The movie directed by Burton and featuring the voices of Catherine O’Hara, Martin Short and Winona Ryder, will be the first black-and-white Hollywood feature and first stop-motion animated movie to be presented in IMAX.
“IMAX has a long-standing relationship with Tim Burton, whose unique artistic vision and brilliant storytelling has captured the imagination of audiences around the world,” said Greg Foster, Chairman and President of IMAX Filmed Entertainment.

After unexpectedly losing his beloved dog Sparky, young Victor harnesses the power of science to bring his best friend back to life—with just a few minor adjustments. He tries to hide his home-sewn creation, but Sparky gets out, sparking strong reactions from Victor’s fellow students, teachers and the entire town.

– By Scott Hettrick

The movie premieres overseas on Oct. 26 and in U.S. theaters two weeks later on Nov. 9, 2012. This is the first IMAX installment of the iconic Bond film franchise.

“ ‘Skyfall’ will be the cool, must-see event release of the fall, and releasing the film in IMAX only reinforces that,” said Rory Bruer, President, Worldwide Distribution for Sony Pictures Worldwide Marketing and Distribution.

“It is fitting that with ‘Skyfall’ marking the 50th Anniversary of the James Bond franchise, we celebrate in epic style and what could be more larger-than-life than IMAX joining the festivities,” said Gary Barber and Roger Birnbaum, Co-Chairman and Chief Executive Officers of MGM.

“It is an honor and a privilege to be a part of this legendary franchise, whose iconic characters and electrifying action will only be amplified in the IMAX format,” said Greg Foster, Chairman and President, IMAX Filmed Entertainment. “We are excited to rejoin forces with our friends at Sony Pictures Entertainment and MGM and so pleased to work with Michael G. Wilson, Barbara Broccoli, and Sam Mendes to bring their vision to IMAX and Bond fans around the world.”

Mendes is directing the movie from a screenplay written by Neal Purvis & Robert Wade and John Logan. Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli are producers.

Although there is no indication that any sequences of “Skyfall” will be filmed with IMAX cameras, as was the case with “Mission: Impossible — Ghost Protocol,” which creates an even much larger image. But the IMAX release of “Skyfall” will be digitally re-mastered into the image and sound quality of The IMAX Experience with proprietary IMAX DMR (Digital Re-mastering) technology.

Daniel Craig returns for the third time as the British Secret Service agent in “Skyfall,” the first Bond movie in four years. Judi Dench also returns as 007′s boss, called M.
Also starring in “Skyfall,” in which Bond’s loyalty to M is tested as her past comes back to haunt her, will be Ralph Fiennes, Javier Bardem and Naomie Harris.In “Skyfall,” Bond’s l

– By Scott Hettrick

IMAX Corp. and Paramount Pictures today announced that the film has generated approximately $33.1 mil. domestically and $13 mil. overseas in IMAX theatres, or nearly 13% of the overall gross of $367 million worldwide for the most popular film of the holiday season.

Over the four-day New Year’s weekend, the movie generated $6.1 mil domestically in IMAX theatres and $2.7 mil. internationally.

“With ‘Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol’ leading the box office this holiday season, it is clear that movie-goers responded very favorably to the IMAX early engagement strategy,” said IMAX CEO Richard L. Gelfond.

“We believe the film’s success demonstrates how IMAX is bringing ‘must-see’ back to movie-going,” said Greg Foster, Chairman and President, IMAX Filmed Entertainment.

IMAX worldwide gross box office for the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, 2011 was approximately $98 million ($54.3 million domestically and $43.7 million internationally).

The IMAX release of this fourth installment of Mission: Impossible features 27-minutes of scenes filmed with IMAX cameras. Exclusively in IMAX, these sequences expand to fill the entire screen.

– By Scott Hettrick

Also debuting Wednesday, Dec. 21, is Steven Spielberg’s motion-capture “The Adventures of Tintin,” in both IMAX and 3D.

