![]() ![]() Will that change given the success of The Jungle Book in Imax? Imax isn’t known for catering to families. Virtual reality is going to require expertise in entertainment technology, and Imax may be the leading company in understanding entertainment technology. Virtual reality hit on all the key elements that I thought we could leverage: It will appeal to fanboys and millennials. I’ve been actively looking for another place to bring the Imax brand because it’s such a powerful experience. The 60-year-old married father of two invited THR to his Upper East Side office to discuss the Crouching Tiger 2 misfire, film versus digital and why China matters (but not as much as you’d think). When Gelfond is not traveling because of a “ridiculous schedule” that has him visiting offices in Toronto, Los Angeles, London and throughout Asia 50 to 60 percent of the time, the Long Island native enjoys tennis (“more of a passion than a skill”), theater (he saw Tuck Everlasting on Broadway the night before this interview) and hanging with an eclectic group of friends that includes Woody Allen, Neil deGrasse Tyson, Daniel Libeskind, Arthur Sulzberger Jr. On the content front, Michael Bay is in talks to create original VR content for Imax. Looking forward, the company is making a big push into virtual reality, partnering with Google on a camera, and will launch its first VR space in Los Angeles this year. In 2015, Imax spun off its China division into an entity called Imax China, traded on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. The publicly traded 700-employee company is particularly active in China, where it boasts 589 theaters and has begun financing local films. Given Imax receipts typically account for about 10 percent of the average tentpole’s box office, studios and top filmmakers frequently shift their release dates to land a big-screen berth. During Gelfond’s 22 years at the helm, Imax has evolved from a niche exhibitor of nature and science documentaries to a Hollywood powerhouse. In 2015, the wide-screen theater company hit $1 billion in worldwide box office and crossed the 1,000-theater threshold (now 1,066 in 68 countries) as revenue climbed to $373.8 million and annual profit rose to $64.6 million. But if there’s one mogul who has cracked the problem, it’s Imax Corp. Ask any movie executive to identify their biggest challenge, and the answer is universal: Consumers increasingly are loath to leave their homes.
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