Sky 3D to explore the inside of the human body

Oct 05, 2012 No Comments by Jonathan Tustain

Touch Productions and Can Communicate’s I,Human will air on Sky 3D this weekend, after two year's of production, and promises to transform our knowledge of how our bodies work.

ihuman title Sky 3D to explore the inside of the human body

Using miniature 3D cameras, these films will screen operations of internal organs, go inside eyes and under the skin. The goal of the shows is to “take viewers to the edge of what is known about how the body works and how we can make it better.” It is just as much about the emotional stories of the patients involved as well as how the medical industry is using stereoscopic techniques to better understand how the human body works and improve surgical accuracy.

One of those patients is sword swallower Dan Meyer, who has the world’s first stereoscopic 3D endoscope inserted into his throat to unravel the secrets of the human digestive system. The two part series will also tell the story of the senses including injecting a genetically modified virus to heal damaged retinas and shows how artificial skin is encouraging the body’s own healing processes on massive burns, helping the skin to re-grow.

State of the art robots and 3D cameras are also used to remove cancerous tumors from a kidney and, in a TV first, I, Human goes inside the operation and watches the kidney being repaired.

3D Focus has watched the first episode and can agree that the human body is a perfect topic for 3D and we are surprised human biology has not been the theme of a 3D documentary before.

John Cassy, Director, Sky 3D, tells us “One of the most familiar, and yet alien territories in the world is the human body. I, Human takes us on a truly spectacular 3D journey into how the body functions, and in using cutting edge 3D photography, it’s as entertaining and extraordinary as any sci-fi film out there.”

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH TOUCH PRODUCTIONS CEO MALCOLM BRINKWORTH

Malcolm Brinkworth Sky 3D to explore the inside of the human body

3D Focus: "The body’s in-house safari park of tiny creatures that call us home" sounds intriguing! What are we talking about here?

Malcolm Brinkworth: These were specially shot for us in 3D where possible by a specialist unit who have been working on these electron microscope images as well as using the best 3D microscopes we could find! We are talking about house mites, dust mites, eyelash mites (they burrow into the eyelash follicles!) as well as others.

3D Focus: How did Can Communications and Touch Productions collaborate on this and were any rigs created especially for the programme?

Malcolm Brinkworth:Touch has an award winning reputation for these kinds of shows and has made many landmark specialist factual shows in 2D. The idea of following the pioneers who are trying to understand and use the human body’s own self repair mechanisms in 3D seemed like an extraordinary opportunity and a great challenge. We then teamed up with CAN to work together to realise the ambitions we shared for the programme. Their expertise in 3D was important as we wanted a partner who understood all the issues involved and would work with us creatively to find solutions to the technical challenges.

3D Focus: In your research, did you find out how prevalent stereoscopic technology is being used in the medical field?

Malcolm Brinkworth: It is a growing field and one that is becoming more mainstream in surgical procedures. The impact that 3D is making in renal or brain surgery is significant and many new procedures and techniques will follow as the use becomes more widespread and the medical profession see the benefits.

3D Focus: What topics are you exploring in each programme?

Malcolm Brinkworth: Programme one takes us on a journey from extraordinary robotic limbs to the creatures that live on us; from an artificial skin that isn’t just transforming burns but could also help organs re-grow and repair themselves to removing tumours from kidneys in a way that is changing what surgeons can do and has better outcomes for the patients.

Programme two covers other remarkable pioneers who are working of various areas of our brian and on our senses. There’s a team who are using a virus to stop people going blind, surgeons removing potentially fatal brain tumours through the nose, a man who remembers everything and forgets nothing and how the cold – through therapeutic hypothermia – is changing what we think about life and death.

3D Focus: Will it be available at MIPCOM and who is distributing it? Has it been sold?

Malcolm Brinkworth: It will appear on 3net – they were one of the commissioning broadcasters – and they were fabulously supportive throughout the whole process. We all hope it will be a great success for them. It is being sold at MIPCOM by Cineflix. Sky 3D have taken it for the UK as have a number of other broadcasters around the world

The first episode of “I,Human” airs on Sky 3D on Sunday 7th with the second episode being broadcast the following Sunday 14th October at 2100.

i Human 3D stills

i Human 3D Images Sky 3D to explore the inside of the human body

For more information about Can Communicate visit www.cancommunicate.com
For more information about Touch Productions visit http://www.touchproductions.co.uk/

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