and the entire film used almost a petabyte (1015 bytes).[1] The 3-D editing process took longer than Owens expected, and the film went over budget.[34] The entire video editing process took 17 months, and the final film was cut to a length of 85 minutes—seven minutes shorter than the originally announced run time of 92 minutes.[17]

Audio editor Carl Glanville worked on the film's soundtrack, mixing the audio into a 5.1 surround sound mix with audio engineer Robbie Adams in New York City. Video footage was compiled into files by Wicki, which were given to Glanville for compilaltion of the soundtrack.[21] Glanville and Adams said the audio editing was difficult mainly because the selection of video footage was limited, as only one to two cameras angles were captured at most of the shows.[36] The lyrics and music from the song performances differed slightly each night, and the edited video footage featured 10- to 20-second-long shots, in contrast to the shorter shots usually found in concert films. All audio and video footage used was recorded live by the band in concert, and no overdubbing was used in post-production.[1] Editing began with Adams constructing playlists of the recordings using Pro Tools software, while Glanville worked on the audio mixing. The video footage was compiled onto QuickTime and Open Media Framework files, which Glanville used to edit and synchronize the footage. To avoid lip sync and instrumental sync issues, the editors had to use the exact audio that was recorded during each shot. Mixing the vocals required that Glanville layer the audio recorded from the stage microphones with that from the audience microphones and to add a short delay between the two to compensate for any echos or delay that occurred in the venue. Extended gaps were added between songs to slightly slow down the pace of the film, and the sound from the subwoofer channel was mixed inside two IMAX theaters in Los Angeles to ensure the volume of low-end frequencies were consistent with the rest of the film's soundtrack.[46]

Distribution

Screenings and releases

The Edge, Adam Clayton, and Larry Mullen, Jr. performing outside a building on red carpet, with a sign in the background reading "Festival de Cannes".
U2 performed a brief set at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival prior to the film's initial screening.

U2 committed to preserving the film's 3-D format and decided to only release the film in digital 3-D. It was the first film to have been shot, produced, and screened exclusively in 3-D.[47] To help promote the digital 3-D film format, the film was first screened at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival on May 19, 2007.[48] U2 3D was one of nine films to be screened out-of-competition at the 2007 festival,[49] and was the first live-action 3-D film ever to be shown at Cannes.[50] Prior to the screening, U2 performed "Vertigo" and "Where the Streets Have No Name" in a two-song set on the steps of the Palais des Festivals et des Congrès.[51] The film was screened at midnight inside the Palais des Festivals, using Dolby 3D technology and a silver screen installed by RealD Cinema.[52][47] Producer John Modell referred to the premiere as "the most high tech film screening that's ever been done in history."[53] At the time, the 3-D post-production process was not fully completed, so a shortened, 55-minute version of the film was screened,[47] featuring nine of the final film's 14 songs: "Vertigo", "Beautiful Day", "Sometimes You Can't Make It on Your Own", "Love and Peace or Else", "Sunday Bloody Sunday", "Bullet the Blue Sky", "Miss Sarajevo", "The Fly", and "With or Without You".[54] The completed film premiered at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival on January 19 at the Ellen Eccles Theatre. The audience of approximately 1,200 people gave a standing ovation following the screening.[43][55]

The film's limited release was on January 23, 2008, when it was screened in 61 IMAX theaters in the United States and Canada.[2] The IMAX release took place much earlier than the film's wide release, as many IMAX theaters had already booked The Spiderwick Chronicles,[56] which was released on February 15.[57] U2 3D was the band's second feature film, following 1988's Rattle and Hum,[58] and the third concert film release from the Vertigo Tour, following the direct-to-video concerts films of Vertigo 2005: Live from Chicago[59] and Vertigo 2005: Live from Milan.[60] The wide release was originally scheduled for February 15, 2008,[61] but the date was pushed back one week when Walt Disney Pictures decided to extend its release of the 3-D concert film Hannah Montana & Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert, which was initially scheduled to be in theaters for only one week.[62][56]On February 15, U2 3D got a second limited release in select theaters in the United States with RealD Cinema technology.[63] The film's European premiere took place on February 20, 2008 at the Jameson Dublin International Film Festival,[64] and on February 22, the film had its wide release into over 600 theaters internationally.[2] The film was also officially screened at SIGGRAPH 2008,[65] the 2008 Dubai International Film Festival,[66] and special screenings at the 2008 Consumer Electronics Show on January 8, 2008, before the official premiere.[67] Clips were shown by 3ality Digital at SIGGRAPH 2009's Computer Animation Festival to demonstrate the film's visual effects.[68] U2 3D was released in additional international territories and was re-screened in March 2009 in select theaters where it previously been shown to coincide with the release of U2's new studio album, No Line on the Horizon.[69] In October 2009 the film was given a single IMAX showing at a U2 academic conference,[70] and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame celebrated the opening of its new theater by showing the film at the museum through January 2010.[71] The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences held a screening of U2 3D at their 3-D film conference in July 2010 with several crew members in attendance as guests.[72]

