IMAX Corporation and regional megaplex chain Broadway Megaaplex announced a partnership to develop a new IMAX theatre in Coimbatore.
Scheduled to open in the spring of 2022, the deal will bring the first IMAX theatre to the city and also marks the first agreement between the global entertainment technology company IMAX and Broadway Megaaplex.
“We’re excited to sign our first deal with Broadway Megaaplex, a regional multiplex chain in southern India, which will bring IMAX to a new preeminent megaplex location and expand our footprint in India beyond just the largest cities,” said Giovanni Dolci, Chief Sales Officer, IMAX.
In 2018, IMAX had reached agreements to bring nine new large-screen theatres to India. The announcement of new theatres in 2018 had taken the total number of IMAX locations in India to 40.
IMAX's first large-format screen in India opened in 2001 but the company found it tough to expand. But things changed as the government became more open to facilitating commercial development, including the building of malls and Western-style multiplexes.
While IMAX is adding more screens, India lags behind in terms of premium large format. Along with exhibition infrastructure and its cost, the number of big screen spectacles being made in India is low. Until 2018, there were only six films that were converted to IMAX.
Experts note that in India, there are two to three films which possibly make the cut in the IMAX format. Unlike the West, where the number is higher.
For the IMAX format to gain steam, experts say that it is important that more screens play films in IMAX format and more Indian offerings are produced for it.
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