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Author Topic: Imax fails to Sell Mark Gulbrandsen Resident Trollmaster Posts: 16657 From: Music City Registered: Jun 99 posted 08-21-2006 01:56 PM                     quote: Gordon McLeod Right just like D cinema vs 35mm film the analog dubber is best Yea, Imax shouda stuck with the dubber system! D-Cinema belongs in the majority of non-professionally run booths just so there is at least a slim chance that image would be presented in a decent manner. Now Dubbers and D-Cinema.... man what a cool combo that would be . Mark  |  IP: Logged Joshua Waaland Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 800 From: Cleveland, Ohio Registered: Dec 1999 posted 08-21-2006 02:38 PM                     My wife and I went to see an underwater 3-d Imax film while we were in Sydney Australia last week. It looked just like every other Imax theater I have been in since I was a kid. Cold, dark, black and falling apart. I think Imax just needs to re-invent themselves. They need a new look and a new gimmick. Running feature films is a start but they need to change things up a little. Give people a reason to leave their comfy couch and go to see a film there. Just my two cents. While visiting friends in Brisbane the week before, they took us to a theater that had something called Gold Class. There were la-z-boy chairs in the auditorium and you could order food and drinks (even alcohol) before the film and they would bring it to you at the time you designated. I think I only counted 12 or so chairs in the theater and the tickets cost about $35 AUD. Not cheap but they filled all the seats and got the people to leave their home and pay the money.  |  IP: Logged Phil Hill I love my cootie bug Posts: 7595 From: Hollywood, CA USA Registered: Mar 2000 posted 08-21-2006 04:30 PM                  quote: Joshua Waaland It looked just like every other Imax theater I have been in since I was a kid. Cold, dark, black and falling apart. While it's a shame that particular IMAX theatre you visited was not "up-to-par", I've been to many, many IMAX venues around the world and most of them were fantastic and very professionally run and operated. That includes museums, special venue shows like "Back To The Future" and the Disney 48fps simulator ride "Soarin'", as well as the "regular" IMAX theatres. But I agree with others, sadly, 1570/IMAX has turned into a "gimmick" that will shortly outlive it's novelty and corporate biz practices and fail.  |  IP: Logged John Wilson Film God Posts: 5438 From: Sydney, Australia. Registered: Dec 1999 posted 08-21-2006 05:55 PM                     Sydney IMAX opened the same way. Cold and dark. They even bought 15th century vintage color wheels to 'impress' their patrons between shows. Fortunately these are no longer used. They seem to think it's perfectly fine to have an absolute skeleton staff and put a movie on their 'world's biggest screen' and that'll do. Not sure what they use for 3D glasses now, but when I was there they'd lost a whole bunch of batteries from the electronic glasses from ushers not bothering to 'lock' them in. Instead of getting new batteries, they simply (!) removed them ALL and gave the now non-electronic glasses to the patron to have a lack-lustre 3D 'experience'. If IMAX corporate had known I'm sure they would've shit bricks. I'm not sure it's ever made a cent. Must say though that Tim Gunn as Chief there does a good job and deserves kudos simply for putting up with their management's continual bullshit.  |  IP: Logged Cameron Glendinning Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 845 From: West Ryde, Sydney, NSW Australia Registered: Dec 2005 posted 08-21-2006 07:23 PM                     John, since you left sydney, IMAX here has lost its ground floor Foyer, it is now 100% retail with only a staircase as there only entrance!!!! out of sight, out of mind, Im sure that the business, once one of the most profitable in the world, will only continue to decline. The huge amount of concrete dust caused by the renovations, is not helping, the biggest screen in the world? or dirtiest screen in the world?. Three Cheers For Tim Gunn, he will always get a big thumbs up from me  |  IP: Logged Paul Trimboli Master Film Handler Posts: 274 From: Perth Western Australia Registered: Dec 2002 posted 08-22-2006 