The film was originally planned to be screened only in IMAX theaters because of the lack of digital theaters at the time. The number of theaters with digital technology, such as RealD Cinema, greatly increased following post-production, enabling the filmmakers to release it in digital 3-D theaters in addition to IMAX venues.[8][36] The IMAX and digital 3-D formats use different types of polarized glasses that need to be worn to view the film.[73] The IMAX 3D version of the film requires glasses with one lens polarized horizontally and one polarized vertically, while the digital 3-D version requires glasses with two circularly polarized lenses.[21] Producer John Modell described the IMAX version of the film as a "more immersive experience", while the digital 3-D version features more vivid colors.[1] Director Catherine Owens said that 3ality Digital plans to release the film to a 3-D home video format in the future, such as DVD or Blu-ray Disc, where the viewers would still wear 3-D glasses to watch the film.[17] U2 controls the ancillary rights to U2 3D along with their record label Universal Music Group, and they have stated that additional rights such as those for a home video release will not be optioned until home video technology can meet the same digital 3-D standards as cinema.[47]

Marketing

A wordmark in a stencil-like typeface with "U2" in red and "3D" in silver in front of a black background.
The film's logo was designed by creative director John Leamy.

In March 2007, the trailer for the film was released and first screened at the ShoWest trade show, along with footage of "Sunday Bloody Sunday".[38] The trailer featured clips from "Vertigo" and "The Fly", and was edited by creative director John Leamy, who also served as creative director for U2's "Original of the Species" music video. Leamy designed the wordmark logo and title sequence for U2 3D. The film poster, which featured a collage of images from the film,[74] won Leamy an award for best poster art at the Giant Screen Cinema Association's annual international conference in 2008.[31][75] The "U2 3D" wordmark was filed with the United States Patent and Trademark Office in May 2007, and became a registered trademark in February 2009.[76] The trailer was shown in 3-D theaters before showings of Meet the Robinsons, the only other 3-D film released in theaters in early 2007.[77]

The film was originally scheduled to be released in the third quarter of 2007,[31] but its release was delayed when a distributor could not be found. In October 2007, the National Geographic Society announced the creation of National Geographic Entertainment, a new unit within the society featuring various entertainment divisions.[78] U2 3D was the first film released through their new division, National Geographic Cinema Ventures, in January 2008.[79] John M. Fahey, Jr., CEO of the National Geographic Society, stated that U2 3D was chosen as the division's first release because they felt that U2 is "a band of the world" and "world music is something the Geographic as an institution is really interested in."[80] National Geographic chose electronics retailer Best Buy as the film's sponsor in the United States, and select members of Best Buy's Reward Zone loyalty program were offered free passes to screenings of the film before its wide release.[81]

National Geographic advertised the film by creating several U2 3D websites which featured information about the film, theater showtimes, and a web widget for users to post on social networking websites.[82] In January 2008, an official blog for the film called U2 3D Live was created that featured news and updates about the film.[83] National Geographic uploaded a preview of the film on YouTube featuring 2-D clips from "Vertigo", "New Year's Day", and "Where the Streets Have No Name".[84] The film was promoted through television advertisements,[85] on a JumboTron in Times Square,[86] and as a sponsor on NASCAR's #19 Best Buy Dodge stock car driven by Elliott Sadler.[87]

Box office

U2 3D began its limited release in January 2008 in 61 theaters in the United States. The film grossed $964,315 during its opening weekend, averaging over $15,000 at each theater and ranking at number 20 at the box office. The film was widely released on February 22, 2008, screening in 686 theaters and ranking number 19 at the box office in the United States that weekend. The first week of the film's wide release was the highest-grossing week of its theatrical run, grossing $1,026,121, averaging $1,500 per theater.[2] Three weeks into its wide release, U2 3D was playing in less than 100 theaters internationally. At the time, the film had only grossed $6.6 million, while Disney's Hannah Montana & Miley Cyrus 3-D concert film—still playing in many theaters since its February 1 release—had brought in over $60 million.[62] Prior to its Japan premiere in February 2009, U2 3D was still being screened internationally and had grossed $20 million in box office revenue.[88] The film's distributors stated that there is no predetermined limit to the length of the film's run, and the overall length will be determined by box office sales. Because of this, the film was expected to be shown in theaters for several years, with the possibility of returning to theaters in which it was previously shown, as it did in March 2009.[21][69][61]

While the film's overall box office gross was considered low when compared with mainstream cinema,[89] U2 3D was successful for its genre and set several box office records. Adjusting for ticket price inflation, U2 3D is the 11th highest grossing concert film of all time, one spot below Rattle and Hum.[90] The film became the highest grossing documentary to be eligible for an Oscar nomination at the 81st Academy Awards.[91][92] It set a record in Ireland by having the highest screen average of any film playing during its opening weekend, and took in almost €90,000 at eight theaters during its first three days.[93]

Reception

Critical response

The Edge and Bono stand on a darkened stage, with lit-up smoke behind them. The Edge is strumming a guitar while Bono holds a microphone to his mouth.
The Edge and Bono, pictured in 2009, were both pleased with the outcome of the film.

