Dolby has just announced a new big project, which is something totally unusual and not about audio as expected, but rather about cinema; its upcoming Dolby Cinema, which is a competitor for IMAX.
Dolby Cinema is a branded premium cinema offering for exhibitors and moviegoers that combines spectacular image and sound technologies with inspired design to make every visit a completely captivating cinematic event. It will be the most engaging way for moviegoers to watch the newest releases. This gigantic screen will be able to project movies using the Dolby Vision technology, which is something Dolby applied decades of research and development to.
Dolby Cinema will include Dolby Vision, a state-of-the-art authoring and playback imaging technology that enables the cinema to bring the story alive onscreen.
Outfitted with Dolby Atmos, a Dolby Cinema transports audiences into the movie with breathtakingly real sound that fills the cinema and flows all around them.
Dolby Cinema will feature the Dolby Vision projection system, which uses state-of-the-art optics and image processing to deliver high dynamic range with enhanced colour technology that has been praised by filmmakers for its amazing contrast, high brightness, and colour range that more closely matches what the human eye can see. With Dolby Vision, the blacks are truly black, colours are vibrant, and the contrast ratio far exceeds that of other image technologies on the market today. The result will be a richer, more detailed, viewing experience that will deliver strikingly vivid and realistic images that will make viewers feel like they are in the movie’s world.
Early Dolby Cinema locations, in collaboration with exhibitor partners around the globe, will be equipped with the advanced high-brightness laser projection technology available today with 4K, high-frame-rate 2D and Dolby 3D capabilities.
When Dolby Vision content becomes available, the Dolby Cinema laser projection systems will be replaced with Dolby Vision projection systems. Dolby Cinema will also feature the award-winning Dolby sound technology, Dolby Atmos. Dolby Atmos moves audio around the theatre, even overhead, with amazing richness and depth. The lifelike sounds of music, people, and things flow all around the theatre in sync with the action to create a more immersive and moving experience.
The Dolby Cinema design can be customised to the exhibitors’ needs with a select set of features including a signature entrance and a dynamic audiovisual pathway that will provide a new canvas for studio creatives to begin telling their story before the show begins. Additional features may include a wall-to-wall-to-ceiling screen, atmospheric lighting, and faceted acoustic panels designed to enhance the sound quality and heighten the sense of immersion. In addition, all Dolby Cinema locations will undergo a sophisticated visual and acoustic room treatment perfectly tuned for a premium cinematic experience.
The first Dolby Vision projectors and titles for theatrical exhibition are expected in 2015. The first Dolby Cinema sites will be located at the newly constructed JT Cinemas complex in Eindhoven, Netherlands, and the UCI / Cinesa La Maquinista complex in Barcelona, Spain. Additional exhibitor partners will be announced as installation plans are completed.
