The unlikely records held by the U2 concert movie
The concept of concert films dates back to the 1940s, with the earliest being Concert Magic, a project featuring Yehudi Menuhin. Over the years, concert films have become increasingly popular, with almost all successful bands possessing their own. The first rock concert film, however, was the 1964 project T.A.M.I. Show, which was followed by the classic Monterey Pop a few years later, capturing some of the decade’s most iconic artists.
From Leonard Cohen to Björk to King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, concert films have traversed all genres, granting fans access to live performances from their favourite artists. Some artists have taken concert films to new levels, such as Talking Heads’ Stop Making Sense, directed by Jonathan Demme. Widely regarded as one of the finest concert films of all time, Stop Making Sense showcases the band’s enduring talents through unique set design, with each member of the post-punk outfit appearing on stage one at a time.
This sense of creativity surely inspired directors Catherine Owens and Mark Pellington, who helmed U2 3D, which showcased performances by the Irish rock band U2 filmed on their 2006 Vertigo tour. The film became the first live-action movie entirely shot and screened in 3D. Although the technology had existed for decades prior, U2 3D was filmed in a revolutionary way, using technology pioneered by Peter Anderson and Steve Schklair.
Through these new developments in the world of 3D filmmaking, U2 3D became the first to be edited to prevent motion sickness. At the time, 3D movies were incredibly popular, but they often caused people to experience headaches due to eye strain. Yet, the creators aimed to prevent this from happening by using motion-control photography.
The film also became the first 3D movie to use various types of lenses and cameras, such as a zoom lens. Shooting involved 18 specialised cameras used simultaneously, aiming to capture U2 from as many angles as possible to bring the 3D technology to life.
As the first live-action digital 3D film, U2 3D was a cinematic feat. It was extremely successful, grossing over $26million worldwide. Highly praised, the movie even inspired Wim Wenders to create his 3D documentary Pina in 2011, which earned an Oscar nomination for ‘Best Documentary Feature’.
According to John Modell from 3ality Digital, which produced the film, it was a major step forward for 3D media. He said, “A paradigm shift we talk about a lot is going from silent to talkies, or from black and white to colour. We think this [U2 3D] is a key change with regards to both digital delivery and also 3D. We all see in 3D in real life and every technological advancement in film has always been about bringing you closer and immersing you into the story or the emotion of what you’re watching.”
