Scorcese on 3D in Hugo Cabret

Yesterday, The Guardian posted a great interview with Martin Scorcese, one of my all time favorite directors. The famed Oscar winner spoke passionately about his relation to film and the emotional connection he draws with the camera. However, what I was happiest to find in the interview was Scorcese's musings on the advent of stereoscopic 3D:

"Every shot is rethinking cinema," he enthuses, "rethinking narrative – how to tell a story with a picture. Now, I'm not saying we have to keep throwing javelins at the camera, I'm not saying we use it as a gimmick, but it's liberating. It's literally a Rubik's Cube every time you go out to design a shot, and work out a camera move, or a crane move. But it has a beauty to it also. People look like… like moving statues. They move like sculpture, as if sculpture is moving in a way. Like dancers…"

I am happy to see Scorcese tackling the medium in his forthcoming Hugo Cabret and excited for what the director will be able to do with the added dimension. It is my belief that 3D has the capability of enhancing the emotional connection between viewer and film, but that – as-of-yet – these capabilities have not been harnessed. Cameron did his part to advance the technology, but he failed to push the boundaries of what 3D can do as a storytelling device, perhaps because Avatar didn't have much of a story. Scorcese, on the other hand, is a natural storyteller whose films have urgency and emotional truth. If anyone can show that 3D is a viable addition to filmic storytelling and not just good for shock value, it is him.