05:39 AM                     Well IMAX here in Perth was a fantastic place, nothing like the one in Sydney. The building even won an award for design, a really nice place to be even if you were not watching a movie. Everyone used to come in an coment how great it was. There were no issues with building up keep here, but when I went to the Sydney IMAX I thought it was very run down and I was sad to see if looking like it did. Gold Class does really good bussiness here in Perth also, defiantly something you can get used to! You order your food and its bought in when you organise prior to the movie starting. Amazingly you don't notice the staff! Here are what the seating is like.  |  IP: Logged Cameron Glendinning Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 845 From: West Ryde, Sydney, NSW Australia Registered: Dec 2005 posted 08-22-2006 07:39 AM                     Part of the reason sydney IMAX is so run down would have to be that it alone generated the tens of millions of dollars to build the most insane australia wide chain of IMAX theatres. Sydney IMAX is located in Darling Harbour, a tourist attraction!!!!! for some reason, they built them in key Cinema locations. And they promply closed!!!!!!!!!!! If only they had spent a fraction of what was generated on maintainence, or better still upgrades. Perhaps an IMAX gold class  |  IP: Logged Mark Gulbrandsen Resident Trollmaster Posts: 16657 From: Music City Registered: Jun 99 posted 11-10-2006 03:59 PM                     I am beginning to realize that Imax really is indeed a dead issue.... Not only did it not sell but I am pretty sure that all I saw in the Imax room at Showeast was a tumble weed or two rolling through. I noticed no one in there at all when ever I walked by. Mark  |  IP: Logged Bobby Henderson "Ask me about Trajan." Posts: 10973 From: Lawton, OK, USA Registered: Apr 2001 posted 11-10-2006 07:38 PM                     IMAX is really doing a good job of killing off itself with all those wasteful "DMR" blow-ups of 35mm films. The CGI cartoon blow-up movies aren't much better. And when video-graphed movies like Superman Returns and Star Wars: Episode II are blown up to IMAX, it is very clear the business people involved making these decisions just don't get it at all. Just throwing the "DIGITAL" buzzword out there is NOT any kind of substitute for natively shot extreme-high rez 15-perf 70mm photography. Superman Returns looked like shit in IMAX. Basically, the IMAX format is lying in the hospital intensive care unit and these idiot business people are pissing in IMAX's I.V. tube! They need a vicious punch in the left ear.  |  IP: Logged Adam Martin I'm not even gonna point out the irony. Posts: 3686 From: Dallas, TX Registered: Nov 2000 posted 11-10-2006 07:43 PM                     quote: Mark Gulbrandsen I am beginning to realize that Imax really is indeed a dead issue. Then why do you keep bringing it up?  |  IP: Logged Brian Michael Weidemann Expert cat molester Posts: 944 From: Costa Mesa, CA United States Registered: Feb 2004 posted 11-10-2006 08:57 PM                        Oh, but watch ... Happy Feet will change all that. IMAX will be back on top. But if Happy Feet doesn't do it, oh well. Night At The Museum will do it. After December, IMAX will be back. No? Um, okay, let's see, what's after that ... ooh, Dinosaurs 3D?  |  IP: Logged Mark Gulbrandsen Resident Trollmaster Posts: 16657 From: Music City Registered: Jun 99 posted 11-11-2006 02:12 AM                     quote: Adam Martin Then why do you keep bringing it up? Other than Imax doing some really stupid buisness related things I don't ever remember saying that before. Its the first time I've seen an Imax room go empty for the most part at a trade show. Brian... A few good films is not going to save them. All those films will far outgross Imax in their 35mm counterparts. Mark  |  IP: Logged Brian Michael Weidemann Expert cat molester Posts: 944 From: Costa Mesa, CA United States Registered: Feb 2004 posted 11-11-2006 02:47 AM                        Sarcasm is lost on you, Pinky.  |  IP: Logged Adam Martin I'm not even gonna point out the irony. Posts: 3686 From: Dallas, TX Registered: Nov 2000 posted 11-11-2006 10:38 AM                     I think I'm in love with Brian.  |  IP: Logged

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