Engadget has revealed that Peter Jackson intends to shoot The Hobbit on up to 30 Red Epic digital cameras, because “It’s a fantastic tool; the Epic not only has cutting edge technology, incredible resolution and visual quality, but is also a very practical tool for filmmakers.

“Many competing digital systems require the cameras to be tethered to large cumbersome VTR machines,” Jackson continues. “The Epic gives us back the ability to be totally cable free, even when working in stereo.” So no clunky tracking shots for Pete and Bilbo then.

Meanwhile, Michael Bay has been firefighting rumours that Transformers: Dark of the Moon has been de-railed by “dimensionalisation difficulties”. On his website, Bay has come out fighting: “Come into my edit room and I will show you beautiful 3-D,” the director states emphatically. “There has never been a live action show that has pushed the boundaries of 3-D like Transformers 3. We shot the entire movie with 3-D cameras. I actually loved shooting in 3-D.”

Bay can’t really blame folks for accepting rumours over trouble with the 3-D – he’s previously been fairly vocal in criticising the format as a fad. And for all his talk of “pushing the boundaries”, surely the 3-D metal mickeys won’t be quite as groundbreaking as James Cameron’s Na’vi?

Either way, the list of big name directors who are yet to turn their hand to 3-D is ever dwindling. Personally, as long as the films are good, we don’t care a jot.