The 20 best 3D movies for 2012

This year we've already seen some of these amazing 3D wonders. Featuring influential and award-winning animators, sculptors and FX teams, you won't want to miss out on any of these theatrical offerings. What's been your highlight so far?

The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists

Released on 28th March, Aardman studios and director Peter Lord bring the very first 3D stop motion film to life. The Pirates! tells the story of the Pirate Captain (Hugh Grant) and his mission to defeat his rivals, Black Bellamy and Cutlass Liz, in scooping the Pirate of the Year Award. The journey takes the Captain and his crew from the shores of Blood Island to the streets of Victorian London.

Also featuring the voices of David Tenant as Charles Darwin and Martin Freeman as the pirate with the scarf, this most star-studded of animated 3D movies is a truly revolutionary concept.

Whilst a live action movie takes around three months to shoot, this film took around 18 months to complete by hand. With the endless sculpting and perfecting, Aardman managed to get around 1 - 4 seconds of footage per week; most of which ended up in the final film.

Lloyd Price is the animation supervisor on this one and, with Tim Burton's 'Nightmare before Christmas' and Oscar-winning 'A Close Shave' under his belt, The Pirates is unlikely to disappoint.

For a behind-the-scenes featurette visit 3D World or for more information visit The Pirates! website.

Dr Seuss' The Lorax

Universal are at it again. Here comes another Dr Seuss adaptation. Released in the UK on July 27th, The Lorax tells the story of Ted, a boy searching for the one thing (a real-life tree) that will enable him to win the affection of the girl of his dreams. To find it, he must discover the story of the Lorax, the grumpy yet charming creature who fights to protect his world.

Touching on themes of greed and environmental issues, the film sets out to teach kids a thing or two about the planet. From an animation and design point of view, it is just awe-inspiringly beautiful. Just watch the trailer below.

Character voices are provided by Danny DeVito (the Lorax), The American Office's Ed Helms (the Once-ler), with Zac Efron as Ted and Taylor Swift as Audrey.

Directed by Despicable Me's Chris Renaud and Kyle Balda (Despicable Me, Toy Story 2 and Monsters Inc.) the film has promising prospects.

Designers on board include Ratatouille character designer Carter Goodrich, while 3D character development has been left in the capable hands of Mike Defeo, who worked on the Ice Age franchise as well as Alien Resurrection.

For more info on the film visit Dr Seuss' The Lorax website.

Brave

This is the first original story from Pixar in almost five years thanks to (moderately) successful sequels and prequels. That alone could make it one of the best 3D movies in a while. Brave tells the story of Princess Merida, a young girl determined to go against tradition and make her own way in life. She must depend on her archery skills and bravery to defy a beastly curse.

Released on 17th August and directed by Mark Andrews, Pixar's latest venture seems to be stirring up quite a commotion. However, as Andrews has just directed Disney's biggest ever flop 'John Carter' there could be some raised eyebrows on the horizon.

Starring Kelly Macdonald as Princess Merida, Emma Thompson as Queen Elinor and Billy Connolly as King Fergus, Brave is a sincerely Scottish affair.

The special effects are in seriously experienced hands with Lou Hamou-Lhadj (Toy Story 3, Wall-E) on character modelling and Allen Hemberger (Avatar, Matrix trilogy) as FX technical director.

For a scene sneak peek visit 3D World, or for more information visit the Brave website.

Avengers Assemble

Who doesn't love a Superhero movie? So when looking at the best 3D movies, why wouldn't we be getting excited about a film which manages to squeeze almost all of them onto the screen at the same time?

Released on April 26th, Avengers Assemble features Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), Captain America (Chris Evans) and the Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), who all come together to help save the Earth from Loki (Tom Hiddleston) and his army.

Set to be one of the best 3D movies of the year, not only does it include as many spandex-clad actors as you can shake a stick at, Buffy creator Joss Whedon takes to the director's chair whilst an Oscar-winning team brings this Marvel classic to life.

Graphic designer Martin Charles worked on last year's huge hit The Artist, whilst digital set designer Patrick Dunn-Baker was part of the award-winning team of Hugo. With a good director, a cluster of hot actors, plus a design team to die for, we dare you to not go and see this when it opens.

For more information visit the Avengers Assemble website.

Men in Black III

Yep, it's another sequel. But this one actually looks like a winner. Men in Black III see's Will Smith reprise the quip-happy role of Agent J as he heads back in time to the 1960s to stop an alien from assassinating his friend, Agent K (Tommy Lee Jones.)

