'POTTER' UNVEILS NEW 'SECRETS' IN 2-DISC DVD.

Byline: Greg Hernandez Staff Writer

When the highly anticipated DVD version of ``Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets'' hits stores next Friday, those eager to snap up the latest adventures of the boy wizard and his friends will be getting a lot more on their discs than the movie.

The host of DVD ``extras'' are so numerous that the film is being released on two discs and includes 19 deleted scenes, a host of interactive tours and games, a recap of the first movie ``Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone'' and behind-the-scenes footage including a rare interview with J.K. Rowling, author of the Harry Potter books.

Consumers have come to expect these kinds of bonuses when major films such as ``Potter,'' ``The Lord of the Rings'' and the ``Star Wars'' series come to home video. That wealth of additional material has helped drive DVD sales to unprecedented heights in the past year.

The trend has resulted in filmmakers gaining immense post-theatrical release creative freedom, no longer reined in by running time or test audience surveys. It also has filled studio coffers with far bigger profits from a popular title than in the past.

``On the major hot releases, the extras add extraordinary value to the product,'' said Bo Andersen, president of the Video Software Dealers Association. ``People like the deleted or extended scenes and the behind- the-scenes elements the most.''

Interviews with a film's stars is another favorite while such other standard extras as directors commentaries, theatrical trailers and story boards have proven to be among the least-popular extras, according to a survey conducted last year by the VSDA.

The latest Potter release is an ambitious one that requires a DVD guide to lead the viewer through the slew of features. The voice-overs also have been prepared in 27 different languages for international distribution, according to Paul Hemstreet, vice president of DVD special features for Warner Home Video.

``I think people who haven't seen a DVD of this magnitude will be blown away,'' said Hemstreet, who also is the producer of the DVD. ``The bar is higher for 'Harry Potter' in that it's an incredible title to work with. There's so many opportunities to be creative so it receives special treatment.''

For films with cult followings such as the ``Potter'' and ``Rings'' franchises, Andersen said they could come with ``15 hours of product'' on the DVD and it wouldn't be enough for die-hard fans.

This has given filmmakers like ``Rings'' director Peter Jackson an opportunity to return to the editing room after the theatrical version of the film is released to work on either an extended DVD version of the movie or on DVD extras that help to explain their vision of the film.

``It means that favorite scenes that have no place in the theatrical version can be seen and enjoyed by people,'' Jackson said. ``So long as you don't abuse it and put it on just to do it. You better make sure that if you have deleted scenes that they are actually worth putting in and we certainly don't put in everything that we have, everything that we shot. We just put in scenes that we think are helpful to people who want to learn a little more about the background of the story.''

After ``Fellowship of the Ring'' was initially released, a longer version of the movie never seen in theaters came out in a four-disc boxed set that was snapped up by fans last Christmas.

Jackson is working on the DVD version of the second ``Rings'' film ``The Two Towers'' and also is in the process of editing the third film in the trilogy, ``Return of the King,'' to be released in December.

As far as the DVD version of the third film, Jackson said he has no idea what will be on it.

``You actually never know what you are leaving out until you actually finish the cut,'' he said. ``It's not really predictable.''

Jackson said that when he first became a director, he had no idea that DVD would give him such additional creative opportunities.

``There was a finality to the process when you finished the movie and everything else remained in some archive in a vault and it would never see the light of day,'' he said. ``Now, good scenes that are worth seeing can be seen.''

Director Ron Howard, whose film ``Apollo 13'' was recently re-released in a deluxe DVD version, said that while he has final cut on all of his films, he has come to embrace the practice of bonus material.

``Sometimes there's behind the scenes footage or they'll be certain angles or aspects of the film from the prep period where I'll think, That could be interesting for the DVD,'' Howard said. ``I'll keep in mind some really good scenes that were left out, that I cut out. I was able to put them on (the DVD) and explain why I left them out.''

And it will be more than the die-hard fan that will see those bonus materials with DVD players now in more than 40 million households nationwide and shipments of DVD titles hitting 685 million units last year. In addition, the biggest revolution in the home video industry in the past 12 months has been the surge in the purchasing of DVD movies by consumers.

Howard, whose other film credits include the Academy Award-winning ``A Beautiful Mind,'' fully understands the appeal.

``I'm a fan of DVD,'' he said. ``The editors, myself and all of us around the process, we're all collectors now, too, so we're looking for interesting things.

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(color) The much-awaited ``Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets'' DVD will be packed with extra features.