Disney, Zemeckis form 3D film company

Academy Award-winning director Robert Zemeckis has inked a deal with The Walt Disney Co. to produce, distribute and market 3D films. The new company formed between Disney, Zemeckis and his partners Jack Rapke and Steve Starkey will create films using the performance capture technology, a technique of digitally recording actor movements that are then replicated on-screen. The new company is an example of how the Burbank entertainment giant is staying on the cutting edge of technology for its films, said Dick Cook, chairman of The Walt Disney Studios, in a statement. Zemeckis, Rapke and Starkey are one of the finest producing teams in the industry, Cook said. Zemeckis directed all three “Back to the Future” movies, “Forrest Gump,” for which he won an Oscar, “Who Framed Roger Rabbit,” and “The Polar Express,” which used the performance capture technology. “They have a real pulse on the future of motion pictures especially as it pertains to the creativity and technology of motion capture and 3D film experiences,” Cook said. “They are true leaders in every sense of the word and we are proud to be partners with them in this new endeavor.”