IMAX Digital

This summer, IMAX will take the largest step in their 40-year history of providing large-format presentations—the first commercial deployment of their new digital system, known simply as IMAX Digital. In July, three AMC theatres in the Washington, DC area will debut the new format. Following the DC installations, three more systems will be deployed in the Philadelphia area, with a target of 45 IMAX Digital systems expected to be installed in North America by the end of the 2008.

Since its announcement in the fall of 2007, IMAX has secured commitments from exhibitors for over 200 IMAX Digital installations. In the United States, AMC Theatres and Regal Cinemas are planning 100 and 35 installations, respectively. Latin America, China (Wanda Cinema Group) and Russia have committed to 35, 10 and three sites, respectively. Undoubtedly, more will follow as large-format IMAX has now become an attractive option for mainstream exhibitors.

The Road to IMAX Digital
IMAX started as a single installation at EXPO ’67 in Montreal, Canada. Using 70mm film in a unique horizontal 15-perforation 70mm frame (commonly known as 15/70), along with special projectors, lenses, screens and auditorium geometry, IMAX quickly developed the reputation as the ultimate in film projection with its full field-of-view immersive image.

Due to the fairly high price of the specialized equipment, and an initial limitation on length to around 40 minutes, the process was ideally suited for special venues such as expos and science parks. It took a number of separate innovations in the 15/70 process before IMAX could be used with theatrical content and within reach of most exhibitors.

The first was 3D. In 1986, IMAX launched its first 3D installation at EXPO ’86 in Vancouver, Canada. The original IMAX 3D process used dual 15/70 films simultaneously projected in a behemoth projector with active—and somewhat bulky—shuttered glasses. Over the years, IMAX has refined their 3D process, now offering the more user-friendly option of polarized images viewed using lightweight passive eyewear.

The second innovation, coming in early 2002, was IMAX DMR. IMAX DMR, simply put, is a post-production process to adapt Hollywood content—mostly shot on 35mm film—to the larger 15/70 frame and IMAX screen, with minimal loss in the image quality expected with the larger 15/70 format. The original theatrical elements are precisely scanned using IMAX’s proprietary technology to capture and enhance the image for the IMAX screen. The digital images are then recorded back to 15/70 film for IMAX projection. IMAX DMR, along with newer projectors, allowed full-length features intended for release on 35mm film to be played in 15/70 in standard IMAX theatres.

Although the IMAX DMR process provides the means to get Hollywood content into the IMAX pipeline, the construction cost of an IMAX theatre is considerable compared to that of a conventional 35mm auditorium. To help resolve this, the third innovation, coming in 2003, was the IMAX MPX theatre configuration. IMAX MPX is a specific auditorium design that allows conventional multiplex operators to convert the space used by two conventional 35mm auditoriums into one IMAX auditorium. When compared with conventional 35mm auditoriums of the same number of seats, the IMAX MPX screen is approximately 20% larger, but due its closer proximity to the seating area, the apparent size to the viewer is approximately 200% greater than with a conventional screen.

IMAX Digital
IMAX Digital is built on all the previously developed IMAX technologies—3D, large-format feature-length content, and lower-cost theatre designs—with the intention of bringing the same immersive IMAX experience within the reach of mainstream exhibitors. By replacing the previous 15/70 film format with an all-new digital path including a custom-designed digital projection system based on the latest generation of Texas Instruments’ DLP Cinema technology, IMAX Digital provides the most cost-effective implementation yet.

IMAX Digital is built on top of a foundation of the DCI digital specifications and as such will be DCI-compliant. For instance, IMAX Digital uses the DCI security system, KDMs, and will play standard DCI-specified digital-cinema packages (DCPs). When used with IMAX-specific content, special control metadata in the IMAX package automatically enables the enhanced and unique aspects of the IMAX format, pushing the performance up to the IMAX standards.

IMAX Digital currently uses two Christie-manufactured DLP Cinema projectors, although the company plans to remain technology- and vendor-agnostic to allow progressive improvements as new technologies and products become available. The two projectors are used in a unique configuration: The two images are pre-processed and projected superimposed on each other in a way that increases the image’s fidelity and quality. The light levels are set to 22FL, considerably brighter than the 14FL used in conventional auditoriums.

The projectors are fitted with special IMAX-developed lenses that are specifically designed to complement the IMAX MPX theatre’s geometry. IMAX has developed a proprietary closed-loop alignment system using a camera that will automatically keep the projectors precisely aligned and balanced.

Imax Digital in 3D uses both projectors to continuously overlay the left and right eye images without the time-sequential triple-flashing required in single-projector solutions. IMAX digital 3D uses circular polarized passive glasses with a proprietary silver screen.

IMAX Digital, much like the 15/70 film version, is a complete end-to-end system, where each element, process and piece of equipment has been designed and optimized to deliver the large-screen IMAX experience.

IMAX Today and Tomorrow
Currently, the IMAX theatre network consists of approximately 300 theatres in 40 countries. Approximately 60% of the theatres are located in North America, while the remaining 40% are spread internationally. Roughly half of the theatres are using the IMAX MPX auditorium configuration. The other half, including special venues such as parks, museums and science centers, are using the original IMAX 15/70 design. Approximately half of the IMAX theatres are equipped with IMAX 3D technology.

Beginning with a strong studio relationship with over 16 titles from Warner Bros., IMAX has recently secured a five-title commitment from DreamWorks. More than 20 of Hollywood’s biggest blockbusters have been digitally remastered and released in the IMAX format, box-office hits such as The Polar Express, Spider-Man 3, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Transformers, Beowulf, I Am Legend, The Spiderwick Chronicles, Speed Racer and Kung Fu Panda. For the future, IMAX has The Dark Knight, Under the Sea 3D, Monsters vs. Aliens 3D (March 2009), How to Train Your Dragon 3D, Hubble 3D, Shrek Goes Fourth 3D, and more on the way.

By Bill Mead, FilmJournal International