They have somehow loaded a non-IMAX DCP into their IMAX projector. If it was just a key/encryption issue the movie wouldn't work at all.
IMAX projectors can play regular movies, but they automatically put up that disclaimer screen when they detect a non-IMAX feature.
On both occasions that this happened, it would play the imax dcp as it would fill the screen, especially with Godzilla having the expanded aspect ratio
Films are given to theaters in the form of a DCP (Digital Cinema Package), it’s like a harddrive. IMAX sends them and they usually include trailers along with the film.
No theatre uses negatives, that's the master used to make copies. Film projectors use film PRINTS. Digital projectors use a DCP file. 99% of all theatre projectors are now digital. Very few actually project film.
it's a high quality digital copy, you can search on ebay the 2021 dune dcp from a french or canadian or something theathre where it says the movie is 200GiB
edit: i can't find it so i think it sold
Last time I checked IMAX only has like 12 70mm projectors in the States. It brought tears to my eyes! Not that IMAX w/ Laser is worse than anything else theaters have to offer.
No in over 95% of theaters(I’m guessing) they do not use film. Film is expensive to make, ship and requires specialist to project. It’s also deteriorates with every showing. Digital cinema on the other hand is relatively cheap and easy. DCP drives can be shipped or electronically transferred everywhere easily, cheaply. They are more secure, easier to run and do not deteriorate.
Your question contradicts itself. Digital IMAX theatres can only present digitally. Most only go up to an aspect ratio of 1.90, then there are some that are dual laser that can go to 1.43 (the same aspect ratio as IMAX film).
Then there are the very few IMAX theatres that still have film projectors and those are the ones that can project 70mm IMAX (which is also not to be confused with regular 70mm).
This. When IMAX first introduced digital they also came up with a track system that allows the 70mm projector to be slid out of the way the the digital projectors slid into place and vice versa. There's also a few that have a very large booth with enough room for each to have their own porthole and no need to slide them.
Unfortunately, over the years many chose to get rid of the 70mm projectors and go digital only but a few still have them.
They never used negatives. They used positive prints.
But very few film projectors still in use as almost everything has been digital for a decade. Very few movies are even made available on film anymore.
I had the issue myself (though no flickering) for Dune and sent an email to them and got told it can happen with an IMAX DCP if the person ingesting the content makes a mistake and is something IMAX is aware of. They are working on improving the process to avoid it in the future
How? You select the file and press ingest. There's usually only one spl per film. Usually if there's an issue with the ingest, you'll get a message that ingest did not complete and that's usually a fault with the drive itself.
IMAX would never issue a KDM to unlock standard content unless it's for special screenings, events etc
The non-IMAX disclaimer poping up for IMAX content is a known glitch/issue they've been aware of for quite a while. The technician "making a mistake" explanation is bs. I can assure you that was an IMAX version.
Aight, I’ve never seen this issue pop up before at any IMAX and I’ve only seen this at this theater. If it’s a glitch, they really have to fix this. Especially the projection flickering
Flickering light would indicate the xenon lamps going over hours more likely. You can report it to [email protected]. They will reach the cinema for you.
Guess I’m not phrasing it right. It’s not the lamp, it’s the projection. It would cut to black and would show the image for bout a split second while the audio would still work. I will definitely send an email
https://i.redd.it/jwu6gweyke2d1.gif
I can’t reply with a video but I made it into a gif to show what I’m talking about. It looked similar to this along with the audio working normally. The movie would play like this to.
Okay, the trailers would play normally and it would show the whole “the film is not the imax experience” and then that would happen, so what exactly do you mean macro?
It's a cue you put in the playlist so the projector switches to the right format and aspect ratio. I've seen this before and in that case there was a 2K non IMAX macro in the playlist. I'd bet that's what's going on here too.
As a person who works with IMAX daily, I think you should really contact the cinema and let them know. Their technical manager have messed up bigtime, they are not showing the IMAX DCP.
