PARK CITY, UT — Barco is the official projection provider for the 2016 Sundance Film Festival, and is helping to bring to life several key virtual reality and art installations at the New Frontier exhibition. The independent film festival uses Barco digital cinema projectors in all 23 of its movie theater venues for its official screenings.
For more than 30 years, Sundance Institute and its Sundance Film Festival (SFF) have served as a springboard for independent filmmakers. Its New Frontier exhibition showcases innovative installations that explore the expansion of cinema culture and new forms of storytelling in today’s rapidly changing media landscape. At this year’s Festival, New Frontier delivers an engaging exploration of the intersection of art, film and multimedia technology, relying on Barco projectors and image processing to deliver visually spectacular experiences.
“Innovation is something that New Frontier and the Sundance Film Festival continually seek out, with a strong desire to advance, evolve and always be on the leading edge,” comments Jamie McMurry, Producer and Designer for Sundance Film festival. “We feel that Barco shares that desire and is not only a committed partner in the industry, but also a collaborator in supporting artists and developers in the advancement of visual storytelling.”
For the third year, SFF organizers are using Barco large venue projectors in the New Frontier installations and other festival events, having expanded beyond its growing commitment to Barco digital cinema projectors. Key benefits of Barco projection technologies include high brightness and photo-realistic color image presentation, in addition to an ideal combination of size, weight and power, which facilitates efficient installation and operation.
Treachery of Sanctuary
Representing a major achievement in the history of the Sundance Film Festival, New Frontier presents the work "Treachery of Sanctuary" by visionary technology artist Chris Milk. An extremely impressive and large-scale blended, three-channel video installation, "Treachery of Sanctuary" utilizes Barco’s HDX-W20 Flex projectors to deliver the clearest, brightest picture and highest resolution ever used to display the work. Reliability and durability are also key factors that ensure smooth operation and consistent picture quality throughout the duration of the festival.
Exhibits at the Claim Jumper
Festival producers are utilizing Barco F50 projectors in several virtual and augmented reality installations at the Claim Jumper, including The Leviathan Project, Double Conscience, and Inextinguishable Fire. When matched with the EN57 lens, the F50 can front project from an incredibly short distance, allowing better use of exhibit space and an ideal viewing experience, reducing the risk of visitors stepping into the projection beam.
The Holo-Cinema offers a rare look at the innovations in immersive entertainment being developed inside ILMxLAB—an advanced media lab and development group that is a collaboration between Lucasfilm Story Group, Industrial Light & Magic, and Skywalker Sound. This new scenic design and experience theater allows participants to step inside iconic story moments, walk around the performing characters, and explore worlds as they portal inside a fully immersive media environment.
New Frontier Gateway
New Frontier Gateway features a 150-seat theater for sponsor presentations, artist clips and panel discussions. Organizers are utilizing two Barco RLM-W8 projectors with two PDS 3G series presentation switchers to elevate the visualization quality of the presentations.
Barco projectors will also be used for the Award Ceremony and Closing Night party, elevating the visualization quality at these events to never-before-seen levels. “One of the biggest reasons we chose the Barco HDX-W20 projectors was their ability to provide greater contrast, color and control to prevent the stage lighting from washing out the imagery on screen,” comments Holden Payne, Technical Director of Exhibition and Production at Sundance Institute.
“We are thrilled to grow our successful partnership with the Sundance Film Festival as their leadership continually strives to raise the bar for creativity and visual innovation with their virtual reality installations, celebratory events and movie screenings,” comments Scott Stremple, Vice President Sales for Barco Entertainment.