The Jigsaw Killer will be back in T.O. for the third installment of the successful Saw horror franchise, and most of the slicing and dicing will happen in the Deluxe|Post Production DI suite.

Deluxe cut the ribbon last September on its multimillion-dollar digital intermediate suite - driven by its proprietary EFILM technology - with Saw II. At the time, producer Dan Heffner was set to finish post on the Toronto-shot feature in L.A., but was so impressed with the sound and picture facilities at Deluxe that he took the film through the entire DI process there, including color correction and a 2K film out.

The increasing popularity of the DI process is due to the incredible flexibility it gives filmmakers in post through the scanning of film footage into digital form - which, at a resolution of 2K or 4K, is high enough for even the most complex FX work.

Once in the digital realm, a multitude of tools can manipulate every aspect of the image, from color correction to VFX. Filmmakers can then master in 2K or 4K resolution and record back out to film, or downconvert to various digital formats for broadcast.

The response to both the process and Deluxe's suite has been strong. Director Sturla Gunnarsson went so far as to describe his experience on Beowulf & Grendel (set for a March 10 release through Equinoxe) as "a revelation."

Other films in progress or already booked for a Deluxe DI include Don Carmody's horror thriller Silent Hill (to be released by Columbia TriStar) ­- the visual effects for which are being done at Toronto-based Mr. X - and Pan's Labyrinth from Guillermo del Toro (Hellboy, Devil's Backbone).

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