OMNIMAX and IMAX® are the finest
motion picture systems in the world. Images of
unsurpassed size, clarity and impact, enhanced by a
superb specially-designed six-track sound system are
projected on to giant screens. OMNIMAX Theatres feature
dome screens; IMAX Theatres have rectangular screens.
Science World's Alcan OMNIMAX Theatre
is one of the largest dome theatres in the world. Its
screen is 27 metres in diameter and five storeys high.
The theatre seats 400 people. Two other OMNIMAX screens
are as large as the one at Science World. These are at
the Liberty Science Center in New Jersey and at La
Defense in Paris, France.
The OMNIMAX image is ten times larger
than a conventional 35 mm frame and three times bigger
than a standard 70 mm film. The film runs through the
projector at 24 frames per second, the same as
conventional films. A 45-minute film requires about four
kilometres of OMNIMAX film stock. The sheer size of an
OMNIMAX film frame, combined with the unique projection
technology is the key to the extraordinary sharpness and
clarity of OMNIMAX films.
OMNIMAX projectors are the most
advanced, highest precision and most powerful projectors
ever built. The key to their superior performance and
reliability is the unique "Rolling Loop" film
movement, used in no other projector. The Rolling Loop,
invented by Australian Ron Jones, advances the fdrn
horizontally in a smooth, wave-like motion. During
projection, each frame is positioned on fixed
registration pins, and the film is held firmly against
the rear element of the lens by a vacuum. As a result,
the picture and focus steadiness are far above normal
standards.
Sound is critical to the OMNIMAX
experience. The six-channel, two-way sound system, with
sub-bass, is manufactured by Sonics Associates Inc., a
world leader in sound system design. In the Alcan
OMNIMAX Theatre, 28 speakers are located in clusters
behind the theatre's screen.
The OMNIMAX system has its roots in
Expo '67 where multi-screen films were the hit of the
Montreal fair. A small group of Canadian filmmakers and
entrepreneurs, who had made some of those popular films,
decided to design a new system using a single, powerful
projector, rather than the cumbersome multiple
projectors used at that I/me. The result: the IMAX
motion picture projection system which would
revolutionize giant-screen cinema.
IMAX premiered at the Fuji Pavilion,
Expo '70, in Osaka, Japan. The first permanent IMAX
projection system was installed at Ontario Place's
Cinesphere in Toronto in 1971. OMNIMAX, the sister
system of IMAX, debuted at the Reuben H. Fleet Space
Theater in San Diego in 1973.
The Alcan OMNIMAX Theatre was
constructed for Expo '86 and the building served as the
Expo Centre. During the World's Fair, the pavilion
housed the Futures Theatre, while the film A Freedom
to Move was featured in the theatre.
Science World has participated in the
production of a number of OMNIMAX films including The Living
Sea (1995) which was nominated for an Academy Award
for Best Documentary (short feature), Super Speedway (1997),
and Everest (1998).
