Secrets of the Universe

Secrets of the Universe

Secrets of the Universe |  Synopsis   |  In Theaters   |   Trailer   |  Gallery   |  Theme   |  The Production   |

Secrets of the Universe

About the Film

Secrets of the Universe captures the excitement and groundbreaking science unfolding at the Large Hadron Collider at CERN–one of the largest scientific enterprises ever undertaken by humankind.

Synopsis

Galileo looked to the heavens, expanding our vision beyond our own planet. Einstein sought to understand the universe with math and a chalkboard and was perplexed by activity at the quantum level. The truth remains—there is still so much we do not know.

In Secrets of the Universe, narrator and featured personality, renowned physicist Manuel Calderon de la Barca Sanchez gives his insight on the nature of forces and matter and on the pursuit of science.

Secrets of the Universe is a sweeping, 3D giant screen adventure that immerses audiences in the greatest mysteries of our time—puzzles spanning from the infinitesimal to the infinite—and introduces the brilliant minds seeking to unravel them.

The answers await at the collision points of intellect and imagination, of theory and experiment, of the tiniest particles and the most powerful forces in the universe.

Travel with scientist Manuel Calderon de la Barca Sanchez as he journeys to the largest machine ever built, the greatest scientific instrument ever created, the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). There, he joins a global team working to uncover another amazing breakthrough in this new world of technology-driven physics. We get an inside look at the machine and come to understand just what it means to do science, teaming up for the flag of humanity to solve the universe’s greatest mysteries.

We don’t stop with the Large Hadron Collider, though. The machines we’ve built are as diverse as the secrets we’re looking for, and the people looking for them. We travel to the Laser Interferometer Gravitational Observatory (LIGO), the amazing project that recently confirmed Einstein’s century old prediction of the existence of gravitational waves. Humanity is at the edge of unprecedented scientific discovery, and we can all be a part of it!

In Theaters—(where to see Secrets of the Universe)

Official film site: secretsoftheuniversefilm.com

For theater locations: Where-to-see Secrets of the Universe

Trailer

Theme

 

The Big Question

What is the universe made of? The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) studies the fundamental particles that comprise all forms of matter. The LHC is the world’s most powerful particle accelerator. Located underground along the France-Switzerland border near Geneva, it took 10 years for the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) to build. The LHC consists of a 27-kilometre circular tunnel surrounded by very powerful superconducting magnets, designed to engineer collisions between beams of particles at speeds approaching the speed of light (300,000 km/s).

HOW IT WORKS

Inside the accelerator, two high-energy particle beams travel at close to the speed of light before they are made to collide. They are guided around the accelerator ring by a strong magnetic field maintained by superconducting electromagnets, which must be chilled to ‑271.3°C – a temperature colder than outer space – using liquid helium.
Thousands of magnets of different varieties and sizes are used to direct the beams around the accelerator, bending and focusing them as necessary to increase the chances of collision. The particles are so tiny that the task of making them collide is like firing two needles 10 kilometres apart with such precision that they meet halfway. The beams inside the LHC are made to collide at four locations around the accelerator ring, corresponding to the positions of four particle detectors – ATLAS, CMS, ALICE, and LHCb.

 

 WHY IT MATTERS

The LHC’s Higgs discovery provides the missing piece to the Standard Model of particle physics. The Standard Model explains how the basic building blocks of matter interact, governed by four fundamental forces: the strong force, the weak force, the electromagnetic force, and the gravitational force. It has been an incredibly successful model of the subatomic world, explaining almost all experimental results and precisely predicting a wide variety of phenomena. But it had a glitch.

Some of the particles in the Standard Model emerge without a mass, while experiment shows them to have mass. Robert Brout, François Englert, and Peter Higgs resolved this problem with a theory of an invisible field, now called the “Higgs field,” that gives these particles mass when they interact. The LHC’s experimental discovery of the associated Higgs particle is a major step for the Standard Model.

THE PEOPLE

The LHC is a massive collaboration, involving over 10,000 scientists from hundreds of universities and laboratories in more than 70 countries. This includes not only those responsible for the design, construction, and operation of the collider, but also those that run the experiments and those that analyze the resulting data. Some of the key figures include:

Fabiola Gianotti, Director-General
Frédérick Bordry, Director for Accelerators and Technology
Eckhard Elsen, Director for Research and Computing

The Production

Production Notes

Initial production work for the project began in late 2014 with research and shooting at the CERN super-collider facility which sits astride the Franco-Swiss border near Geneva. The film premiered at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. in 2019.

