Nolan's 'The Odyssey' Reveals the 135kg IMAX Camera Called 'The Keely'
Nolan's long-held ambition to shoot an entire feature in IMAX was realized only after IMAX built a custom soundproofed camera, and the weight and bulk of that rig reshaped how the production was staged.
Reporting from 1 source: Cinema Today.
A special video for Christopher Nolan's 'The Odyssey,' which opens September 11, reveals the behind-the-scenes of the first feature film shot entirely in IMAX. Nolan has wanted to shoot this way since age 16, but the camera's loud drive noise made recording quiet dialogue nearly impossible. IMAX engineers built a new camera with a carbon soundproofing blimp, nicknamed 'The Keely,' that weighs about 135 kg and required a six-person crew and mirrors on set.
The blimp is a lightweight carbon enclosure that seals the entire camera to block the drive noise, which is what finally let Nolan record quiet dialogue scenes in the same format as the action. The trade-off was weight: at roughly 135 kg, the rig needed a six-person crew to carry, and its bulk made it hard for actors to hold eye contact, so mirrors were set up on set. Matt Damon, who leads the cast, called it the largest-scale work of his career and compared the set to one from 100 years ago, 'but the camera is IMAX.' Cinematographer Hoyte van Hoytema said the camera 'doesn't lie' and delivers 'incredible depth and resolution.'
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 1 cited source below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.
Sources
- Cinema Today 通称“ザ・キーリー”とは？『オデュッセイア』で開発された新世代IMAXカメラの秘話