Netflix's "Yeh Ballet" in UHD Dolby Vision HDR and Dolby Atmos - What does it mean?

https://www.netflix.com/title/81101795?s=a&trkid=13747225&t=cp

#YehBallet directed by Sooni Taraporevala has just launched on #Netflix. A labour of love, the makers & Netflix bring you this film in #UHD #DolbyVision #HDR picture & #DolbyAtmos audio. While these are now common terms for professionals in the entertainment industry, many people not associated with the industry have asked me what this even means. So here is a highly simplified explanation of what it means to filmmakers and how it translates to your viewing experience at home.

#UHD - Ultra High Definition - This refers to resolution, or to put it simply, the size of the image. Bigger image, more pixels, more detail. In the old DVD days, content was delivered on TV in 720x480 or 720x576 depending on whether it was NTSC or PAL. HD content is delivered in 1920x1080. Bigger picture, looked better than what you saw on standard definition TV or DVD right? UHD delivers in 3840x2160. As the numbers show, this image packs in more pixels than HD. UHD is often commercially called #4K and it's common to see it plastered across TV sets. If we want to call it right, a true 4K image should actually be 4096x2160. UHD TVs are fast becoming the norm with some manufacturers even selling 8K displays.

#HDR - High Dynamic Range. Don't confuse this with the HDR setting on your cell phone camera. With video, HDR is about more contrast in the darkest and brightest portions of the image. More details in those parts of the image that would usually be burnt out (bright areas) or crushed (dark areas just look black) in an SDR (Standard dynamic range) image. The technology brings imaging a step closer to human vision enabling cameras to capture detail and colorists to finish and master images with more information.

To view content in HDR, it has to be finished and mastered for it first. Then, your TV or display has to have the ability to decode and display HDR picture. HDR TVs are fast becoming the rage. At Netflix, we use Dolby Vision to finish and stream our shows and films in HDR as has been done on "Yeh Ballet". For the optimum experience, your Smart TV would have to be Dolby Vision compatible. On displays such as iPhones and iPads, you can watch HDR content on Netflix as it can derive an appropriate stream from the Dolby Vision master.

When you watch content in HDR for the first time without a reference, an untrained eye will probably not be able to call out how detailed the image is. But watch HDR content for a couple of weeks, and then try going back to SDR. Now, you've tasted blood and you're never going back! It's a lot like if you dust off one of those old DVDs today (which, in the late 90s, you probably thought had amazingly sharp picture) after having watched content in HD or UHD consistently for the last few years. Chances are you are going to be disappointed (assuming you still have a DVD player).

#DolbyAtmos - This refers to the sound component. Typical TV sets are equipped with stereo speakers. That's basically 2 channels - Left and Right. Like your headphones or ear buds. The most common higher end audio configuration over the last two decades has been 5.1 channel audio. This was most common in home theatre set ups which has 6 different channels. Left, Center, Right, Left Surround, Right Surround and a channel for low frequency sounds that were emitted from the sub woofer. Dolby Atmos audio however assigns sounds to space. In a theatrical Atmos set up, you will find speakers behind the screen, on the walls around you, and even on the ceiling above you. It's an immersive 360 degree audio experience that places you in the middle of the action. A home Atmos variable is now available where 5.1 home theatre audio system can be replaced with that immersive set up in your living room. Speakers can fire sound at and reflect off your ceiling to recreate the effect of ceiling mounted speakers. There are also Atmos sound bars available that provide a similar effect.

Many people have asked me how all this technology affects their viewing if they don't have high-end devices. One can watch Netflix and still get a great viewing experience on most devices, be it in UHD SDR or HD, and even with 2.0 audio. When we finish at the best resolution, dynamic range, and audio specs that technology can offer us, the derivatives that come from that finish sound far more superior that if we were to derive from a master finished at lower specs. You will find that especially true with audio where a 2.0 derived from an object based Dolby Atmos mix can deliver far more detail than a 2.0 derived from a 5.1 mix.

Of course, all this technology doesn't ensure a great product. It is up to the filmmaker and her crew to use this technology to tell a great story in an immersive and creative manner. For filmmakers, cinematographers, colorists, sound designers and mixers, this, as my esteemed colleague Leon Silverman puts it, is like giving them "a bigger box of crayons". They may or may not use all the crayons in this box, but with more crayons, they have an opportunity to really push their creativity and use it to tell stories in a more immersive manner.