How IMAX 70MM Film is Projected!
The video provides a behind-the-scenes look at IMAX's film projection process, showing how massive 70mm film reels are assembled, spliced, and threaded through custom equipment. The tour demonstrates the incredible scale and weight involved in handling IMAX prints compared to standard 35mm film.
Summary
This video takes viewers on a comprehensive tour of IMAX's Los Angeles headquarters, specifically focusing on their film handling and projection processes. The tour begins by explaining that IMAX 70mm film runs horizontally through projectors and uses 15 perforations per frame (15 PF), creating images almost 10 times larger than standard 35mm film frames. The video showcases the print assembly room where technicians like Irving, who has worked there for 33 years, splice together film reels that can weigh more than a person. The process involves finding specific scenes within massive daily reels containing up to 100 different shots, using specialized equipment that has been in service for over 35 years. The film handling requires custom-built machinery and significant physical infrastructure, with reels traveling 30 feet up to projection booths and back down again. The David Keely Theater booth features three sets of projectors - one film and two digital systems - mounted on rails for quick transitions between different projection types. For 3D movies, the entire heavy reel system is duplicated for left-eye and right-eye projection. The video concludes with the preparation for a director's screening of dailies, emphasizing how the massive scale of the operation creates an intoxicating viewing experience.
Key Insights
- IMAX 70mm film creates images almost 10 times the size of standard 35mm film frames because it runs horizontally through the projector with 15 perforations per frame
- Irving has touched almost every print that has come through IMAX in his 33 years there, and the facility keeps records of every single reel screened dating back to the 1980s
- IMAX film travels at 337 feet per minute compared to 90 feet per minute for 35mm film, making an hour of 35mm film equivalent to about a mile of footage
- For 3D movies, IMAX uses double the entire heavy reel system with separate gigantic prints for left eye and right eye projection
- The David Keely Theater uses a rail system with three sets of projectors that allows them to transition from digital to film projection in just 5 minutes
Topics
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