Based on 87 reviews by critics, Rotten Tomatoes gave U2 3D a 92% approval rating. The website assigned it an average score of 7.5/10, with a consensus that U2 3D was "an exhilarating musical experience at the price of a movie ticket".[94] At Metacritic—which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics—the film received an average score of 83, based on 19 reviews, which translates to "universal acclaim" on the website's rating scale.[95] The film received positive reviews following its 56-minute premiere at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival when the final 85-minute cut of the film was still months away from completion.[48][96] Critics from various publications, including the Irish Independent,[97] The New Zealand Herald,[98] Reno News & Review,[6] Toronto Star,[96] and USA Today[99] said that the film's 3-D experience was "even better than the real thing"—a reference to U2's song of the same name. Reviews by Rolling Stone[100] and Total Film[101] stated the film seemed to appeal to fans and non-fans of U2 alike, just as the filmmakers had intended. U2 3D was praised by Variety for its straightforward concert footage, compared to the interviews and behind-the-scenes footage included in U2's previous film, Rattle and Hum.[48] In an episode of the TV series At the Movies with Ebert & Roeper, Michael Phillips called the film "a genuine eye-fill" and Richard Roeper described the film as "spectacular".[102] The New York Times designated the film as a "Critics' Pick" and stated that in the review that U2 3D was "the first IMAX movie that deserves to be called a work of art".[103] The film appeared on many critics' lists of the top ten films released in 2008 including The Austin Chronicle,[104] Culpeper Star-Exponent,[105] OhmyNews International,[106] Seattle Post-Intelligencer,[107] The Sydney Morning Herald,[108] and River Cities' Reader.[109] Bono was pleased with the outcome of the film and said his favorite sequence was the performance of "Miss Sarajevo". When interviewed about the PopMart Tour in 2009, Bono said that the PopMart: Live from Mexico City video is the best project the band had ever done from an audio and visual perspective, and is "Eclipsed only by U2 3D".[110] The Edge was pleased that the film did not show any of his distressed emotions stemming from his daughter's illness during the filmed concerts.[17][20]

Not all reveiws were positive. The A.V. Club graded the film a B− and stated that the band's performance was less thrilling than the film's 3-D effects.[111] Online magazine FilmSlash criticized The New York Times' statement about U2 3D being the first IMAX art film, stating that some of the first IMAX films were "experimental works of art".[112] Music critic Joel Selvin wrote in the San Francisco Chronicle that seeing the band on the big screen was "more distracting than illuminating",[113] and Time Out London criticized Bono's political statements, stating he "should refrain from ramming his preachy political meanderings down our throats and let the music do the talking".[114] The Daily Telegraph favored Rattle and Hum over this film, and called the band's performance "unexciting", criticizing how "the cameras, not the band, are doing all the work".[115] The Guardian, which gave a rating of one out of five stars, claimed that U2 appeared to be "four conceited billionaires who are further up themselves than ever".[116]

Recognition and legacy

U2 3D was recognized favourably after its release, earning several awards. In 2008, it earned three awards, including "Best Film Produced Non-Exclusively for the Giant Screen" at the Giant Screen Cinema Association's 2008 Achievement Awards,[117] "Best Musical Film" at Los Premios MTV Latinoamérica 2008, and the Pioneer Award for Film & Television at the 2008 3D Film and Interactive Film Festival.[118] In February 2009, U2 3D received an award for "Outstanding Visual Effects in a Special Venue Project" from the Visual Effects Society (VES) at the 7th Annual VES Awards.[119]

A paradigm shift we talk about a lot is going from silent to talkies, or from black and white to color. We think [U2 3D] is a key change with regards to both digital delivery and also 3D. We all see in 3D in real life and every technological advancement in film has always been about bringing you closer and immersing you into the story or the emotion of what you're watching.[41]

“
”
John Modell, U2 3D producer and 3ality Digital co-founder

The extensive use of technology during production was featured as the cover story in the December 2007 issue of the high-definition video magazine HDVideoPro, a month before the film's premiere.[23] The film's usage of evolutionary technology led Catherine Owens to be chosen as one of the featured guest speakers at the SIGGRAPH 2008 conference, which took place several months after the film's initial release.[120] After receiving positive reception from fans, critics, and the film industry, several of the filmmakers stated that they felt U2 3D helped create a paradigm shift in the history of cinema, due to the technological advancements used in the production.[79][121]