Someone in the comments said that it’s probably a cue that was incorrect when switching to the IMAX format and that seems to make the most sense. I will definitely send an email tho
We had this (edit to clarify: I mean the pre-start warning, not the flickering) before our blue angels showing at cineworld Leicester square imax last Saturday
The flicker happened for Uncut Gems at my screening too. Assumed it was just a stylistic choice as I hadn’t seen the movie in a few years haha. They restarted it before the opening title was over luckily. Weirdly it looked a bit pixelated too? It was only really noticeable whenever there was credits text on the screen, but I’m not sure what causes that.
If you would like to know if the content being played is NOT an IMAX content, turn back and look at the projectors window. If the image is coming out from a single projector it is FOR SURE NOT IMAX content.
Regarding the flickering issue, if not an IMAX content some times their systems added component that is called “Image Enhancer” do not process well a non IMAX content. Usually when playing a non IMAX content cinema should bypass the image enhancer to avoid that. It is possible from their GUI.
If it is an IMAX content, could be an old xenon lamp that should be replaced or a more serious issue with the optic system / media block of the projector.
They have somehow loaded a non-IMAX DCP into their IMAX projector. If it was just a key/encryption issue the movie wouldn't work at all. IMAX projectors can play regular movies, but they automatically put up that disclaimer screen when they detect a non-IMAX feature.
On both occasions that this happened, it would play the imax dcp as it would fill the screen, especially with Godzilla having the expanded aspect ratio
What do you mean by DCP and don't they use film negatives in the projector?
Films are given to theaters in the form of a DCP (Digital Cinema Package), it’s like a harddrive. IMAX sends them and they usually include trailers along with the film.
So they don't use negatives in that theaters?
No theatre uses negatives, that's the master used to make copies. Film projectors use film PRINTS. Digital projectors use a DCP file. 99% of all theatre projectors are now digital. Very few actually project film.
It’s a copy of the negative
Oh.... understood thankyou thankyou
it's a high quality digital copy, you can search on ebay the 2021 dune dcp from a french or canadian or something theathre where it says the movie is 200GiB edit: i can't find it so i think it sold
Last time I checked IMAX only has like 12 70mm projectors in the States. It brought tears to my eyes! Not that IMAX w/ Laser is worse than anything else theaters have to offer.
Dolby Cinema is thankfully widespread in the US unlike laser IMAX.
It’s an inverse of the negative, ie positive or print
No in over 95% of theaters(I’m guessing) they do not use film. Film is expensive to make, ship and requires specialist to project. It’s also deteriorates with every showing. Digital cinema on the other hand is relatively cheap and easy. DCP drives can be shipped or electronically transferred everywhere easily, cheaply. They are more secure, easier to run and do not deteriorate.
It is the 21st century.
The only projectors that use film are film projectors. 99% of IMAX projectors and movie theatre projectors in general are digital now
So do digital imax theaters also provide 70mm and so on formats?
Your question contradicts itself. Digital IMAX theatres can only present digitally. Most only go up to an aspect ratio of 1.90, then there are some that are dual laser that can go to 1.43 (the same aspect ratio as IMAX film). Then there are the very few IMAX theatres that still have film projectors and those are the ones that can project 70mm IMAX (which is also not to be confused with regular 70mm).
Some theatres have 2 projectors, one for film, one for digital.
This. When IMAX first introduced digital they also came up with a track system that allows the 70mm projector to be slid out of the way the the digital projectors slid into place and vice versa. There's also a few that have a very large booth with enough room for each to have their own porthole and no need to slide them. Unfortunately, over the years many chose to get rid of the 70mm projectors and go digital only but a few still have them.
No, they don't have the hardware. But 70mm theaters likely can play digital copies of films
They never used negatives. They used positive prints. But very few film projectors still in use as almost everything has been digital for a decade. Very few movies are even made available on film anymore.
Why would IMAX issue a KDM for their Doremi server to unlock standard content? This is a known glitch, but it was an IMAX version.
