The Big Picture

From Stage to Event Cinema Screen

Wed, 02/15/2017 - 12:42 -- Nick Dager

Disney’s Newsies: The Broadway Musical, a special limited engagement cinematic event directed by Brett Sullivan for Disney Theatrical Productions and Fathom Events, debuts this month in theaters worldwide. Co-founders of Steam Motion and Sound, he and lighting director Clayton Jacobsen have a lot of experience in translating theatrical productions to the screen, including the musicals Billy Elliot, Miss Saigon, Les Misérables, The Phantom of the Opera, Jesus Christ Superstar and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Love Never Dies.

Blockbusters Fuel European Box Office

Thu, 02/09/2017 - 12:51 -- Nick Dager

The International Union of Cinemas has released its provisional update on admissions and box office revenues across Europe for 2016. While the increase was also the result of a wide range of highly successful local films across Europe, box office was again dominated by strong international titles, including, but not limited to, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Zootopia, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, The Secret Life of Pets and Ice Age: Collision Course.

Making Event Cinema History

Mon, 01/16/2017 - 10:56 -- Nick Dager

Later this week, audiences across the United States will have the chance to watch a film that promises to redefine the concept of event cinema. On January 19, Oscar-nominated actor Woody Harrelson will direct and star in an unprecedented live feature film event, Lost in London Live. Harrelson, who also wrote the film, will be joined by co-stars Owen Wilson and Willie Nelson. Fathom Events will present the film live in 550 theatres in the US. Afterwards, he’ll participate in a question and answer session about the experience. No matter what happens, Lost in London is certain to make event cinema history.

Creating Immersive Cinema

Wed, 01/11/2017 - 11:18 -- Nick Dager

Immersive cinema seating is one of the fastest growing trends in mainstream motion picture exhibition and shows no signs of slowing. Translating the action on the screen into what a viewer experiences in the seat is no simple task and requires the hard work of many talented people. To learn more about that process, I recently spoke, via email, with Catherine Yi, creative director of 4DX America.

NCM Reimagines the Lobby Experience

Thu, 12/08/2016 - 15:35 -- Nick Dager

National CineMedia has partnered with Twitter and Disney to feature Rogue One trailer assets and fan tweets on NCM's Lobby Entertainment Network of screens strategically located near the box office and other high-traffic lobby locations in select movie theatres nationwide. “This is our way of reimagining the lobby experience,” said NCM president Cliff Marks.

Billy Lynn and New Technology

Tue, 11/01/2016 - 11:40 -- Nick Dager

Director Ang Lee’s Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk has been widely publicized as the first movie ever to be filmed in 3D with 4K-resolution at 120 frames per second. In their never-ending search for ways to stand out in a world of competing media choices, some exhibitors have expressed praise for Lee for pushing technology to new limits. Fair enough. The problem with this is, very few people in the world will be able to see the movie the way Lee made it. Add another option to the growing list of digital cinema technologies. Welcome to digital cinema’s second era.

Is This the Future of Test Screenings?

Tue, 10/04/2016 - 12:40 -- Nick Dager

One of the most important phases of editing any movie is the test screening. Anyone who has ever worked on a film understands how different it can look when seen for the first time on a big screen. With his new service – Friends & Family Screening – Dan Clifton, producer of a dozen films including last year’s thriller Martyrs, believes he has the answer for test screenings in the digital era.

Hollywood’s Data Challenge

Tue, 09/13/2016 - 12:29 -- Nick Dager

The new book Streaming, Sharing, Stealing: Big Data and the Future of Entertainment, clearly lays out the challenges the Hollywood studios face in the increasingly data-driven digital cinema era they helped create. In their book, the co-authors – Michael D. Smith and Rahul Telang – present ways they believe the studios could address that challenge. The question is: will Hollywood listen?

Cinema’s Bright Future

Mon, 09/05/2016 - 11:38 -- Nick Dager

As the international film and cinema community gathers for the Venice International Film Festival, and in the wake of the European Commission’s first European Film Forum exploring the future of cinemas, the Union Internationale des Cinémas/ International Union of Cinemas and the Confédération Internationale des Cinémas d’Art et d’Essai/ International Confederation of Art Cinemas have issued the following statement on the health of the sector and key trends and challenges. The festival is taking place now through September 9.

Uphill Battle Continues for Women in Film

Tue, 08/09/2016 - 14:04 -- Nick Dager

A study released today by the movie industry website Slated dramatically illustrates the cinema industry’s continued across-the-board bias against women. The company’s analysis of 1,591 feature films released theatrically on at least one screen in the U.S. between 2010 and 2015 exposes a systemic lack of trust on the part of the film industry when it comes to collaborating with women in the workplace.

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