U2 3D created many "firsts" in the history of cinema during and after its production. During production, U2 3D was the first 3-D film to be shot with zoom lenses,[1] and the first with a multiple-camera setup.[21] After filming was completed, U2 3D was first 3-D film edited specifically to prevent the viewer from experiencing motion sickness or eye strain,[15] and the first 3-D film to feature layered composite images.[45] Following post-production, the film was the first live-action 3-D feature screened at the Cannes Film Festival,[49] the first live-action film to be shot, posted, and exhibited entirely in 3-D,[38] the first live-action digital 3-D film,[12] and the first 3-D concert film.[73]

Following the success of U2 3D, 3ality Digital continued to pioneer 3-D projects. After previously experimenting with filming live American football games in 3-D, 3ality successfully broadcast the first live 3-D NFL game in December 2008. In 2009, 3ality aired the first live 3-D sports broadcast available to consumers, the first 3-D television advertisement, and the first 3-D episode of a scripted television program.[88] U2 show director Willie Williams recruited U2 3D director of photography Tom Krueger to design the photography and video coverage for the 2009–2011 U2 360° Tour.[122] Krueger directed U2's subsequent concert film, U2 360° at the Rose Bowl, which was released in 2010.[123]

Setlist

Band members[10]
Musician Instruments
Bono ... vocals, guitar, harmonica
The Edge ... guitar, keyboards, vocals
Adam Clayton ... bass guitar, keyboards
Larry Mullen, Jr. ... drums, keyboards

All titles written by U2, except "Miss Sarajevo" (written by Brian Eno, Bono, Adam Clayton, The Edge, and Larry Mullen, Jr.).[10]

