Wednesday, March 21, 2007

No HD for Who

Fans have been delighted to find BBC Three's "Torchwood" in high-definition digital quality. But while it might seem like a logical progression that "Torchwood's" parent, "Doctor Who," would follow suit, don't hold your breath.
"We do have conversations about it, but I don't think we're ready to be on HD," Julie Gardner, an executive producer for "Doctor Who," told The Stage. "I think it would take more time for us to do our post-production, and I think it would be more costly. And I genuinely love the look that we've managed to achieve with our [directors of photography] and our grade on 'Doctor Who.'"
When a show moves over to HD, even the smallest visual details because highly important to clean up. Because "Doctor Who" is so special effects-oriented, the production crews would have to have the effects finished down to the most minute detail, Gardner said.
"We do so many effects on 'Doctor Who' compared to 'Torchwood' -- I can't think what the exact ratio is, but if we're doing a hundred effects on an episode of 'Doctor Who,' we're doing ... 20 or 10 on 'Torchwood.'"
The non-HD version of "Doctor Who" Season 3 premieres March 31 on BBC One.

By MICHAEL HINMAN

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