About the Film

  • Production Format: Digital
  • Duration: 45 min.
  • Released date: 2019.
  • Produced by: Stephen Low Productions Inc.
  • Distributed by: K2 Communications Inc. / The Stephen Low Company
  • Available for license: IMAX Digital
  • Official film site: https://secretsoftheuniversefilm.com

Credits

  • Writtten and Directed by Stephen Low
  • Directory of Photography: Tristan Breeuwer
  • Featuring: Manuel Calderón de la Barca Sánchez
  • Executive Producers:  Mark Kresser, Robert Kresser, Pietro L. Serapiglia
  • Produced by: Stephen Low
  • Co-produced by: Pietro L. Serapiglia
  • Edited by: James Lahti
  • Lead project consultant: Greg Dick
  • Executive in charge of production: Dougal Caron
  • Line Producer: Michel Chauvin

Aircraft Carrier 3D

Aircraft Carrier 3D

Aircraft Carrier  |  The Film | Synopsis | Gallery  | Theme | Making the Film | The Production | Where to See It  |  Links

Aircraft Carrier 3D

IN THEATERS NOW

The Film

Set against the stunning panorama of the world’s largest international naval exercise, Aircraft Carrier immerses audiences in action-packed air operations aboard a city-sized Nimitz-class aircraft carrier. Created for giant screens by the director of Fighter Pilot: Operation Red Flag and Rocky Mountain Express—Aircraft Carrier is captured in 15/70 motion picture film and ultra high-definition digital 3D.

Synopsis

Aircraft Carrier 3D focuses on the world of naval power and the astounding activity and air operations aboard a giant Nimitz-class aircraft carrier, the USS Ronald Reagan. The film presents authentically, the true scale and drama of carrier and fleet naval operations to giant screen audiences for the first time.

Viewers find themselves aboard a carrier alongside some 5,000 highly skilled sea and air personnel in the midst of a giant war simulation as part of the vast Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) training exercise. With the participation of 22 nations and more than 50 ships and submarines, 200 aircraft and 25,000 military personnel, a RIMPAC exercise is an astounding experience. Aircraft Carrier puts audiences in the center of the action.

The film reveals the remarkable inner workings of the giant carrier via live action coverage and engineering visualizations, and features aircraft such as the F-35C Lightning, the F35A, as well as the F-18 Super Hornet, and the Osprey. The film depicts the ships of many navies and highlights the range of roles played by naval and air power in a complex, turbulent world: from deterrence to aerial combat and special ops, to piracy prevention and support for humanitarian assistance.

Theme

Protecting and defending the world’s oceans has become exceedingly complex and challenging in the 21st century. Naval aviation is considered vital to patrolling the seas and being able to intervene in critical situations across the globe. As described by its organizers, the RIMPAC exercise is a training event geared to fostering and sustaining cooperative relationships critical to ensuring the safety of sea lanes and security on the world’s oceans. At the heart of RIMPAC and its naval and air operations is a giant Nimitz-class aircraft carrier—a high-technology air platform and floating city of remarkable capability.

About the Carrier. The USS Ronald Reagan sailed on her maiden voyage in July 2003. Currently based out of homeport San Diego, the carrier serves the Seventh Fleet headquartered at U.S. Fleet Activities Yokosuka, in Yokosuka, Japan—part of the United States Pacific Fleet. Nuclear-powered, the carrier has an unlimited range and houses a ship’s company of 3,200 along with an air wing of some 2,480 personnel and some 90 aircraft (fixed wing and helicopters).

Making the Film

Principal photography for Aircraft Carrier began with extensive coverage of the massive Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise in July 2014 and continued through 2016. The film also incorporates unprecedented aerial scenes captured by the production crew on and around the USS Ronald Reagan, a US Navy Nimitz-class super carrier, during exercises 100 miles off the coast of southern California. The onboard crew captured 3D scenes of intense flight activities including night launches and landings as well as POV shots from the cockpit of F-18 Super Hornet fighter jets in flight.

Release

Aircraft Carrier had its World Premiere at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, May 24, 2017 with release in IMAX and other giant screen theaters immediately following. Aircraft Carrier is available in both 43-minute and 24-minute versions and in IMAX® laser / 12.0 and in all digital 2D and 3D formats.

Filming onboard the Nimitz class carrier USS Ronald Reagan.
Members of the crew of carrier USS Ronald Reagan and the aerial photography team for Aircraft Carrier pose on deck during refuelling of the Spacecam-equipped helicopter. The team were filming over a hundred miles out to sea and needed to land on the carrier both for fuel and to reload film every three min of camera running time. In purple are fuelers. In yellow is a ‘shooter’ tasked to launch and recover aircraft from the flight deck… Including the production chopper.