– By Scott Hettrick

The DreamWorks Pictures release distributed by Disney’s Touchstone Pictures was not only far and away the #1 movie of the weekend with $27.3 million in the U.S., it also pummeled its way to $3.2 mil. on 270 IMAX screens, according to IMAX, which is more than 12% of the overall domestic gross and, according to Hollywood.com Box Office, a September/October record at IMAX theaters.

The movie, set about 15 years in the future and featuring an irresponsible  father (Hugh Jackman) and his estranged but precocious son (Dakota Goyo) struggling to build a new relationship while building a robot that becomes an unlikely champion of bot boxing, generated a total of $4.4 mil. at IMAX theaters worldwide, including $1.2 mil. in 62 IMAX screens overseas where the movie grossed $22.1 mil.

Greg Foster, IMAX Chairman and President of Filmed Entertainment, said the forecast for the movie is especially strong since it has yet to open on nearly half of the overseas IMAX screens.

The script is way too precious, the movie way too long at well over two hours, there are way too many blatant product placements, and Goyo is nearly as melodramatic as Ricky Shroder was in the 1979 “The Champ,” but it’s clear why this movie appeals to that target demo, and Jackman and the robot action are both enough fun to keep parents and less discriminating audiences entertained.
And, of course, all of the large-scale boxing action looks even better on the large-format IMAX screen.

Meanwhile, Warner Bros.’ 3D “Dolphin Tale” also appealed to the family audience with another $9.1 mil. as it swims towards $50 mil. in U.S. theaters.

Still another family film, this one also in 3D, “The Lion King,” clawed its way to another $4.6 mil. even after the release of the Blu-ray 3D version of the movie this week, roaring to a total of $86 mil.

– By Scott Hettrick

Academy(R) Award-winning filmmaker Andrew Stanton is directing the movie based on a classic novel by Edgar Rice Burroughs and starring Taylor Kitsch, Willem Dafoe and Lynn Collins.
The story is set on the mysterious and exotic planet of Barsoom (Mars) and tells the story of war-weary former military captain who is inexplicably transported to Mars, where he becomes reluctantly embroiled in a conflict of epic proportions among the inhabitants of the planet in a world on the brink of collapse.

“Andrew Stanton has envisioned this vast landscape in a way that’s not been seen before, and we’re thrilled to be able to offer our viewers this film in the immersive IMAX 3D format,” said Dave Hollis, Executive Vice President, Theatrical Exhibition Sales and Distribution, Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures.”

“John Carter is a great addition to our 2012 film slate and is sure to resonate with our key demographic,” said Greg Foster, Chairman and President, IMAX Filmed Entertainment.

– By Scott Hettrick

Since its launch in the rest of the world on July 13, “Deathly Hallows – Part 2″ has grossed $51.5 million globally in IMAX theatres through Sunday, July 31. The film surpassed opening weekend IMAX box office records globally by generating $23.2 mil. of its record-setting estimated worldwide gross of more than $481 million, for an IMAX per-screen average of $59,000.

– By Scott Hettrick

Meanwhile, Paramount’s previous 3D summer blockbuster “Transformers: Dark Side of the Moon,” which added another $12 mil. in North America, scored big on the most-ever IMAX screens in China with an opening launch record for a U.S. movie in that country with $3.7 mil. on 31 screens over the four-day opening.
That brings the total IMAX global gross to date to $45.5 million for “Transformers 3,” which opens in IMAX theaters in Japan this weekend as it approaches nearly $900 mil. overall.
“By year-end, we anticipate having 85 theatres operating in Greater China, more than double the 40 theatres we had open at the end of 2010.” said IMAX CEO Richard L. Gelfond.

Back in North America, “Potter” generated another $5.5 mil. in IMAX theaters for a total of nearly $275 million after just 10 days of release.

Up next in 3D is Sony’s “The Smurfs” this weekend.

– By Scott Hettrick

The movie stars Academy Award winners Marion Cotillard (“Inception”), Matt Damon, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Kate Winslet; Oscar nominees Laurence Fishburne and Jude Law; as well as Bryan Cranston and Sanaa Lathan.