North America's Largest IMAX will be 2K

[Andrew Patterson]

You can read the press release below. My brother works for this theater chain, which has gotten a lot of things right. They have 100% digital projection, No Advertisements Before Movies or anywhere in the Theater. They have balcony bar and restaurant services -- in other words, they have figured out a way to create an "Experience" at the movies.

But he was at this press announcement on Tuesday and they straight up told him afterward that for the IMAX, they would be installing the same 2K Christie Projectors they have in the rest of the theater. The head of Projection for the the company said, "There was not enough 4K Content to justify a 4K Projector."

This comment blew my mind, because it shows the breakdown between the people that create the content and the people who exhibit it.

Jim, get them a RED 4K Projector FAST!

WARREN THEATERS IMAX PRESS RELEASE:
(Moore, OK) – Warren Theatres announced that it will begin construction of
a new IMAX® at their theatre complex in Moore, Oklahoma. The new IMAX will be
purpose-built, from the ground up.

The Warren IMAX will be a world class version of the famous entertainment
company’s immersive movie presentation technology. “We want people to have
the best movie experience possible when they come to a Warren Theatre. And
that’s how we’re approaching this new IMAX – we want it to be the best and
biggest IMAX anywhere,” said Warren Theatres president Bill Warren.

Warren Theatres will invest up to $10 million in IMAX construction and equipment.
The IMAX theatre is expected to bring thousands of people to the area to see first
run movies as well as IMAX educational products for school-related activities.

The Warren Moore World Class IMAX will very similar to the Warren IMAX in
Wichita, which has ranked number one in IMAX attendance in all of North America
since it’s opening in December of 2010. The IMAX is scheduled to open in
December, 2011 with the new “Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol” in IMAX® 3D
slated as the opening feature.

 

[Ketch Rossi]

Our IMAX style Theater in the KETCH ROSSi STUDiOS across most locations, will no doubt have a 4K system, anything less at this stage of the game is simply insanity...

 

[Robert Frank]

Our IMAX style Theater in the KETCH ROSSi STUDiOS across most locations, will no doubt have a 4K system, anything less at this stage of the game is simply insanity...

I agree Ketch.

I can see a smaller facility trying to cut costs but if you're building a new high-end facility why would anyone use outdated technology, especially a new "state of the art" IMAX Theater?

 

[michael zaletel]

There really isn't enough 4K content yet to justify a 4K projector. My guess is that at this stage in the game, it is not a matter of the extra cost of the 4K projector but perhaps the features, support, accessories, I/O or something other factor that makes some 2K projectors better than any 4K projector for projecting 2K in that environment. It's sort of like if you only need 1080p because you are authoring time-sensitive content (no need for future use) straight to Blu-Ray or something, there is no point in using a RED when there are many cameras that offer other features useful for that environment even if more expensive than a RED.

Right?

-michael zaletel

 

[AnthonyFlores]

It might also be because of the 3D aspect, with 3D projection technology lagging behind and not yet ready for 4K ... but I agree with Ketch, Jim and most here -- better to leave the 4k option open so as not to get locked into the past at a later date.

 

[Robert Frank]

I confess to being somewhat uneducated at this point to projector technology.

If you have 2K content are you unable to use a 4k projector with it?

 

[Michael Hastings]

I confess to being somewhat uneducated at this point to projector technology.

If you have 2K content are you unable to use a 4k projector with it?

No, you can scale to 4K just like HD video players can scale SD material to HDTVs.

I would also point out that presumably if you spend 10million on a facility, most of that is real estate and theater build out and you can upgrade to 4K projectors when it is necessary.

 

[Tom Lowe]

Lol at 2K.

 

[Ketch Rossi]

4K projectros can project 2k, 2k projectors wil never be able to project 4K, so much for future proofing their investment...

 

[AndrewThomas]

The projector is a very small part of the cost of building these theaters, but even so they would be better served installing 2k projectors now given the price, quality and reliability as most films are still finishing in 2k. I mean, how many of Hollywood's flicks have finished in 4k, much less Red shot productions that have done so? In the future when high quality 4k-3D capable projectors are the norm, these theaters can make the switch.

 

[Tim Hole]

IMAX are stuck to their 2K philosophy. They have tried it with 4K projectors but test screening showed that no-one noticed the difference between the two systems (This is from internal rather than customer based blurb). They utilise their in-house DMR system to blow up images and it is a nicely refined toolset that is very effective.

They have got something that no-one is allowed to replicate. Only IMAX are allowed to utilise the curved screen and the projector configuration. They have strict quality control to maintain their standards. They have let seating arrangements slide a little in order to accommodate more IMAX Experience theatres but that's about it. I only wish that the other digital standards were that high. Their brand is known and they have it made.

 

[Anthony Rinaldi]

Maybe its because of my vicinity to the Science Museum of Virginia, but whenever I hear IMAX, all I can think of is the IMAX Dome. Going there as a kid, seeing the control room with the giant reels of giant film were always so exciting! I know I wouldn't want to see 2k on such a giant screen... I just saw my first IMAX 3D film a few months ago, and aside from the 3D actually working compared to the theater I normally go to, it didn't feel much different than a normal film.

 

[Jerrod Cordell]

Yeah I'm a little disappointed with IMAX lately. I used to have the same experience with the dome theaters at the science center, but a few of my local theaters have "IMAX" now and the screen is just a tad bit bigger than a regular screen. Shoot when "The Dark Knight" came out I saw it at an IMAX theater and a regular theater and I liked it better in the regular theater.

 

[Wayne Morellini]

I went to a VMax screen locally to try it out, which I guess is the same as the imax 2K you guys are talking about, steeply steeped seating moderate screen size (the woman was trying to sell me on how huge the screen was to justify the price and i told her that the true imax screen in Sydney is supposed to be something like seven stories high).

It was a digital projector, i think the first i have seen locally (even though they had a international digital cinema conference in that cinema 3 or 4 years back. colors and brightness were nice, and the lack of grain great, though blacks were poorish. 3d worked better than normal (i have diuble vision problems with many 3d content). now the interesting stuff, the previews of the latest pirates of the carribean movie shot on red, was nice, i noticed the color just jumped out like my tv, greens were lifey and picture was good. i know that for most people around here is used to this but it is rare for me.