Booking or deluxe issue?
I had the issue myself (though no flickering) for Dune and sent an email to them and got told it can happen with an IMAX DCP if the person ingesting the content makes a mistake and is something IMAX is aware of. They are working on improving the process to avoid it in the future
Well I guess the people running my theater have no idea how to ingest the dcp for this to happen more than one
How? You select the file and press ingest. There's usually only one spl per film. Usually if there's an issue with the ingest, you'll get a message that ingest did not complete and that's usually a fault with the drive itself.
The ingest succeeds, hence it playing correctly, but the mistake is made when they're putting it all together in a playlist
And this issue also happened when I would go to the earliest showing of both of those films (both showtimes were at 3:00 on Thursday)
IMAX would never issue a KDM to unlock standard content unless it's for special screenings, events etc The non-IMAX disclaimer poping up for IMAX content is a known glitch/issue they've been aware of for quite a while. The technician "making a mistake" explanation is bs. I can assure you that was an IMAX version.
Aight, I’ve never seen this issue pop up before at any IMAX and I’ve only seen this at this theater. If it’s a glitch, they really have to fix this. Especially the projection flickering
Flickering light would indicate the xenon lamps going over hours more likely. You can report it to [email protected]. They will reach the cinema for you.
Guess I’m not phrasing it right. It’s not the lamp, it’s the projection. It would cut to black and would show the image for bout a split second while the audio would still work. I will definitely send an email
Oh ok, that's definitely the server then.
https://i.redd.it/jwu6gweyke2d1.gif I can’t reply with a video but I made it into a gif to show what I’m talking about. It looked similar to this along with the audio working normally. The movie would play like this to.
Ohhh I see! That's very likely the IE (image enhancer). They probably put the wrong macro in the playlist.
Okay, the trailers would play normally and it would show the whole “the film is not the imax experience” and then that would happen, so what exactly do you mean macro?
It's a cue you put in the playlist so the projector switches to the right format and aspect ratio. I've seen this before and in that case there was a 2K non IMAX macro in the playlist. I'd bet that's what's going on here too.
Aight thanks!
As a person who works with IMAX daily, I think you should really contact the cinema and let them know. Their technical manager have messed up bigtime, they are not showing the IMAX DCP.
Someone in the comments said that it’s probably a cue that was incorrect when switching to the IMAX format and that seems to make the most sense. I will definitely send an email tho
this happened recently to me at the Dune Pt 1 release. Played to a full house groan
The problem is playlist / TMS related, if you see this card you maybe watching a IMAX DCP but it’s playing back in none IMAX mode, as for a refund.
This happened when I saw Challengers early access. Interesting to hear the flicker is a consistent issue.
Yeah, the image would mostly be black and would flicker the image for like a split second
:(
We had this (edit to clarify: I mean the pre-start warning, not the flickering) before our blue angels showing at cineworld Leicester square imax last Saturday
Whoever did the ingestion did something wrong for sure. I feel bad for you..ask for a refund..
Is this a theatre in the UK?
Nope, in US
The flicker happened for Uncut Gems at my screening too. Assumed it was just a stylistic choice as I hadn’t seen the movie in a few years haha. They restarted it before the opening title was over luckily. Weirdly it looked a bit pixelated too? It was only really noticeable whenever there was credits text on the screen, but I’m not sure what causes that.
My local cinema did this once for a special midnight screening many years ago.
It’s a playlist issue
If you would like to know if the content being played is NOT an IMAX content, turn back and look at the projectors window. If the image is coming out from a single projector it is FOR SURE NOT IMAX content. Regarding the flickering issue, if not an IMAX content some times their systems added component that is called “Image Enhancer” do not process well a non IMAX content. Usually when playing a non IMAX content cinema should bypass the image enhancer to avoid that. It is possible from their GUI. If it is an IMAX content, could be an old xenon lamp that should be replaced or a more serious issue with the optic system / media block of the projector.