management - TourismInsights

TALKING POINT
everybody’s talking about
IS NOW THE RIGHT TIME FOR
PLANETARIUMS INVESTMENT?
Advances in technology, such as the development into large format film, enable planetariums
to compete with large format film distributors. So, is this the right time for them to upgrade?
Should operators invest now or will there be newer, even more cutting-edge technology
coming out soon which will quickly date their investment? Kathleen Whyman asks the experts
T
E & S DIGITAL
THEATER
Michael Daut,
director of show
production/marketing
here’s never been a better time to
consider a digital fulldome theatre/
digital planetarium for your facility.
Advances in video projection technology,
in terms of resolution and contrast, have
allowed fulldome image quality that now
rivals giant screen fi lm theatres.
New technology introduced by Evans &
Sutherland (E&S) opens the door for giant
screen fi lms to play in digital fulldome theatres
and the availability of original fulldome
programming is at an all-time high, dramatically
expanding the choice of shows to
play on the dome.
Giant screen fi lms and original programming
for fulldome theatres are abundant.
Digital planetarium systems, such as
Digistar 4, allow audiences to travel
through space in a 3D universe filled with
galaxies, stars, planets and moons, letting
them explore the universe with a fl exibility
and immediacy never before possible.
Of course, the big question is when to
implement this exciting technology in your
theatre. Given the number of advancements
in the last few years, doesn’t it
make sense to see what might
be coming just over the horizon?
The truth is we can never be sure
what’s coming next, but computers
can be upgraded and future
software updates can be easily
installed. Sometimes the cost of
waiting is greater than the cost of
having this amazing medium in your hands
right now. With so much content and such
a dynamic and powerfully immersive canvas
using state-of-the-art video projection,
digital fulldome theatres represent the
ultimate medium for surrounding audiences
with images and sounds. Viewers
are effectively transported directly into the
experiences on the screen.
GLOBAL
IMMERSION
Alan Caskey,
sales director,
Americas
Digital cinema technology is now proven
and digital capability is in every cineplex.
Over time, the film-based theatres will
almost certainly change to a digital solution.
The future advancements in projection
technology will revolve around higher
resolution and brightness, lower cost
illumination and technological capabilities
that improve visual performance.
Strangely enough, the planetarium market
has migrated to digital capability sooner
than the IMAX/giant screen industry has.
Many of the giant screen folks are still a
fi lm-based 15/70 or 8/70 market and while
newer movies will have digital versions
available, the installed base is fi lm.
Digital planetariums have the capability
to show digital movies. Advancements in
technology aren’t needed. Today’s dome
requires 4K x 4K resolution, which is available
in multi-channel solutions. Attaining
4K x 4K with only one device isn’t expected
to happen for the foreseeable future and
when it does, 4K x 4K will no longer be
good enough. The digital infrastructure for
playback of uncompressed video
already exists.
Technology life will always have
limitations. While display technology
may be serviceable for up to 10
years, practically speaking, an operator
should plan on a four- to six-year
horizon for technology upgrades,
driven by visitor expectations.
Technology is an evolution, not a revolution.
We advise our clients not to wait for
the latest cutting-edge technology for two
main reasons. Firstly, cutting-edge technology
imposes inherent risk and secondly,
the typical visitor to institutional theatres
wants a cutting-edge experience, which is
already possible with today’s technology.
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AM 1 2010 © cybertrek 2010