Expect December 14, 2012 to go down in the annals of film history with the theatrical release of “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.” Peter Jackson’s latest film in the Lord of the Rings canon will be shown at select theaters in 3D with a frame rate of 48 frames per second (fps). Jackson has faced criticism since it became public knowledge that he would be shooting for 48 fps rather than the traditional 24 fps.

Experiment With FPS

Jackson is not the first filmmaker to experiment with frame rate in relation to user experience. Two decades ago, Douglas Trumbull created film projects at 60 fps in a format called Showscan. At the time the format was not viable for wide release as the standard equipment for movie theaters was a film projector with a projection rate of 24 fps. Neither studios nor theater owners were willing to take a gamble on higher frame rate films becoming common and so the only experimentation done by filmmakers was on a small scale. Furthermore the added cost of film would have been prohibitively high across the industry — doubling frames per second at viewing means requiring double the filmstock at shooting.

Digital Revolution

With the digital revolution, change is certainly possible, gone are the days of mechanical projection. These days most theaters have changed over to digital projection systems which provides far more freedom for filmmakers to innovate. If a projector can’t correctly display a film, it’s likely fixable with a software or firmware update that can be very simply installed.

This ever-changing technology is wonderful for the industry but challenging to keep up with. Students in school for graphic design just 20 years ago worked with completely different materials and techniques to achieve visual effects in film than students today. Today’s students will continue to innovate even more to improve the realism of digital textures and elements in both animated and live-action movie projects.

Jackson’s Vision

Peter Jackson chose to film and show “The Hobbit” in 48 fps because it lent two distinct advantages to his film. The faster frame rate is far less taxing on viewers watching the film in 3D and so prevents eye strain. The faster frame rate is also significantly more realistic looking — the cause for much of the speculation and criticism of the early sneak peeks of footage.

Detractors argue that films presented at 48 fps look too realistic and thus dispels the magic of filmmaking and film viewing. The truth of the matter is that Jackson’s style is inherently immersive and realistic. The Lord of the Rings films are set in a very fictional world, so this tact works very well for Jackson’s audience. They can feel like they are part of the Shire and this suspension of disbelief is what filmmaking is all about.

For other filmmakers, using a high frame rate would be a disservice to their story. The new higher frame rate should be viewed as a tool for filmmakers to choose and implement as they see fit, rather than as a new standard — much like 3D.

Very few theaters have publicly announced 48 fps showings of “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” as of yet, but as the premiere approaches more showings should be added. Stay tuned!

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