Thursday, September 07, 2006

SUPERMAN BATTLES HIS WAY TO AT-BRISTOL IN 3D

Superman Returns: An IMAX 3D Experience to open on 9 September 2006
Superman has landed again, but this time, bigger and better!

From 9 September the IMAX Theatre-At-Bristol will be showing the IMAX 3D version of Superman Returns on its giant screen! It will be the first time that the superhero can be seen in 3D by moviegoers in the South West.

"We are thrilled to be able to bring this film to movie fans in Bristol" says Simon Jones, IMAX Manager. "There are only a limited number of copies of the IMAX version of Superman Returns in the world and the team has worked extremely hard since its launch to negotiate for it to be screened here in At-Bristol."

Superman Returns was launched in regular cinema throughout the UK in July but this is the first time the film can be seen in IMAX 3D outside of London and Manchester.

"There is a massive difference between seeing the film in the regular cinema and getting the full IMAX experience" says Simon.

"The giant screen is designed to make you feel that you are being drawn into the action and when you add the 3D sequences it really is the ultimate movie experience. This is the most talked about cinematic experience of the year, if you have already seen this film in the regular cinema and enjoyed it, then you have to see it in IMAX 3D. If you haven't seen the film already then this really is a must!" Simon adds.

"The scenes that have been converted into IMAX 3D look, sound and feel absolutely amazing," adds Bryan Singer, Director of Superman Returns. "The magic of IMAX 3D will envelop audiences in this story, enabling them to feel the emotion, drama and suspense in a completely new and unique way."

The film is the world's first live-action Hollywood feature to be converted to IMAX format and contain selected scenes in 3D. Four separate sequences of the film, approximately 20 minutes, have been transformed into IMAX 3D. Scenes were selected that make the most of the 3D effects, and they will transport moviegoers into the film to experience the action, drama and wonder of the world of Superman as never before.

IMAX 3D moments include Superman saving citizens from imminent disaster and a majestic flying sequence where audiences will feel as though they are soaring right beside the super hero himself. Special on-screen cues will alert moviegoers when to put the 3D glasses on and take them off.

To be able to cope with the switch between regular 2D and the 3D sequences some technical adjustments are going to have to be made to the system and the IMAX Theatre will be closed for three days to allow for this.

"This is not something that we really wanted to do but live action 3D really is the way forward and so we have made the decision that this is a necessary step to take." Says Simon.

IMAX Theatre-At-Bristol will be closed to the public on 6, 7 and 8 September 2006 for the upgrade.

For information on tickets and showtimes, please call 0845 345 1235 or visit At-Bristol's website at http://www.at-bristol.org.uk/IMAX/default.htm.

Following a mysterious absence of several years, the Man of Steel comes back to Earth in the epic action-adventure Superman Returns, a soaring new chapter in the saga of one of the world's most beloved superheroes.

While an old enemy plots to render him powerless once and for all, Superman faces the heartbreaking realization that the woman he loves, Lois Lane, has moved on with her life. Or has she? Superman's bittersweet return challenges him to bridge the distance between them while finding a place in a society that has learned to survive without him. In an attempt to protect the world he loves from cataclysmic destruction, Superman embarks on an epic journey of redemption that takes him from the depths of the ocean to the far reaches of outer space.

Wednesday, September 06, 2006

Norwich Animation festival

Norwich journeys beyond animation with its boldest festival yet, from 18 - 21 October

Expanded, refreshed and emboldened, Norwich International Animation Festival returns for 2006 with a trailblazing programme which ventures further still from ‘traditional’ film festival territory to embrace live art, generative work and artists’ film, eroding yet further the myth that animation is about cartoons alone.

This year’s festival theme, ‘Re-vision’, looks at reappropriation – the found, twisted and mashed-up in animation and the wider moving image. Highlights include retrospectives of leading animation directors Igor Kovalyov, Priit Parn and Koji Yamamura, a wide-ranging tribute to auteur Walerian Borowczyk, featuring rarely-screened films alongside special events with the Brothers Quay, Andrzej Klimowski and others, and a unique one-day symposium with filmmakers Bill Morrison ('Decasia'), Frank Mouris ('Frank Film') and Robert Bradbrook ('Home Road Movies'); generative artists Leonardo Solaas and Marius Watz; and leading theorist Steve Reinke.

To take over where film screenings finish, the new Lounge strand features live performance each night, with AV pioneers The Light Surgeons, German film artist Jürgen Reble and sound artist Thomas Köner and more - and installation work including Leonardo Solaas' Dreamlines, Ben Rivers' House and The Harrachov Exchange shows throughout the festival.

More information available at www.niaf.org.uk