LATEST NEWS
Bad Robot Confirms 'Star Wars: Episode VII' Filming in IMAX Format
by Ethan Anderton
July 8, 2014
This past spring brought news of a new deal between Disney and IMAX to release a whole slew of their films on the large format screen including Guardians of the Galaxy next month, The Avengers: Age of Ultron next summer, and Star Wars: Episode VII in the winter of 2015. However, at the time, that wasn't a guarantee that the latter sci-fi sequel from director J.J. Abrams would shoot on IMAX film stock to take advantage of the giant screen's full potential. Now we have as good of confirmation as we can get with a photo posted to Twitter from the official Bad Robot account that shows and IMAX camera in action.
Here's the tweet from the official Bad Robot account with a hashtag we fully agree with:
#bestformatever pic.twitter.com/fs6JcTALmZ
— Bad Robot (@bad_robot) July 8, 2014
And if that's not good enough for you, SlashFilm quickly went the extra mile and got word from an IMAX representative who said, "All we can say at this point is that we can confirm that JJ Abrams is using the IMAX camera for Star Wars: Episode VII.” The same representative also confirmed that Abrams is using film, which means we'll be getting some 70mm IMAX footage for Star Wars: Episode VII. The question is just what was being shot above? The desert scene hints at Tatooine, but maybe there's a new desert setting that won't go back to the iconic planet on the outer rim. Either way, we'll see it in IMAX, and that's great.
13 Comments
1
Not surprising, but happy that STAR WARS will look fantastic.
DAVIDPD on Jul 8, 2014
2
I thought they said they were shooting on film, and that's why it wouldn't be filmed in 3D. Did they change their mind? Are these particular cameras 3D capable?
Andy Gilleand on Jul 8, 2014
3
IMAX is film. It's 15/70 film format. Each frame is 70 millimeters high and 15 perforations wide. In other words, the film size is about 10 times bigger than standard 35-millimeter film. This film size gives an IMAX movie incredible clarity, even on the huge screens in IMAX theaters. Star Wars is going to look fucking incredible. That said, not sure if they are shooting native 3D, like what James Cameron used on Avatar. Chances are the 3D will be done in post. But there's a chance Abrams will only shoot IMAX for some scenes that require it - big battles, epic landscapes, etc. Nolan used a similar technique on The Dark Knight and Inception.
Trey Wilson on Jul 8, 2014
4
Oh okay, I thought Imax was all digital now.
Andy Gilleand on Jul 8, 2014
5
No expert, but that particular rig doesn't jive with any other pics of an IMAX 3D camera that I can find.
avconsumer2 on Jul 9, 2014
6
This is being shot entirely on film and will be post-converted to 3D.
Chris Groves on Jul 9, 2014
7
Yeah I saw that in another article today. I was happy with the conversion they did on Star Trek Into Darkness, so I think they'll probably do a good job here too.
Andy Gilleand on Jul 9, 2014
8
Yep, I didn't see Into Darkness in 3D, but some friends of mine saw an IMAX 3D showing and had very good things to say, and the conversion tools are only improving over time.
Chris Groves on Jul 9, 2014
9
I seriously can't take it any more. I'm so geeked out I can barely stand it. But, give me more please!!!!
Quanah on Jul 8, 2014
10
Please don't be 3D... please don't be 3D... help us obi-jj-kenobi... you're our only hope.
avconsumer2 on Jul 9, 2014
11
They are going to post-convert it, which is pretty customary these days. Plus conversion work these days can be very impressive.
Chris Groves on Jul 9, 2014
12
Awesome stuff. If you're going to shoot on 35mm film, you might as well go the extra mile and shoot parts of the movie on the best format out there, IMAX 70mm. This is Star Wars, so it deserves to be as high caliber of a production as possible at every level.
Chris Groves on Jul 9, 2014
13
Where can I find info to see if a movie was shot in IMAX format (like Avatar) instead of just a blown up letterbox (like Transformers 3)? I was furious paying a lot of money and standing for hours in line to see the "IMAX 3D" Transformers 3 with the HUGE BLACK BARS on top and bottom I SWORE OFF IMAX ever since. I don't mind spending time and money to see a real IMAX 3D like Avatar if I know for sure but I can't find a web site that provide that kind of info.
STW on Dec 18, 2015
New comments are no longer allowed on this post.
FEATURED POSTS
FOLLOW FS HERE
Follow Alex's main account on Twitter:
Add our posts to your Feedly › click here
Get all the news sent on Telegram 
LATEST TO WATCH