The much-loved Saga Kino in the heart of Oslo has reopened, following months of careful refurbishment, with Christie® CP4415-RGB pure laser projectors, Christie Ultra High Contrast (UHC) lenses, and Christie IMB-S4 servers in all six theatres.The decision to use Christie technology came down to price and features, according to Jan Rasmussen, head of screen technology for Nordisk Film Cinemas: “Christie’s ability to offer their own IMB with the projection gave us a very competitive package.” The cinema appreciated the image quality from the UHC lens, and projector features, including keystone correction, and future-proofing with VDR.
Christie introduced its IMB-S4 in 2024, and Nordisk Film played an active part in the launch with a test kit installed in another of its Oslo cinemas. “Running the kit allowed us to check for full functionality and the server’s stability. We were able to provide a lot of feedback to Christie in terms of the development. We found the product teams very interested and responsive to our comments, and it was a good process,” shares Rasmussen.
For Rasmussen, one of the standout features of the projector package was the ability to select an Ultra High Contrast lens. “What has really pleased me about being able to combine the Christie UHC lens with the RGB projector is that the image quality with high black contrast is really, really good - more so than I had expected.
It clearly shows a better contrast than you get with a normal high brightness lens. It is a visible difference,” he explained.
Saga opened its doors in 1934 and many of the original features, such as parts of the famous lobby, have been restored. The original screen was converted into a multiplex in the 1980s, and, according to Rasmussen, is not without its challenges.
One of these is the high projection booths that point down towards small screens in some of the auditoria, creating difficult angles. “That's certainly one of the reasons we looked at Christie because they have the unique feature in their software able to handle keystoning issues,” shared Rasmussen. VDR, an upcoming technology feature for CineLife+ Series projectors, can also be employed to provide some future-proofing benefits and energy savings in the coming years.
“The cinema and the screens really do look amazing,” commented Mark Kendall, cinema sales manager, Christie. “Saga is perfectly located and a go-to destination. It has been a pleasure to be part of this project, and I’m extremely grateful to Jan for sharing his level of technical expertise. The input and collaboration have been a fantastic process for us, and as a result, the IMB-S4 is now much easier to use.”
The Christie IMB-S4 offers a happy combination of a rich set of features and low cost. “We’re also offering an industry-leading five-year warranty and software updates will continue even after the warranty expires - it’s a testimony to our confidence in the robustness of this product,” said Kendall.
