To mark the 75th anniversary of The Wizard of Oz, Warner Bros. Pictures and IMAX are bringing the timeless classic to IMAX® 3D. This will give cinemagoers across the UK the chance to experience the movie in the immersive 3D format for the first time ever.
Revived and renewed frame by frame over 18 months, The Wizard of Oz is coming back to the big screen exclusively in IMAX® cinemas across the UK from 12 September, 2014. A 75th anniversary DVD & Blu-ray edition will follow in November.
The Wizard of Oz: An IMAX 3D Experience has been digitally re-mastered into the image and sound quality of An IMAX 3D Experience® with proprietary IMAX DMR® (Digital Re-mastering) technology allowing whole new audiences and generations to discover some classic movie magic that is faithful to the original vision whilst introducing it to a whole new audience.
The crystal-clear images, coupled with IMAX®‘s customized theatre geometry and powerful digital audio, create a unique environment that will allow audiences to feel as if they are in the movie, entering the land of Oz like never before, a few steps behind Dorothy and her red shoes, along with Scarcrow™; the Cowardly Lion™ and The Tin Man™, as they go off to see the Wizard!
“The Wizard of Oz is one of the most beloved films of all time and we are thrilled that our longtime partners at Warner Bros. Pictures have made IMAX a part of this exciting milestone event,” said Greg Foster, Senior Executive Vice President, IMAX Corp. and CEO of IMAX Entertainment. “This film revolutionized the use of color and special effects in cinema, and we’re excited to add another ‘first’ – bringing this timeless classic to moviegoers across the UK through the power of IMAX 3D for the very first time.”
The 3D conversion was a long and complex project which Warner Bros. Pictures initiated with a very high resolution (8k) scanning of the original Technicolor camera negative. The restored 2D image was then transformed by creating a depth-map of each frame to construct 3D imagery and determine distances from the viewer’s vantage point. This was followed by the long process (with the use of a rotoscope) to further refine viewer distances and fully layer shapes and objects.
Adapted from L. Frank Baum’s tale about a Kansas girl’s journey over the rainbow, The Wizard of Oz opened at Grauman’s Chinese Theater on August 15, 1939. Dorothy™ was portrayed by a 4’11” sixteen-year-old girl who quickly earned her reputation as “the world’s greatest entertainer”—the incomparable Judy Garland. Ray Bolger appeared as the Scarecrow™; Bert Lahr as the Cowardly Lion™, Jack Haley as the Tin Man™. Frank Morgan was seen in six different roles, including that of the wonderful Wizard of Oz himself.
The Wizard of Oz received five Academy Award® nominations , including Best Picture (Outstanding Production), and captured two Oscars®—Best Song (“Over the Rainbow”) and Best Original Score — plus a special award for Outstanding Juvenile Performance by Judy Garland. The film was an overwhelmingly popular and critical success upon its initial release and its magical story and heartfelt performances have enabled it to grow from a perennial classic to its current status as a treasured icon of popular culture.
The Wizard of Oz hits IMAX on September 12th 2014.
