U2 3D: Smart Marketing Widget for a Historic Film.

Be forewarned: when movie critics and communications analysts look back at U2 3D they'll see a historic event. U2 is amazing: as musicians and as marketers. Their absolute dedication to creating great work with the best creative teams available has made them the band of the last quarter century.

U2 3D was directed by Catherine Owens (U2 director of visual content for 15 plus years) and Mark Pellington (a U2 video director). The movie was created by 3ality Digital with 9 pairs of SonyAlta 3-D cameras. The final product was selected from 700 hours of film footage (multiple cameras) shot at 7 shows, virtually all in South America.

U2 3D is going to kick ass and take no prisoners. It's the first ever live action digital film. Period. I saw the Vertigo Tour a couple times, most prominently on October 8th, 2005 at Madison Square Garden in New York. It was a great show to turn into a 3D movie with state of the art technology (click on "What is 3D" to learn much more about 3D and 3ality). I'm just as excited to see the movie as the concert given all the points of view the camera will expose you to. Fans who have seen the in-theater preview describe Bono throwing a glass of water off the screen as if you're going to be soaked. U2 3D debuts at the Sundance Film Festival on January 18, 2008 and January 23 to the public playing in major cities--only in 3D. Run time is 92 minutes with 16 songs.

An important sidebar from an advertising standpoint: what's also amazing to me is how well this 2D trailer simulates 3D. And, of course, very wise use of widget marketing. More on U2 marketing this Christmas in following posts. So if you like U2...get ready to think about them from a music marketing vantage point.

1/1/08 UPDATE ON CITIES AND THEATERS: Many of you have come here looking for the cities and theaters this film will play in. U2's mini site states that it will be a worldwide release in IMAX theaters in 38 countries throughout the world (280 theaters, 60% in the US & Canada, aside from IMAX in educational institutions and museums, listed here.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_IMAX_venues). U2 3D will also appear in the 1200 worldwide theaters with digital 3D.