Released on May 25th, Barry Sonnenfeld once again takes the reins as director, whilst Emma Thompson joins the cast as Agent O.

The special effects team really are quite special. The VFX foreman is Craig Barnett, who created the special effects for the entire Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. While Direct Dimensions, who have worked on Black Swan and The Hunger Games, take care of the 3D scanning. Was this one of your best 3D movies?

For more information visit the Men in Black III website.

The Amazing Spider-man

It's more spandex and it's a prequel. But we can't help but feel a niggle of excitement over the latest Spider-man release. This time Brit actor Andrew Garfield throws on the red and blue suit, whilst Emma Stone stars as Gwen Stacy.

In The Amazing Spider-man, Peter Parker finds a series of clues that may link back to his parents' disappearance, putting him on a lethal path towards Rhys Ifans' Dr. Curt Connors (The Lizard to me and you.)

Released on 4th July, this has summer blockbuster written all over it. The design team is of blockbuster proportions too. it includes veteran special effects technician Roland Blancaflor, who has worked on Total Recall, 300 and Black Swan. While graphic designer Susan A. Burig (Transformers, Pearl Harbour) also lends a hand.

For more information visit The Amazing Spider-man website.

Prometheus

Ridley Scott makes a long overdue (and highly anticipated) return to the world of Alien. When a team of explorers take their ship 'Prometheus' on a voyage to investigate alien life forms, they become stranded on an Alien world and are left to face a terrifying battle to save the human race.

Queue lots of awesome CGI, gloomy gothic visuals and a cast consisting of Noomi Rapace, Michael Fassbender and Charlize Theron, and - if geek expectations are anything to go by - this will definitely be one of the best 3D movies this year.

Released on June 1st, Prometheus features the work of creature designer Martin Rezard. He might well have the best job in the universe, having previously worked on Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows parts 1 and 2.

For more information visit the Prometheus website.

Ice Age 4: Continental Drift

Our favourite pre-historic characters are back to embark upon yet another adventure. After their continent is set adrift, Manny, Diego, and Sid create an iceberg ship and encounter sea creatures and battle pirates as they explore a new world.

Directors Steve Martino (Horton Hears a Who!) and Mike Thurmeier (visual effects for Fight Club) tackle this tired franchise. Released in cinemas on July 6th, Ray Ramano (Manny), Queen Latifah (Ellie), Denis Leary (Diego) and John Leguizamo (Sid) all reprise their roles.

Trusted character designer Peter DeSeve, who worked on films such as Finding Nemo and Monsters Inc, is joined by character simulator Lauren Carr for this one. For kids young and old, this could definitely be one of the best 3D movies for 2012.

For more information visit 3D World or the Ice Age 4 website.

Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted

Yet another sequel (do you detect a trend?). But you can't fault the undeniable animation talents of Dreamworks. Alex (Ben Stiller), Marty (Chris Rock), Gloria (Jada Pinkett Smith) and Melman (David Schwimmer) are still fighting to get home to their beloved Big Apple.

This time, their journey takes them through Europe where they find the perfect cover: a travelling circus. Released on October 19th, the film doesn't hit our shores for a little while. Directors include: Eric Darnell, Tom McGrath and Conrad Vernon.

The artistic team is phenomenal and includes paint fix artist Jasper M. Baltzersen, who has previously worked on How to Train Your Dragon, Super 8 and Transformers. CGI artist Yiqun Chen, who worked on Shrek Forever After, is also involved.

For more information visit the Madagascar 3 website.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

Finally, a prequel everyone is excited about. Peter Jackson takes his Lord of the Rings knowledge and filters it through to the original story of The Hobbit.

The film itself isn't released until December 2012. But we can expect a truly remarkable story. Surely you know it by now? Bilbo Baggins, somewhat controversially played by Martin Freeman, journeys to the Lonely Mountain with a team of dwarves to reclaim a stolen treasure.

Much of the original cast of Lord of the Rings are involved, with Ian McKellen, Orlando Bloom, Cate Blanchett, Andy Serkis and Ian Holm all making appearances.

Behind the scenes, set designer Mark Stephen, senior special effects technician Karl Chisholm and senior animator Daniel Zettl claim the likes of Avatar and the Adventures of Tin Tin on their CVs. Forget 2012. With the cast and crew Jackson has assembled, The Hobbit could be one of the best 3D movies to date!

For more information visit The Hobbit website.

Next: Spooky offerings from Tim Burton...