Super Panavision 70

Super Panavision 70 was the marketing brand name used to identify movies photographed with Panavision 70 mm spherical optics between 1959 and 1983.

History

During the late 1950s the Hollywood filmmaking community decided that changing from filming in the commonly accepted 35 mm format to 65 mm film would provide viewing audiences with an enhanced visual experience. To this end, cameras begin to be designed to handle 65 mm film stock. The first camera system to be released using this format was Todd-AO, in 1955. The second was MGM Camera 65, a system designed by Panavision, which was introduced in 1956. In 1959 Panavision released the Super Panavision 70 system to compete with these two cameras. Unlike its counterpart Ultra Panavision 70, which used anamorphic lenses, Super Panavision used spherical lenses to create a final aspect ratio of 2.20:1.

In 1959, the Walt Disney company was the first studio to release a film, "The Big Fisherman", using this process.

Some of the films made in Super Panavision 70 were presented in 70 mm Cinerama in selected theaters. Special optics were used to project the 70 mm prints onto a deeply-curved screen to mimic the effect of the original 3-strip Cinerama process.

Movies using Super Panavision 70

*"The Big Fisherman" (1959)
*"Exodus" (1960)
*"West Side Story" (1961)
*"Lawrence of Arabia" (1962)
*"My Fair Lady" (1964)
*"Cheyenne Autumn" (1964)
*"Lord Jim" (1965)
*"Grand Prix" (1966) - presented in 70 mm Cinerama
*"" (1968) - presented in 70 mm Cinerama
*"Ice Station Zebra" (1968) - presented in 70 mm Cinerama
*"Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" (1968)
*"Mackenna's Gold" (1969)
*"Song of Norway" (1970) - advertised as "on the Cinerama screen" in some countries
*"Ryan's Daughter" (1970)
*"Close Encounters of the Third Kind" (1977) - special effects shots only; early promotional material erroneously suggested that the entire film was produced in Super Panavision 70
*"Tron" (1982) - live-action scenes and partial-CGI scenes only; entirely-CGI shots filmed in VistaVision
*"Brainstorm" (1983) - virtual reality sequences only
*"Auto-E-Motion" (1984) - BMW promotional short subject

Panavision System 65/Super 70

In the early 1990s, in response to an increased demand for 65 mm cameras, Panavision introduced an updated line of 65 mm cameras and optics known as "Panavision System 65" or "Panavision Super 70", designed to compete with the rival Arri 765 camera. However, the lack of 70 mm projectors, combined with the fact that 35 mm digital stereo sound somewhat minimized the multi-channel sound advantage the 70 mm format had, meant that the format revival never really took off.

Movies using Panavision System 65/Super 70

*"Far and Away" (1992); selected scenes in Arri 765 and 35mm VistaVision
*"Hamlet" (1996) - the last feature (so far) photographed entirely in 70 mm
*"The Witness" (1998) - short film produced for the Mashantucket Pequot Museum in Connecticut
*"Spider-Man 2" (2004) - selected special effects shots only
*"The New World" (2005) - "hyper-reality" scenes only

ee also

*70 mm film
*Cinerama
*Super Technirama 70
*Todd-AO
*Ultra Panavision 70

External links

* [http://www.widescreenmuseum.com/widescreen/wingsp1.htm American Widescreen Museum section on Super Panavision 70]