May 4, 2021—The giant screen world owes much to Apollo 11 astronaut Michael Collins, who oversaw the construction and was the first director of the National Air and Space Museum, and who suggested to
IMAX
co-founder Graeme Ferguson that they should fly their camera in space. Joe Kleiman profiles this visionary and humble hero in
May 3, 2021—Promising news for the giant screen industry? As vaccines roll out, restrictions lift, and theaters reopen, audiences have been willing to pay more for an enhanced experience because—after a year stuck at home—"why do the ordinary?" The expanding appetite for an enhanced theatrical experience has given the film and exhibition business a shot of confidence and a weapon against streamers amid devastation caused by the pandemic. Read the full article from The Hollywood Reporter here.
April 19, 2021—The Giant Screen Cinema Association (GSCA) Event Planning Committee and Board of Directors have made a unanimous decision to hold the GSCA 2021 International Conference virtually later this year. Dates are yet to be determined but likely the virtual conference will be held in September, when the conference is traditionally held in person. While we are all eager to get together in person, it is prudent to make this decision now to allow planning to begin.
April 15, 2021—The Giant Screen Cinema Association (GSCA) is pleased to
announce Evans & Sutherland, a Cosm Company, as the exclusive
Partner Sponsor for Virtual Film Expo 2021, April 19–23. Evans
& Sutherland (E&S) is a committed supporter of GSCA, and
believes their major contribution to the Virtual Film Expo is an
important step in helping the Association grow and advance the industry.
As GSCA theaters adapt to the challenges of Coronavirus worldwide,
E&S is investing in the future success of Giant Screen theaters and
innovative technologies that will impact long-term success.
April 14, 2021—The historic Cinerama Dome in Hollywood—in addition to ArcLight Cinemas and Pacific Theatres—will close for good because of unrecoverable pandemic-year losses. Read the full Hollywood Reporter article about the Cinerama closing here.
March 30, 2021–IMAX Corporation (NYSE: IMAX) today announced that
Bradley Wechsler has notified the Company he will step down as Chairman
of the Board of IMAX at the Company's annual shareholders meeting (AGM)
on June 9, 2021, after nearly 30 years of service to the Company. IMAX's
Board of Directors will select a new Chairman to be announced shortly
after the Company's AGM. Mr. Wechsler has been Chairman or Co-Chairman
of IMAX's board since 1994 when he and Richard L. Gelfond acquired the
Company. Mr. Wechsler and Mr. Gelfond served as Co-Chief Executive
Officers from 1996 to 2009 when Mr. Gelfond took on the role of sole
CEO.
March 29, 2021—Our sincerest condolences to the family, friends, and colleagues of filmmaker and IMAX pioneer Phyllis Ferguson, who passed away on March 12. Phyllis was the beloved wife and creative partner of IMAX co-founder Graeme Ferguson. Graeme, Phyllis and Toni Myers led the IMAX Space Team in its pioneering achievement in chronicling the space shuttle era. Her IMAX credits include Hail Columbia!, The Dream is Alive, Blue Planet and Destiny in Space. "To me she was the glue that held the IMAX Space Team and the NASA 'extended family' together," says Bill Readdy, former astronaut and associate administrator of NASA's Space Flight office. Read more about her remarkable life and brilliant career here: https://legcy.co/2PFLRf3
March 5, 2021—Congratulations to Backyard Wilderness on winning People & Forest: Long Form in the Jackson Wild World Wildlife Day Film Showcase. The Secretariat of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), Jackson Wild, and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) teamed up to organize an international film showcase focusing on the immense value of our planet’s forests, their extensive ecosystem services and the millions of human livelihoods they sustain. The festival featured over 275 films from all over the world. Backyard Wilderness is produced by Archipelago Films, Arise Media, HHMI Tangled Bank Studios, SK Films and Reconsider. The film is distributed by SK Films. See a list of all the winning films and nominees here
March 2, 2021—One of the key figures in the planetarium community throughout the world will have a road named in his honour. The access road to the Queen Elizabeth II Planetarium, in Edmonton's Coronation Park, will be renamed Ian McLennan Way. The Queen Elizabeth II Planetarium (QEP) will be reopening in 2021. The planetarium has the distinction of being the first public planetarium in Canada, when it originally opened on September 22, 1960, and has been declared an historic site by the City of Edmonton. Read the full article from Telus World of Science-Edmonton here.
March 2, 2021—Asteroid Hunters, produced by IMAX Entertainment and Huahuang Pictures, has been nominated by the Visual Effects Society for Outstanding Visual Effects in a Special Venue Project. The awards program will stream on April 6. Click here for a full list of the VES nominees