  1. "Vertigo"
  2. "Beautiful Day"
  3. "New Year's Day"
  4. "Sometimes You Can't Make It on Your Own"
  5. "Love and Peace or Else"
  6. "Sunday Bloody Sunday"
  7. "Bullet the Blue Sky"
  8. "Miss Sarajevo" / U.N. Declaration of Human Rights
  9. "Pride (In the Name of Love)"
  10. "Where the Streets Have No Name"
  11. "One"
Encore
  1. "The Fly"
  2. "With or Without You"
Closing credits
  1. "Yahweh"[10]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Van Buskirk, Eliot (January 21, 2008). "U2 3D Brings Hyperreal Arena Rock to the Multiplex". Wired. http://www.wired.com/entertainment/music/commentary/listeningpost/2008/01/listeningpost_0121?currentPage=all. Retrieved April 20, 2008. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 "U2 3D". The Numbers. http://www.the-numbers.com/movies/2008/U2N3D.php. Retrieved July 24, 2010. 
  3. ↑ Dierks, Stephen (February 2, 2008). "U2 comes to life in '3D'". The Daily Cardinal. Archived from the original on March 10, 2008. http://web.archive.org/web/20080310015739/http://www.dailycardinal.com/article/2031. Retrieved November 4, 2009. 
  4. ↑ McCracken, Brett (January 25, 2008). "U23D". Christianity Today. pp. 1–2. http://www.christianitytoday.com/movies/reviews/2008/u23d.html. Retrieved March 7, 2009. 
  5. ↑ Lemire, Christy (January 22, 2008). "'U2 3D' immerses you in the band's music". Associated Press. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22788122/. Retrieved June 15, 2009. 
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Grimm, Bob (February 28, 2008). "Even better than the real thing". Reno News & Review. http://www.newsreview.com/reno/content?oid=629318. Retrieved May 19, 2008. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 "Our History". 3ality Digital. http://www.3alitydigital.com/about/history/. Retrieved May 8, 2010. 
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 8.6 "Interview with Peter Shapiro, 'Producer: U2 3D'". ScribeMedia.org. April 11, 2008. http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid1488655359?bclid=1493251673&bctid=1493304615. Retrieved February 28, 2010. 
  9. ↑ Mendiburu, Bernard (2009). 3D Movie Making: Stereoscopic Digital Cinema from Script to Screen. Burlington, Massachusetts: Focal Press. p. 154. ISBN 978-0-240-81137-6. OCLC 306801002. 
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 10.4 10.5 10.6 National Geographic Society (January 16, 2008). "U2 3D Production notes" (DOC). Press release. Archived from the original on December 23, 2009. http://www.webcitation.org/5mF9aCStn. Retrieved February 8, 2008. 
  11. ↑ Schiesel, Seth (January 29, 2004). "A Film Team's Super Bowl Test". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2004/01/29/technology/a-film-team-s-super-bowl-test.html. Retrieved June 20, 2008. 
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 12.4 12.5 Waful, Jefferson (January 23, 2008). "U2 3D: The Next Dimension – An Interview with Producer Pete Shapiro". Jambands.com (Zenbu Media). http://www.jambands.com/features/2008/01/23/u2-3d-the-next-dimensionan-interview-with-producer-pete-shapiro. Retrieved November 4, 2009. 
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 Dawson, Nick (January 23, 2008). "The Director Interviews: Catherine Owens, U2 3D". Filmmaker. http://filmmakermagazine.com/directorinterviews/2008/01/catherine-owens-u2-3d.php. Retrieved February 4, 2009. 
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 Goldman, Michael (January 22, 2008). "Audio Podcast: U2 3D, Thanks to HD" (Podcast). Digitalcontentproducer.com. Penton Media. http://digitalcontentproducer.com/hdhdv/depth/u2_3d_0122/. Retrieved February 7, 2009. 
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 {{cite news |url=http://www.variety.com/index.asp?layout=festivals&jump=story&id=1061&articleid=VR1117965270&cs=1 |title=Dawn of a beautiful day for 3D? |first=David S. |last=Cohen |work=Variety |date=May 18, 2007 |accessdate=May 26, 2008}
  16. ↑ Cunningham, Megan (February 13, 2008). "On the Circuit: Catherine Owens of U2 3D" (Podcast). Zoom In. http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/on-the-circuit/id269598810#. Retrieved July 25, 2010. 
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 17.3 17.4 17.5 17.6 17.7 Karakaya, Jenny (May 30, 2007). "INT: U2 3D director". JoBlo.com. http://www.joblo.com/interview-u2-3d-director. Retrieved October 15, 2007. 
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 National Geographic Society (January 23, 2008). "U2 3D at Sundance 2008" (FLV). YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a3nxjgjLGoM. Retrieved July 30, 2009. 
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 Heron, Ambrose (March 8, 2008). "Interview: Catherine Owens on U2 3D" (Podcast). FILMdetail. http://www.filmdetail.com/archives/2008/03/04/interview-catherine-owens-on-u2-3d/. Retrieved February 8, 2009. 
