HomeFilmDunkirk presented on 35mm print in Leeds

Dunkirk presented on 35mm print in Leeds

Dunkirk, the latest film from director Christopher Nolan, will be shown exclusively on a brand new 35mm film print when it screens at the Hyde Park Picture House from this Friday.

The long-awaited movie, the director’s first film since 2014’s Interstellar, tells the dramatic story of the infamous evacuation of Allied troops during the Second World War, and boasts an impressive cast including Tom Hardy, Cillian Murphy and Kenneth Branagh.

Nolan, a passionate champion of analogue film formats, worked closely with the film’s distributor Warner Bros. to make the film available to screen on 35mm and 70mm for those select cinemas still able to project it.

The Hyde Park Picture House, the only cinema in Leeds screening Dunkirk on 35mm, will show the film using its two 1960s Cinemeccanica projectors, which were originally based at the Odeon in Grimsby and then the Longue in Headingley, before finding their home in Hyde Park a decade ago. These will be operated by the cinema’s six projectionists, each fully trained to project 35mm film.

Kenneth Branagh in Dunkirk. Credit: Warner Bros.

The ability for the 103-year-old cinema to maintain the skills and equipment required to project analogue film was recently given a huge boost, following a successful application to the Heritage Lottery Fund, who last summer agreed to award the cinema £2.4million towards an ambitious regeneration project. The scheme is currently in development, and will soon allow the cinema to engage with much more heritage-based activity, both in relation to its own history but also the rich history of film in the region.

“Dunkirk represents a rare opportunity to see a new film released on 35mm film, a format with a rich heritage, as well as a unique warmth and depth, difficult to replicate digitally”, says Michael Sharples, Projection Manager at the Hyde Park Picture House. “We’ve gone to great lengths to preserve our 35mm projectors, and maintain and train projectionists who know how to work with film – so we’re delighted to have the chance to put all this work to good use and play our part in keeping this century-old format alive.”

Dunkirk – presented on 35mm, will be at the Hyde Park Picture House from Friday 21st July, with evening performances every day, and matinee shows on weekends. For full times and to book tickets visit: hydeparkpicturehouse.co.uk

Samuel Payne
Samuel Paynehttp://samuelpayne.weebly.com
Reviewer of Theatre in the North, including releases of classic film and television.

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