'Nightmare' awakens for 3-D release


By Sheigh Crabtree

Sally will drop nightshade into Dr. Finkelstein's tea in 3-D come Halloween, when Walt Disney Pictures releases a digitally remastered version of "Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas."

The digital release of the 1993 stop-motion animated classic is set for Oct. 20.

"Nightmare" marks the second digital 3-D theatrical release from Disney after "Chicken Little" did banner business last year in digital 3-D on 84 U.S. screens at 81 locations. The digital 3-D boxoffice returns outperformed the standard screenings nearly 3-to-1, according to Disney estimates.

Burton and "Nightmare" director Henry Selick are involved in the digital remastering of the stop-mo feature starring Jack Skellington, the pumpkin king of Halloween Town, and were "very cheered by the news" that Disney wanted to release the movie in 3-D, according to Selick.

"When visitors came to visit the set of 'Nightmare Before Christmas,' they were always amazed by the intricate sets and beautiful puppets -- that they actually existed in miniature," Selick said Monday. "It was disappointing to see this effect lost on film. By remastering for 3-D, I hope that some of this magic can be captured and shown to the audience in a way they've never seen before."

Selick is directing Laika Entertainment's "Coraline," starring Dakota Fanning, in Portland, Ore. "Coraline" represents the first stop-motion animated film to be shot stereoscopically with a dual digital camera rig for digital 3-D exhibition.

Disney has asked the writer and director to review "Nightmare" materials, QC shots and make appearances when the digital 3-D version of "Nightmare" premieres.

Disney's rerelease of the wicked tale represents the first 3-D feature to stake a claim on the Halloween holiday, much like Warner Bros. Pictures called dibs on the Christmas frame with the 3-D rerelease of 2004's "The Polar Express."

Disney realized that "Nightmare" would make a promising 3-D release while mastering "Chicken Little," according to Lylle Breier, Walt Disney Pictures senior vp worldwide special events.

" 'Nightmare' is a beloved movie, and we always look to what can we do with it," Breier said. "The way Tim and Henry made 'Nightmare' was so cutting edge, it seemed like the perfect film to rerelease using cutting-edge processes. We see this as a natural extension of a spectacular movie."

Burton and Selick have attended Disney's special screenings of "Nightmare" at the El Capitan in Hollywood, where movie fans annually line the block in Halloween costumes. Disneyland similarly puts on a special "Nightmare" theme park attraction every year in time for Halloween.

"Nightmare" is in the early stages of being digitally scanned and converted into 3-D by the computer-graphics group at Industrial Light + Magic. The film represents a repeat gig for ILM's Colum Slevin, who in the summer oversaw the digital remastering of "Chicken Little's" 1,400 computer-animated shots.

Execs were reluctant to discuss the design of the 3-D passive glasses that will be handed out to audiences at "Nightmare" screenings but suggested they will be appropriately ghoulish and collectible.

Domestically, "Nightmare" made $50.3 million when first released in 1993.

Sony Pictures' "Monster House," executive produced by Robert Zemeckis and Steven Spielberg, is expected to be the next film to play in digital 3-D when released July 21.

Real D and Dolby Digital Cinema, both involved in the 3-D projection of "Chicken Little," did not return calls seeking comment.

Besides Disney (Research), Columbia Pictures has also signed up to release new animated films in Real D format. Real D, meanwhile, hopes to sell its projection systems -- priced at about $250,000 each -- to more than 1,000 theaters by 2007