The Dark Knight: First Hollywood Film Made in IMAX

[Woochifer]

Already started a thread on this in the Favorite Films forum, but I wanted to post IMAX's press release. This is a milestone because The Dark Knight is the first studio movie to use IMAX cameras and the large format 70mm/15 perf film stock to film major scenes (about 20% of the movie). IMAX screenings of The Dark Knight will actually project the scenes filmed with the IMAX cameras onto the full height and width of the IMAX screen.

http://www.imax.com/ImaxWeb/filmDeta...D=code__.__448

THE DARK KNIGHT: THE IMAX EXPERIENCE, from Warner Bros. Pictures, will feature six sequences filmed with IMAX® cameras. This marks the first time ever that a major feature film has been even partially shot using IMAX cameras, marking a revolutionary integration of the two film formats.

The follow-up to the action hit BATMAN BEGINS, THE DARK KNIGHT reunites director Christopher Nolan and star Christian Bale, who reprises the role of Batman/Bruce Wayne. In the new film, Batman raises the stakes in his war on crime. With the help of Lieutenant Jim Gordon and District Attorney Harvey Dent, Batman sets out to dismantle the remaining criminal organizations that plague the city streets. The partnership proves to be effective, but they soon find themselves prey to a reign of chaos unleashed by a rising criminal mastermind known to the terrified citizens of Gotham as The Joker.

THE DARK KNIGHT: THE IMAX EXPERIENCE will be distributed exclusively by Warner Bros. Pictures.

[pixelthis]

Settle down, its only 20%.
And other movies have been shown in Imax theaters.
STILL, PROGRESS, even tho Imax is a limited audience.
THE BIG QUESTION is how to get one of those IMAX doohickeys in my house?
Heres a still from the movie, doesnt look all that high tech to me

[Sir Terrence the Terrible]

Settle down, its only 20%.
And other movies have been shown in Imax theaters.
STILL, PROGRESS, even tho Imax is a limited audience.
THE BIG QUESTION is how to get one of those IMAX doohickeys in my house?
Heres a still from the movie, doesnt look all that high tech to me

That picture is from the wrong Batman movie brightness.

No major Hollywood movie that has been shown in IMAX theaters was made with IMAX camera's and film stock.

IMAX presentations of Hollywood movies is the fastest growing revenue stream for the studios, so its not all that small of a market.

You need to catch up on your facts pixie, you are falling behind.(as usual)

[Woochifer]

No major Hollywood movie that has been shown in IMAX theaters was made with IMAX camera's and film stock.

Yep, this is a huge deal. I mean, film buffs go nuts whenever they see a 70mm presentation of a movie shot in 70mm like Lawrence of Arabia, and here we have a major studio movie using a film format with even higher resolution than any of those earlier 70mm formats.

With much of the industry transitioning over to digital cameras and DLP projectors (both of which still have lower resolution than even 35mm film) basically to save money, there's just no way that we will see a return to full blown large format movie production/exhibition. No movie has been shot in 70mm since 1992's Far and Away and no new theatrical releases have come out with 70mm prints since 1997 and Titanic.

That said, I think Christopher Nolan might be onto something by filming only selected scenes like the action pieces and aerial work using the IMAX cameras. It costs less and is less cumbersome than filming the entire movie in IMAX. Yet, for those scenes it provides higher resolution and less grain for the 35mm prints, and it provides the opportunity for some jaw dropping images for IMAX audiences when those scenes get projected onto the full height and width of the IMAX screen. Basically, it helps sell tickets and sell tickets for IMAX presentations in particular.

I've never seen this kind of buzz surrounding an IMAX release. When the six-minute Dark Knight IMAX trailer accompanied the IMAX release of I Am Legend, people were going for repeat showings just so they could see The Dark Knight trailer again. The movie itself it getting all sorts of hype, but there's also a lot getting written up about the IMAX scenes (no surprise that Warner has smartly held most of its press screenings at IMAX theaters).

IMAX presentations of Hollywood movies is the fastest growing revenue stream for the studios, so its not all that small of a market.

The Dark Knight as of LAST WEEK, before any of the reviews came out, had already presold $2 million worth of tickets just on the IMAX screens. From just checking around the web, nearly all of the weekend evening IMAX screenings are already sold out. On a per screen basis, IMAX presentations will generate anywhere from 2X to 5X more ticket receipts than a regular theater.

[techjunkie]

Yep, this is a huge deal. I mean, film buffs go nuts whenever they see a 70mm presentation of a movie shot in 70mm like Lawrence of Arabia, and here we have a major studio movie using a film format with even higher resolution than any of those earlier 70mm formats.

With much of the industry transitioning over to digital cameras and DLP projectors (both of which still have lower resolution than even 35mm film) basically to save money, there's just no way that we will see a return to full blown large format movie production/exhibition. No movie has been shot in 70mm since 1992's Far and Away and no new theatrical releases have come out with 70mm prints since 1997 and Titanic.

They're actually moving towards being digital instead of using the huge cumbersome film that they currently use. It eliminates the large (understatement) film reels they currently use and of course much better film distribution.

IMAX is developing a digital IMAX system that will provide consumers with the premium IMAX experience they have come to know, value and expect. It is scheduled to be launched in June 2008.

[Woochifer]

They're actually moving towards being digital instead of using the huge cumbersome film that they currently use. It eliminates the large (understatement) film reels they currently use and of course much better film distribution.

Bottomline though is that it lowers costs by eliminating the need to produce 35mm prints, once the theater amortizes the cost for the digital projection system, which can in turn also be used for other revenue-generating events like live sports and concerts, and corporate meetings. Good for the bottomline -- step backwards for presentation quality.

IMAX is developing a digital IMAX system that will provide consumers with the premium IMAX experience they have come to know, value and expect. It is scheduled to be launched in June 2008.

IMAX has been talking about this since about 2000 when they were displaying projector mockups with TI and JVC. Sounds more like a cost-cutting measure in order to sign up more theater owners (many of whom have been resistant to the high 70mm/15 print costs). I'm afraid that it will dumb down the experience that IMAX currently delivers, because even 4k DLP projectors still use a lower resolution than 35mm film (and most DLP theater projectors use 2k resolution).

That's still nowhere near the resolution of IMAX's 70/15 film format, and DLP projection in my experience already looks substandard on a 60' wide screen, while IMAX screens can be about 90' wide. Unless TI and IMAX have developed a more advanced projection system, I can't see this move as doing anything other than trading mediocrity for market share. Thankfully, it will be nearly two years before IMAX completes this transition.

[pixelthis]

That picture is from the wrong Batman movie brightness.

No major Hollywood movie that has been shown in IMAX theaters was made with IMAX camera's and film stock.

IMAX presentations of Hollywood movies is the fastest growing revenue stream for the studios, so its not all that small of a market.

You need to catch up on your facts pixie, you are falling behind.(as usual)

I'm falling behind!
Do you have any sense of humour whatsoever?
I mean, at all?

[Sir Terrence the Terrible]

I'm falling behind!
Do you have any sense of humour whatsoever?
I mean, at all?

I guess I do since I have been laughing at your lame responses for almost a year.