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 Breznican, Anthony (January 22, 2008). "U2 writes Sundance soundtrack with new film '3D'". USA Today. http://www.usatoday.com/life/movies/movieawards/sundance/2008-01-21-u2-sundance_N.htm. Retrieved February 18, 2009. 
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 21.2 21.3 21.4 21.5 "Olivier Wicki: Interview". U2 Swiss Home. http://www.u2swisshome.com/shared/e/owicki.htm. Retrieved February 8, 2008. 
  22. ↑ 22.0 22.1 22.2 22.3 Tucker, Reed (February/March 2008). "'U2 3D' HD: Behind the Lens". Sound & Vision: p. 1. http://www.soundandvisionmag.com/features/2737/u2-3d-hd-behind-the-lens.html. Retrieved February 3, 2009. 
  23. ↑ 23.0 23.1 Wakelin, Simon (December 2007). "U2 Gets One with 3D". HDVideoPro (Los Angeles: Werner Publishing Corporation) 1 (4). ISSN 1936-3206. OCLC 85860687. 
  24. ↑ 24.0 24.1 24.2 Hayes, Brogan. "Interview with 'U2 3D' director Catherine Owens". Movies.ie. http://www.movies.ie/features/Interview_with_U2_3D_director_Catherine_Owens. Retrieved February 20, 2008. 
  25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 25.2 25.3 Mühlbradt, Matthias; André Axver. "U2 Vertigo Tour 4th leg: Latin America". U2gigs.com. http://www.u2gigs.com/tour227.html. Retrieved February 10, 2008. 
  26. ↑ 26.0 26.1 26.2 26.3 26.4 26.5 26.6 Kaufman, Debra (January 17, 2008). "Shooting a Concert Like No Other". Film & Video (Access Intelligence). http://www.studiodaily.com/filmandvideo/currentissue/8968.html. Retrieved September 26, 2008. 
  27. ↑ "Catherine Owens (U23D director) interview". RTÉ.ie. February 22, 2008. http://www.rte.ie/arts/2008/0222/catherineowensinterview.html. Retrieved April 27, 2008. 
  28. ↑ Fee, Gayle; Laura Raposa (March 13, 2009). "U2 gig had Hub all over The Edge". Boston Herald. http://www.bostonherald.com/track/inside_track/view.bg?articleid=1158256. Retrieved March 16, 2009. 
  29. ↑ 29.0 29.1 29.2 29.3 29.4 Geller, Rusty (December 2006). "My Long Weekend in Melbourne" (PDF). Focal Point (Australian Cinematographers Society): pp. 8–11. http://www.cinematographer.org.au/freestyler/gui/files/06_WA_FocalPoint_12_Dec.pdf. 
  30. ↑ 30.0 30.1 Mühlbradt, Matthias; André Axver. "U2 Vertigo Tour 5th leg: The Pacific". U2gigs.com. http://www.u2gigs.com/tour228.html. Retrieved January 3, 2009. 
  31. ↑ 31.0 31.1 31.2 DMN Newswire (May 14, 2007). "Bluerock announces U2 3D Preview Screening at Cannes". Press release. http://digitalproducer.digitalmedianet.com/articles/viewarticle.jsp?id=139520. Retrieved May 15, 2007. 
  32. ↑ 32.0 32.1 "3ality Shoots U2 3D Feature Film". Videography. NewBay Media. August 23, 2007. http://www.videography.com/article/78866. Retrieved January 7, 2010. 
  33. ↑ PR Newswire (February 4, 2008). "Hannah Montana Gets Added Dimension with the PACE/Cameron Fusion System". Press release. http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/02-04-2008/0004749034&EDATE=. Retrieved October 10, 2008. 
  34. ↑ 34.0 34.1 34.2 34.3 Block, Alex Ben (January 25, 2008). "U2 Breaks the Rules In 3D, New Software for Hard Rock". Hollywood Today (Angel Media). http://www.hollywoodtoday.net/2008/01/25/u2-breaks-the-rules-in-3D-new-software-for-hard-rock/. Retrieved January 7, 2010. 
  35. ↑ Goldstein, Patrick (September 24, 2008). "Bono's hand almost poked out my eye: My continuing education in 3D". Los Angeles Times. http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/the_big_picture/2008/09/my-continuing-e.html. Retrieved September 25, 2008. 
  36. ↑ 36.0 36.1 36.2 Hurwitz, Matt (March 1, 2008). "U2 3D: Reality Rock 'n' Roll". Mix: p. 1. http://mixonline.com/post/features/audio_article_7/. Retrieved April 27, 2008. 
  37. ↑ 37.0 37.1 Sperounes, Sandra (April 23, 2008). "U2 film two years in making". Edmonton Journal. http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news/culture/story.html?id=396cc5b7-0419-4608-9ea0-290aaa7c333d&k=89101#. Retrieved April 28, 2008. 
  38. ↑ 38.0 38.1 38.2 Cohen, David S. (March 15, 2007). "ShoWest gets peek at 'U2'". Variety. http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117961225.html?categoryid=13&cs=1. Retrieved April 7, 2007. 
  39. ↑ 39.0 39.1 Mühlbradt, Matthias; André Axver. "U2 Vertigo Tour". U2gigs.com. http://www.u2gigs.com/Vertigo_Tour.html. Retrieved January 3, 2009. 
  40. ↑ Revolver Entertainment and National Geographic Entertainment. "Revolver Entertainment and National Geographic Entertainment present a groundbreaking cinematic event from 3ality Digital" (PDF). Press release. Archived from the original on February 4, 2010. http://www.webcitation.org/5nIwQFDeI. Retrieved January 7, 2010. 
  41. ↑ 41.0 41.1 "Press Conference: 'U2 3D'". Cannes Film Festival. May 19, 2007. http://www.festival-cannes.com/en/theDailyArticle/55508.html. Retrieved June 24, 2009. 
  42. ↑ Business Wire (January 17, 2008). "2008 Sundance Film Festival to Feature Works of Several Avid Customers". Press release. http://www.reuters.com/article/idUS152328+17-Jan-2008+BW20080117?sp=true. Retrieved January 7, 2010. 
  43. ↑ 43.0 43.1 43.2 Dexinger (January 22, 2008). "Bluerock Editor Cuts U2 3D". Press release. http://www.dexigner.com/design_news/bluerock-editor-cuts-u2-3d.html. Retrieved April 18, 2008. 