The Production

  • Release: 2017
  • World Premiere: May 24, 2017 – Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, Washington DC
  • Produced by: K2 Communications Inc., The Stephen Low Company and Giant Screen Films Inc.
  • Distributed by: K2 Communications Inc. and Giant Screen Films Inc.
  • Capture: filmed in 15/70 motion picture film and Ultra-high-definition digital 3D
  • Length: 43-min. and 24-min versions
  • Formats: available in IMAX® Laser / 12.0; all digital 2D and 3D formats

Credits

  • Written and Directed by: Stephen Low
  • Produced by: Mark Krenzien, Pietro L. Serapiglia, Andy Wood
  • Executive Producers: Robert Kresser, Stephen Low, Don Kempf
  • Editor: James Lahti
  • Cinematographers: Tristan Breeuwer, Stephen Low, Ron Goodman
  • Stereographer: Sean MacLeod Phillips A.S.C.

Where to See It

Theater Listings

Launching theaters are listed below. For up-to-date listings and links to exhibiting theaters for Aircraft Carrier visit: Theater Listings (on the official film site).

Launching Theaters

Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum
Washington, DC, USA
Phone: (202) 633-4629
Show end: May 2019

Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center
Chantilly, VA, USA
Phone: (703) 572-4118
​​Show end: May 2019

National Infantry Museum
Columbus, GA, USA
Phone: (706) 685-5800
Show end: May 25, 2018

Kansas Cosmosphere
Hutchinson, KS, USA
Phone: 800.397.0330 ext. 347
Show end: November 28, 2017

​Henry Ford Museum
Dearborn, MI, USA
Phone: 800-747-4629

New Mexico Museum of Space History
Alamogordo, NM, USA
Phone: (575) 437-2840
Show end: December 31, 2017

​​Hastings Museum
Hastings, NE, USA
Phone: (402) 461-2399
Show end: June 7, 2018

Pink Palace Family of Museums
Memphis, TN, USA
Phone: (901) 636-2362
Show end: June 22, 2018

​Clark Planetarium
Salt Lake City, UT, USA
Phone: 385-468-STAR
Show end: June 15, 2018

​National Naval Aviation Museum
Pensacola, FL, USA
Phone: (850) 308-8963​
​​
​Nauticus
Norfolk, VA, USA
Phone: (757) 664-1000

Air Force Museum
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, OH, USA
Phone: (937) 253-4629

USS Lexington Museum on the Bay
Corpus Christi, TX, USA
Phone: (361) 888-4873​

Singapore Discovery Place
Singapore, Singapore
Phone: +65 6792 6188

​Virginia Air & Space Center
Hampton, VA, USA
Phone: (757) 727-0900
Show start: TBD

​​​​Museum of Flight
Seattle, WA, USA
Phone: (206) 764-5700
Show start: TBD

Mariners’ Museum and Park
Newport News, VA, USA
Phone: (757) 596-2222
Show start: TBD

Rescue 3D

Rescue 3D

Rescue 3D

2011 / Released in IMAX 3D

Synopsis

Rescue plunges audiences into the hard, but inspiring work of saving lives in the face of a natural disaster. Behind the scenes, the film follows a Canadian naval commander, two pilots, and a volunteer rescue technician as they train for action. As Rescue opens we are introduced to the film’s featured personalities and are thrust into some of their remarkable training, at sea, in the air and on the ground, discovering something of their backgrounds, pastimes and motivations. When an earthquake strikes Haiti, creating one of the biggest humanitarian disasters of the century, the audience is swept along, joining with the massive effort that brings military and civilian responders and hardware from around the world. Rescue is a journey of real-world disaster and emergency response captured (in 3D) with unprecedented scale and impact for the giant screen.

About the Film

  • Released: 2011
  • Produced by: The Stephen Low Company
  • Distributed by: K2 Communications and The Stephen Low Company
  • Length: 45-min.
  • Formats: 15/70, Digital 2K/4K
  • Availability: 3D / 2D

The Making of Rescue 3D

See how the film was made: “The Making of Rescue 3D [Article].

Credits

  • Written and Directed by: Stephen Low
  • Produced by: Alexander Low, Stephen Low, Pietro L. Serapiglia
  • Executive Producers: Robert Kresser, Jan Baird Associate
  • Associate Producers: James Lahti, Charles Brown
  • Line Producer: Michel Chauvin
  • Exec in Charge of Production: Dougal Boone Caron
  • Editor: James Lahti
  • Director of Photography: Mark Poirier
  • Original Music by Michel Cusson
  • Aerial Photography: Ralph Mendoza
  • Sound Design: Peter Thillaye
  • Post-Production Manager: Jill Kasian

“In tribute to the men and women in military and volunteer organizations around the world who come to the aid of those in need wherever disaster may strike” –Boeing

Produced with the support of: Canadian Forces Maritime Command

Visit the official website: http://www.rescue-film.com

Awards

First Prize, Current Affairs—Rescue; 22nd International Military Film Festival, Bracciano, Italy, 2012

Clippings

For articles and reviews, visit the official film site.
Reviews: www.rescue-film.com/in-the-media/reviews/
Articles: www.rescue-film.com/in-the-media/articles/

The Ultimate Wave Tahiti 3D

The Ultimate Wave Tahiti 3D

The Ultimate Wave Tahiti

2010 / released in IMAX 3D

Synopsis

Featuring nine-time world surfing champion Kelly Slater, The Ultimate Wave follows a quest to find the perfect wave-riding experience. Filmed in Tahiti and among the islands of French Polynesia, the film showcases dramatic giant screen surfing action in a unique Pacific paradise.

