On Friday night the old centre cinema, now known to most as Academy will be transformed into 3D visual spectacular. Jim Medcraft, Academy’s resident VJ, has enlisted the help of 3D artist Nigel Tao, aka VJ Nasty, to produce some original 3D images using specialised computer software. He will also be mixing in segments from classic movies filmed in 3D and more recent movies such as Spy Kids 3D to create an entire night of 3D visuals.

Everyone will receive a pair of 3D glasses upon entry and will need to get over any hang ups about how silly they look wearing them to truly enjoy the night.

Jim has also created some red/blue split images that will still look cool without the glasses on, but will look really “psycadelic” with them on, he claims.

To keep with the colour theme of the night, Academy’s house lighting will be programmed red and blue and the laser will being showing 3D images of its own, like tunnels.

Accompanying the visuals will be resident DJ Chris Fraser playing a 3 hour set. “We’re expecting a more diverse crowd to the usual Saturday night, so Chris’ set will reflect that. He’ll be mixing up everything from rock to hard house. It’ll be quite different to his Saturday night sets”, Jim assures me.

Where did you first get the idea for Academy 3D?

Jim – I did an installation at Floreade that was a 3D sound space and started thinking how I could extend that to also incorporate visuals. Back then I was planning it more as an art installation but after getting the resident VJ job at Academy I realised how well it would work as a club night. The final product is a combination of lots of people’s work and ideas though.

I like the fact that we’re putting it on in an old cinema because its keeping alive the tradition of 3D movies that was big in the 60s. We’ve just added a modern twist.

How does the 3D projection work?

On the film, the colour matts are separated so the red is a little to the left and blue is to the right of the original colour matt. Without the glasses on you can see the three separate images. Then when you put the glasses on your right eye is covered in red cellophane which cancels out the red on the screen so you can’t see it and the same happens with the blue on your left eye. Because your eyes are perceiving the images separately it gives the impression of depth.

So is Academy 3D going to become a regular event?

Jim – That all depends on how well it’s received on Friday. Due to the amount of work involved in putting it on it will a few months before there’s another one. It’s quite hard to find existing 3D material and producing the content ourselves is a long and difficult process. Although a lot of classic horror movies screened in 3D in the 60s, most have never been converted to VHS or DVD. I would love to get a 3D copy of Hitchcock’s Dial M for Murder. It was the first movie ever shot in 3D.

The concept is something I definitely want to push further in the future.

Such as?

Creating a 3D space out of fibre optic lights, (think the ceiling at Mortis but heaps more), a whole cubic of them that you can step into like a bead curtain and the individual lights become pixels of a 3D image that’s moving all around you. But that’ll be a long way off yet.

Acdemy 3D takes place tonight