SMPTE 2008 Show Opens With Launch of 3-D Cinema Sound System

Headline Address and Session Picture the Future of Storytelling
and Digital Media
LOS ANGELES--(Business Wire)--
SMPTE 2008: Annual Tech Conference & Expo
(http://www.smpte2008.org) bowed today with the cinema launch of
IOSONO, a fully immersive theatrical sound system for all feature
films, especially those exhibited in stereoscopic 3-D. This cinema
first followed a keynote address, "The Future of Digital Media,"
delivered by IOSONO's founder, Prof. Dr. Karlheinz Brandenburg, and an
in-depth session, "Rebel Alliance - Geeks Lead Hollywood into a New
Era," featuring Emmy Award-winning show runners and other top
Hollywood creative talents.

IOSONO intensifies the theatrical experience, particularly with
3-D picture, by delivering ghostly whispers straight into viewers'
ears from inches away and placing whirling helicopters directly over
seats. Dr. Brandenburg, who is also the director of Fraunhofer
Institute for Digital Media Technology (IMDT) and the "father of MP3,"
demonstrated the sound system at its first United States cinema
location in the Mann Chinese 6 theaters in Hollywood, CA.

In his keynote address, Dr. Brandenburg laid out his vision for
the future of digital media, which includes a home viewing experience
that delivers personalized, automated, broadcast programming to
viewers. He was followed on stage by executive producer/writers Tim
Kring ("Heroes," "Crossing Jordan") and Javier Grillo-Marxuach ("The
Middleman," "Medium"), executive producers Naren Shankar ("CSI," "UC:
Undercover") and Jesse Alexander ("Heroes," "Alias"), videogame
developer Matt Wolf ("Bourne Conspiracy" videogame) and director Rob
Letterman ("Monsters Vs. Aliens"), who shined a light on transmedia, a
new form of storytelling that incorporates branding and marketing and
that unfolds across the television, Internet, videogames and mobile
phones.

"It was an exciting opening day for SMPTE 2008, with a packed
audience, sold out exhibit floor and inspiring content," said Kimberly
Maki, executive director SMPTE and SMPTE 2008. "We were thrilled to
host some of the industry's top technical and creative talent, who
inspired us with their vision of the industry today and tomorrow."

Produced by the Society of Motion Picture and Television
Engineers, SMPTE 2008 is a conference and tradeshow focused on new and
emerging entertainment technologies used in content creation,
management, distribution and display. It takes place October 28-30,
2008 at the Renaissance Hotel in Hollywood, CA, with Wednesday and
Thursday sessions devoted to IPTV, image acquisition, the new SMPTE
time code, and more. The conference closes with a gala ceremony,
Thursday evening, which honors newly named SMPTE fellows and a host of
awardees.

About SMPTE 2008: Annual Tech Conference & Expo

SMPTE 2008: Annual Tech Conference & Expo takes place October
28-30, 2008 at the Renaissance Hotel in Hollywood, CA. It is preceded
by the full-day symposium, Innovations in Filmmaking and Live Event
Broadcast, on October 27, 2008, at the same location. Produced by the
Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE), the
leading technical society for the motion imaging industry, SMPTE 2008
is created by entertainment technology professionals, for
entertainment technology professionals. It features educational
sessions and a hands-on show floor that highlight new and emerging
media technologies of practical use to content creation, management,
distribution and display professionals. Http://smpte2008.org

About the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers

The Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) is
the leading technical society for the motion imaging industry. As an
internationally recognized and accredited standards-setting body,
SMPTE develops standards, recommends practices and guidelines and
spearheads educational activities to advance engineering and moving
imagery. Since its founding in 1916, the Society has established close
to 600 standards, including the physical dimensions of 35mm film and
the SMPTE time code. More recently, it codified the MXF file format to
support the exchange of professional AV content and crafted the
Digital Cinema Standards, which paved the way for digital movie
theaters. Headquartered in New York, SMPTE is comprised of engineers
and other technical specialists, IT and new media professionals,
filmmakers, manufacturers, educators and consultants in more than 65
countries. They are joined at SMPTE by more than 200 sponsoring
corporations, principal players in content creation, production and
delivery for all platforms and in entertainment hardware and software.
Http://smpte.org

PHOTO LINKS BELOW

http://www.sampr.net/transmedia.jpg -- Javier Grillo-Marxuach,
executive producer/writer (left) and Naren Shankar, executive producer
(right) describe a world beyond traditional broadcast opening morning,
SMPTE 2008, in Hollywood, CA

http://www.sampr.net/iosono.jpg - Prof. Dr. Karlheinz Brandenburg
(left) and Peter Dobson, CEO, Mann Theaters (right) pose at the
theatrical launch of IOSONO at the Mann Chinese 6 theaters in
Hollywood, CA

http://www.sampr.net/brandenburglude.jpg - Peter Lude, SMPTE
editorial vice president (left), Prof. Dr. Karlheinz Brandenburg
(right) pose at the podium before Dr. Brandenburg's keynote address,
opening morning SMPTE 2008 in Hollywood, CA

Smoke & Mirrors
Rochelle Winters, 213-250-4603
rochelle@sampr.net

Copyright Business Wire 2008