GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — The elusive 70-millimeter print of Christopher Nolan’s blockbuster historical epic was damaged slightly Thursday during a screening of the film at Grand Rapids Celebration Cinema North theater.
The cinema is playing the digital IMAX film version until they are able to replace a 70-millimeter section.
Jesse Forquer tells FOX 17 that the director of technology at Celebration, “basically, what happened was that the print jumped off its tracks and caused some damage to it.”
Massive reels of tape that contain Oppenheimer To fit onto an IMAX plate, 3D-printed custom extender parts had to be created.
Forquer said they have already started working on replacing this section of film, so that they can continue to screen the 70 millimeter version as quickly as possible.
It’s not likely that they will get the new section before Friday.
Forquer said, “We believe only one out of 52 reels was damaged on Thursday.”
Celebration plans to announce on social media when they will get the new section.
The elusive 70-millimeter cut of OPPENHEIMER
FOX 17 received a rare look behind-the scenes of the IMAX film.
The reels weigh more than 600 pounds when they are assembled on a projection platter.
“It is roughly 11 miles long,” Forquer said last Wednesday.
Imagine the distance between here and there [GR North] to about the Grand Rapids airport when it’s fully unrolled.”
It is a huge undertaking to screen this film in 2023. The majority of films today are distributed digitally.
“Normally, now in our digital age, we get a movie that we almost download like a computer file, and we ingest it into our projector network, our theater management system, and then that distributes that content out to our projectors,” Forquer explained.
The IMAX Screen at Celebration Cinema Grand Rapids North stands 52 feet high by 70 feet wide. This special version of Oppenheimer The entire space on the screen is filled.
A 70-millimeter-wide frame is about 10 times larger than the standard frame.
Visit their website to find out the latest information on IMAX tickets and future screenings.
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