Note: This is an essay I wrote for school. Enjoy!


The New Era of Cinema


“Luke…I am your father.” (Star Wars) “I’ll be back.” (Terminator) “Toto, I don’t think we’re in Kansas anymore.” (The Wizard of Oz) “My name is Indigo Montoya. You have killed my father. Prepare to die.” (The Princess Bride).” These quotes, among many others, have graced the silver screen across the world for years. Since December 26th, 1906 when the first full length film The Story of Kelly Gang hit theaters, movies have provided entertainment for millions of people. Movies such as the “James Bond” series, “Titanic”, “It’s a Wonderful Life”, and the new “Harry Potter” series has provided us with new realms of creativity that are now a large part of America’s pop culture. I myself am a movie critic that writes for the local paper and have been fascinated by movies for years. One of the things that I love to think about is the future of cinema and all the great things we have waiting for us as the science of cinematography evolves. Luckily for us, science is helping us advance how we can access cinema in a variety of ways. Most people have heard of the big screen experience known as IMAX and the ever so popular 3-D and 4-D technology. These are being upgraded quickly in the world and will soon add many possibilities for us to experience the wonderful world of cinema.
Back in 1967 at EXPO in Montreal, Canada, a group of Canadian filmmakers designed a new system using a single, powerful projector which resulted in the IMAX motion picture system. We have only just recently seen Hollywood films in IMAX screens. In fact, the first Hollywood film to be released in IMAX theaters was in 2003 when “The Matrix Revolutions” was released. IMAX theaters are designed to take viewers to the most immersive movie experience.
Clear images, digital sound, and theater geometry work together to create the IMAX Experience. The screens themselves are measured at 22m x 16.1m and are positioned to broaden the viewer’s vision. They normally stretch form wall to wall and floor to ceiling. The screens are also punctured with thousands of tiny holes to allow sound to pass through. The audio system itself is much more advanced than that of a normal theater. According to IMAX.com, their Proportional Point Source technology allows, “Sound to be clear enough to hear a pin drop and accurate enough to know exactly where it dropped.” The sound itself works through a six-channel sound system that isn’t part of the movie (normal films have the score worked in with the film). IMAX is played on a Digital Theater Audio Control system. The soundtrack is a single audio file that has six channels which are taken directly to amplifiers which are located behind the screen (which is why the holes are punctured into them). The projection system is custom built for the large screens and runs at 24 frames-per-second. For these projectors, more powerful lights must also be created so that projection can be carried out correctly. IMAX uses dual digital projectors to create “The IMAX Experience.”
3-D viewing is very popular in theme park attractions but has recently started working its way into movies. Most know how this technology works: each lens on 3-D glasses filters out different light and two projectors have different polarized filters projecting the images on screen making it seem like objects on the screen are coming towards us. This effect is growing to be more complex and the future of 3-D is truly astounding. Not only will 3-D be incorporated more into films but soon the technology will be available to us at home! You read it right, Sony, Samsung, and Panasonic are already working on home 3-D technology. Soon, instead of HDTV’s, there will be HDTV with 3-D compatibility. In fact, Sony and Panasonic have promised to release this state-of-the-art technology in 2010. I can’t wait until I can watch my favorite sporting events in 3-D so that when the football players get tackled, the grass, dirt, and players come rolling in our faces. Now that’s the intensity I’m sure every man wants to see.
Our next entertainment cash-cow is mostly confined to theme parks and that is the exciting 4-D. 4-D always adds fun to the show you’re experiencing. Things that happen in a 4-D presentation include smell sprays, seat vibrations, 3-D, and air being blown at you. 4-D interacts with all the senses. But now, as science is growing, 4-D is beginning to creep into normal movie theaters. This first happened in April of this year when The Fast and the Furious was released. During the film viewers would have the chance to sit in a chair called the D-Box which allows the viewer to control their seat’s movements on a variety of levels. There are four levels that control how the seat moves. The chair can either rumble gently, the middle setting jerks, bounces, and swerves, and the top level swerves hard tilts, and bounced a lot just like a theme park attraction. The last level simply turns the seat off. This is just a taste of what we can look forward to in the future.
Science is creating many possibilities for the future of cinema. Soon, 3-D, 4-D, and IMAX could come together to create amazing enjoyment for viewers. Perhaps one day, a family that is too poor to travel to the rainforest can go to the theater where the mist, the smells, and the animals can reach out to them and make them feel like they’re in the Amazon. Maybe 3-D will help doctors better perform surgeries by allowing them to see things more clearly threw a former technology. There are many areas of science that these technologies can benefit and I can’t wait to witness what the future has in store. We may agree with Schwarzenegger sooner than later as we say “Haste la vista, baby,” to today’s entertainment technology.