The highly anticipated world premiere in 3D of Academy Award® winning director Ang Lee’s “Life of Pi” was projected at Alice Tully Hall this weekend using acclaimed Christie Solaria® digital cinema projectors as part of the 50th Annual New York Film Festival opening night celebrations.
Preferred Christie® dealer Digital Media Systems selected and installed two powerful Christie CP4230 DLP Cinema® projectors and synchronized their images on screen to meet the demands of the festival organizers, who required double the brightness levels of typical 3D presentations to more accurately depict Ang Lee’s epic 3D film, a fantasy about a boy stranded on a lifeboat with a Bengal tiger. The film kicked off the prestigious festival, setting the tone for the scores of other screenings and special events on tap, including workshops and panel discussions, many of which will feature today’s most influential filmmakers and industry leaders, from September 28 through October 14.
In addition to Alice Tully Hall, the festival is utilizing other venues on the Lincoln Center Campus, including the Walter Reade Theater, and the Elinor Bunin Munroe Film Center, which includes the Francesca Beale Theater, Howard Gilman Theater and the Amphitheater.
“We are pleased to be a sponsor of the New York Film Festival,” said Craig Sholder, vice president, Entertainment Solutions at Christie. “As the undisputed leader in digital cinema with the largest number of digital cinema installations worldwide, Christie has earned a solid reputation as an industry innovator whose groundbreaking technology has revolutionized the digital cinema landscape. It’s our privilege to ‘play’ the premier venue at the New York Film Festival, and to be in the excellent company of some of the most creative and visionary filmmakers of our time.”
Gregg Paliotta, president and owner of Digital Media Systems, noted that festival organizers have worked with him in the past, and so placed complete trust in him to provide them with the best digital projectors available to meet their needs. Representing 20th Century Fox, which is distributing the film and is also a Festival sponsor, Paliotta selected the Christie CP4230 projectors for their exceptional performance on the large screen. The two-projector system helped deliver an unprecedented level of brightness, image clarity, and realism.
“They wanted the most reliable, most powerful projection system in the industry to achieve the higher level of brightness required for the 3D ‘Life of Pi’, ensuring the visual impact that Ang Lee sought to bring his cinematic vision to life,” he said. “There was never any doubt in my mind that Christie was the only one that could meet such a challenge in terms of image brightness, while still maintaining deep color saturation and razor-sharp resolution. Christie was a huge success last year when I used them for the advance screening of Martin Scorsese’s highly acclaimed film, ‘Hugo,’ and I was confident that Christie would again surpass all expectations this year.”
Paliotta added: “The feedback from the audience was remarkable. The picture was visually stunning. Everyone was beyond blown away by how it looked. Without a doubt, it was a fantastic screening and an unforgettable evening. “