  44. ↑ "Photocall-Interview U2 3D" (FLV). Cannes Film Festival. May 19, 2007. http://www.festival-cannes.com/en/mediaPlayer/1165.html. Retrieved June 2, 2009. 
  45. ↑ 45.0 45.1 Kaufman, Debra (January 17, 2008). "Posting U23D in Stereo". Film & Video. Access Intelligence. http://www.studiodaily.com/filmandvideo/searchlist/8969.html. Retrieved March 13, 2009. 
  46. ↑ Hurwitz, Matt (March 1, 2008). "U2 3D: Reality Rock 'n' Roll". Mix: p. 2. http://mixonline.com/post/features/audio_article_7/index1.html. Retrieved April 27, 2008. 
  47. ↑ 47.0 47.1 47.2 47.3 Thompson, Anne (May 20, 2007). "U2 keeps sales in perspective". Variety. http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117965401.html?categoryid=1061&cs=1. Retrieved August 4, 2010. 
  48. ↑ 48.0 48.1 48.2 Chang, Justin (May 19, 2007). "U2 3D (Documentary)". Variety. http://www.variety.com/index.asp?layout=festivals&jump=review&id=2478&reviewid=VE1117933685&cs=1. Retrieved January 7, 2010. 
  49. ↑ 49.0 49.1 "Official Selection 2007". Cannes Film Festival. http://www.festival-cannes.fr/en/archives/2007/outOfCompetition.html. Retrieved June 1, 2009. 
  50. ↑ The Dream Factory Studio (June 1, 2009). "3DFF Honors Disney's Up Movie In Closing Celebrations". Press release. http://www.designtaxi.com/news.php?id=27363. Retrieved November 4, 2009. 
  51. ↑ Mühlbradt, Matthias; André Axver. "2007-05-20: Palais des Festival – Cannes, France". U2gigs.com. http://www.u2gigs.com/show1521.html. Retrieved May 19, 2008. 
  52. ↑ Business Wire (January 17, 2008). "U2 3D to Premiere in Dolby 3D at Sundance Film Festival". Press release. http://investor.dolby.com/releasedetail.cfm?releaseid=287722. Retrieved July 25, 2009. 
  53. ↑ "Two Advance Clips — U23D". U2.com. Live Nation. January 19, 2008. http://www.u2.com/news/article/4432/. Retrieved August 4, 2010. 
  54. ↑ "Beautiful Night in 3D". U2.com (Live Nation). May 20, 2007. http://www.u2.com/stream/article/display/id/2129. Retrieved February 26, 2009. 
  55. ↑ Souris (January 20, 2008). "U2 3D Premieres at Sundance". U2 3D Live: The Official Blog for U2 3D, The Movie. National Geographic Society. http://blog.u23dmovie.com/blog/2008/01/u2-3d-premieres-at-sundance.html. Retrieved February 8, 2008. 
  56. ↑ 56.0 56.1 McBride, Sarah (February 15, 2008). "Clash of the 3D Rock Stars". The Wall Street Journal. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120303468564470121.html. Retrieved August 4, 2010. 
  57. ↑ "The Spiderwick Chronicles: International Release Dates". The Spiderwick Chronicles. Paramount Pictures. http://www.spiderwickchronicles.com/pops/intl_release.html. Retrieved August 4, 2010. 
  58. ↑ Frazer, Bryan (January 1, 2008). "U2 3D". Deep Focus. http://www.deep-focus.com/dfweblog/2008/01/u23d_2008.html. Retrieved January 4, 2009. 
  59. ↑ "Live from Chicago. Out Today!". U2.com (Live Nation). November 14, 2005. http://www.u2.com/stream/article/display/id/1800. Retrieved March 24, 2009. 
  60. ↑ "New Video: Live in Milan". U2.com (Live Nation). November 23, 2006. http://www.u2.com/stream/article/display/id/4322. Retrieved March 24, 2009. 
  61. ↑ 61.0 61.1 Giardina, Carolyn (January 24, 2008). "'U2 3D' hopes to ride wave". The Hollywood Reporter. http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/film/news/e3ifc34e9623716ac94a76dd14906340b5d. Retrieved August 4, 2010. 
  62. ↑ 62.0 62.1 Jordan, Isamu (February 29, 2008). "'U2 3D' great while it lasted". 7 (Cowles Publishing Company). http://old.spokane7.com/music/stories/?ID=8076. Retrieved November 4, 2009. 
  63. ↑ RealD Cinema (February 21, 2008). "RealD 3D Brings U2 3D Home". Press release. http://www.reald.com/Content/MediaRoomDocs/story20080221.pdf. Retrieved August 4, 2010. 
  64. ↑ Souris (February 21, 2008). "U2 3D Premieres in Dublin". U2 3D Live: The Official Blog for U2 3D, The Movie. National Geographic Society. http://blog.u23dmovie.com/blog/2008/02/u2-3d-premieres-in-dublin.html. Retrieved July 11, 2009. 
  65. ↑ Hall, Anne (August 12, 2008). "Catherine Owens – Giving Technology Emotion: From the Artist's Mind to 'U2 3D'". ACM SIGGRAPH. Archived from the original on June 14, 2010. http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:gQ6UjCcK11EJ:reports.siggraph.org/s2008/Sessions/cowens.html. Retrieved August 26, 2008. 
  66. ↑ "Dubai International Film Festival 2008 Box Office opens November 27". Dubai International Film Festival. http://www.dubaifilmfest.com/en/media-center/press-room/dubai-international-film-festival-2008-box-office-opens-november-27.html. Retrieved July 11, 2009. 
  67. ↑ Souris (January 8, 2008). "Leaving Las Vegas On a Good Note". U2 3D Live: The Official Blog for U2 3D, The Movie. National Geographic Society. http://blog.u23dmovie.com/blog/2008/01/leaving-las-vegas-on-a-good-no.html. Retrieved July 11, 2009. 
