Monsters vs. Aliens is DreamWorks' foray into full-on stereo-3-D-only animation production. Time will tell if 3-D films can curtail the worsening piracy problem in the industry.

T&A: Time.com published an article where it interviewed some of the leading directors and producers of Hollywood today, including Steven Spielberg, James Cameron and Jeffrey Katzenberg, on the future of films and film-making with advances in stereoscopic 3-D technology today.

While the article explored the various flights, flops and follies of older stereoscopic 3-D incarnations over the years (the current one is the 8th), it also talked about recent moves to convert older blockbusters like Titanic, Toy Story and Star Wars into 3-D, and the intense hype built around upcoming 3-D films like James Cameron’s Avatar, Jeffrey Katzenberg’s Monsters vs. Aliens (which opens this month) and Steven Spielberg/Peter Jackson’s Tintin.

Unlike previous incarnations of stereoscopic 3-D, the current tech now enables viewers to don polarized 3-D glasses instead of the dorky colored ones, while film-makers have now perfected the camera systems to film it.

To many, this may seem like the next big paradigm shift after sound and color invaded cinema screens. Studios are hopeful that this would also curtail piracy, as it is harder for digital camera-toting moviegoers to film and distribute it widely to pirate-users at home, who may need the right 3-D glasses and proper hardware just to experience stereoscopic 3-D. (Editor opinions: 1) (more…)