  68. ↑ PR Newswire (August 5, 2009). "3ality Digital to Showcase Integration of Visual Effects and Live-Action 3D at SIGGRAPH 2009's Computer Animation Festival". Press release. http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/3ality-digital-to-showcase-integration,917123.shtml. Retrieved August 10, 2009. 
  69. ↑ 69.0 69.1 "(No Title)". U2 3D Live: The Official Blog for U2 3D, The Movie. National Geographic Society. March 5, 2009. http://blog.u23dmovie.com/blog/2009/03/hey-all-you-die-hard.html. Retrieved March 14, 2009. 
  70. ↑ "@U2 Presents Sunday Night at the (3D) Movies with Neil McCormick". @U2. September 3, 2009. http://www.atu2.com/news/u2-presents-sunday-night-at-the-3d-movies-with-neil-mccormick.html. Retrieved September 3, 2009. 
  71. ↑ Abram, Malcolm X (October 15, 2009). "Rock Hall to screen U2 3D concert film to celebrate new theater". Akron Beacon Journal. http://www.ohiomm.com/blogs/soundcheck/2009/10/15/rock-hall-to-screen-u2-3d-concert-film-to-celebrate-new-theater/. Retrieved December 18, 2009. 
  72. ↑ "Getting Perspective III: Exploring the Craft of 3D Movie Technology". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. http://www.oscars.org/events-exhibitions/events/2010/perspective.html. Retrieved July 29, 2010. 
  73. ↑ 73.0 73.1 "U2 in first ever 3D concert beamed live to a cinema near you". Gizmag. December 27, 2007. http://www.gizmag.com/u2-stereoscopic-3d-concert/8534/. Retrieved January 4, 2008. 
  74. ↑ Leamy, John. "U2 3D movie poster". U23Dmovie.com. National Geographic Society. http://www.u23dmovie.com/images/multimedia/downloads/U23D_poster.pdf. Retrieved July 26, 2010. 
  75. ↑ National Geographic Society (September 24, 2008). "National Geographic Takes Home Highest Honors at GSCA Awards". Press release. http://press.nationalgeographic.com/pressroom/index.jsp?pageID=pressReleases_detail&siteID=1&cid=1222287979622. Retrieved June 27, 2008. 
  76. ↑ Not Us Limited (May 11, 2007). U.S. Trademark Serial No. 77178621. United States Patent and Trademark Office. Retrieved January 7, 2010.
  77. ↑ "Sneak Preview – U23D". U2.com (Live Nation). April 4, 2007. http://www.u2.com/news/article/4359. Retrieved February 26, 2009. 
  78. ↑ National Geographic Society (October 31, 2007). "National Geographic Creates Entertainment Unit". Press release. http://press.nationalgeographic.com/pressroom/index.jsp?pageID=pressReleases_detail&siteID=1&cid=1193856787689. Retrieved February 10, 2008. 
  79. ↑ 79.0 79.1 National Geographic Society (October 29, 2007). "National Geographic Cinema Ventures to Release 3ality Digital's 'U2 3D'". Press release. http://press.nationalgeographic.com/pressroom/index.jsp?pageID=pressReleases_detail&siteID=1&cid=1193673790308. Retrieved October 30, 2007. 
  80. ↑ Souris (February 1, 2008). "Interview: John Fahey, CEO of National Geographic". U2 3D Live: The Official Blog for U2 3D, The Movie. National Geographic Society. http://blog.u23dmovie.com/blog/2008/02/interview-john-fahey-ceo-of-na.html. Retrieved February 10, 2008. 
  81. ↑ National Geographic Society (January 8, 2008). "National Geographic Entertainment Names Best Buy as Exclusive Consumer Electronics Presenting Sponsor for U2 3D Theatrical Release in U.S.". Press release. http://press.nationalgeographic.com/pressroom/index.jsp?pageID=pressReleases_detail&siteID=1&cid=1199893175288. Retrieved February 10, 2008. 
  82. ↑ "'U23D' in 2008". U2.com (Live Nation). January 12, 2008. http://www.u2.com/stream/article/display/id/4429. Retrieved February 26, 2009. 
  83. ↑ Souris (January 8, 2008). "Hello, hello!". U2 3D Live: The Official Blog for U2 3D, The Movie. National Geographic Society. http://blog.u23dmovie.com/blog/2008/01/hello-hello.html. Retrieved February 18, 2008. 
  84. ↑ National Geographic Society (January 17, 2008). "U2 3D Preview Clips" (FLV). YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1VKM3sABGIs. Retrieved February 8, 2009. 
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  90. ↑ "Box Office History for Genre – Concert/Performance". The Numbers. http://www.the-numbers.com/market/Genres/Concert.php. Retrieved April 1, 2009. 
  91. ↑ O'Neil, Tom (November 7, 2008). "Can 'Religulous' win an Oscar for Emmy's biggest loser Bill Maher?". Los Angeles Times. http://goldderby.latimes.com/awards_goldderby/2008/10/religulous-7192.html. Retrieved October 7, 2008. 
  92. ↑ "Reminder List of Productions Eligible for Awards". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. 2008. http://old.oscars.org/81academyawards/rules/81aa_reminderlist.pdf. Retrieved July 25, 2010. 
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  94. ↑ "U2 3D (2008)". Rotten Tomatoes. http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/u2_3d/. Retrieved March 30, 2009. 
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  97. ↑ Black, Fergus (January 4, 2008). "U2 go 3D and it's even better than the real thing". Irish Independent. http://www.independent.ie/national-news/u2-go-3d-and-its-even-better-than-the-real-thing-1257614.html. Retrieved May 19, 2008. 
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