Kelly Slater and a group of friends arrive in Tahiti. With their host, Tahitian surfer Raimana Van Bastolaer they will seek out the best waves breaking on the reef at the famed surf site Teahupo’o. Kelly and Raimana share a passion for the waves, but different ideas about what surfing means: is it a modern competitive sport or an ancient Polynesian wave-riding art? Either way, if the right conditions arise, they hope to surf some unique giant barrels created by storm swells breaking atop the shallow reef.

As the surfer’s quest unfolds, the film explores the hidden forces at work shaping the waves and the islands that lie in their path. In stylized animated segments, the audience is propelled into the cosmos to discover the sources of a wave’s energy; and then back to Earth to witness the swirling dance of the atmosphere that will transfer energy deep into the ocean and shape a wave’s long journey across thousands of miles of open Pacific.

About the Film

  • Release date: 2010
  • Length: 45-min. and 24-min. versions
  • Release Format: 15/70 3D & 2D
  • Produced by: The Stephen Low Company / Perfect Wave Productions Inc.
  • Distributed by: K2 Communications & Stephen Low Distribution Inc.
  • Formats: 15/70, 8/70, Digital 2K/4K, Digital 2D/3D, Full Dome, HD/SD
  • Availability: 3D and 2D

Credits

  • Directed by: Stephen Low
  • Produced by: Pietro L. Serapiglia, Stephen Low
  • Editor: James Lahti
  • Narrated by: Michael Hanrahan
  • Written by: Alexander Low
  • Exec in Charge of Production: Dougal Boone Caron
  • Supervising Producer and Creative Consultant: Kelly Slater
  • Executive Producers: Jeff Cutler, Terry Hardy, Stephen Low, Mark Kresser
  • Action Sports Consultant: Ryan Kresser
  • Associate Producers: James Lahti, Alexander Low
  • Director of Photography: Mark Poirier
  • Surf Director of Photography: Mike Prickett
  • Underwater Photography: Stephen Low
  • Additional Surf Photography: Ron Condon
  • Aerial Photography: Ralph Mendoza
  • Original Music by: Michel Cusson
  • IMAX SANDDE Technology provided by IMAX Corporation
  • SANDDE Animator: Peter Stephenson
  • Visual Effects Supervisor: Mario Rachiele
  • Sound Design: Peter Thillaye
  • Production Manager: Michel Chauvin
  • Marine Coordinator: Raimana Van Bastolaer

Awards

Outstanding Achievement in Action Sports FilmmakingUltimate Wave Tahiti; Newport Beach Film Festival, Newport Beach, California, 2010

Bronze Palm AwardUltimate Wave Tahiti; Mexico International Film Festival, 2011

Jury Lycéen AwardUltimate Wave Tahiti; Festival Les Toiles de Mer, 2011

Best Film,  Sports Category—Ultimate Wave Tahiti; Blue Ocean Film Festival, Savannah, Georgia, 2010

Legends of Flight 3D

Legends of Flight 3D

Legends of Flight

2010 / released in IMAX 3D

Synopsis

Fly in the cockpit of some of aviation history’s most amazing aircraft. See how the design challenges, financial risks and the many lessons learned from a century of aviation trial and error have brought us to the dawn of a new era of revolutionary aircraft — Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner and the Airbus 380. Witness the construction and final assembly of the 787, and join chief test pilot Mike Carriker as he puts the new airliner through its rigorous test flights.

About the Film

  • Legends of Flight is directed by Stephen Low and produced by Pietro L. Serapiglia and executive produced by K2 Communications.
  • Release date: 2010
  • Format: released for exhibition in IMAX/IMAX 3D
  • Duration: 44 min.
  • Produced by: The Stephen Low Company
  • Distributed by: K2 Communications and The Stephen Low Company

Visit the official website for the film: www.legendsofflightfilm.com

Credits

  • Writer/Director: Stephen Low
  • Producers: Pietro Serapiglia, Stephen Low
  • Executive Producers: Robert Kresser, Jan Baird
  • Associate Producers: James Lahti, Alexander Low
  • Exec in Charge of Production: Dougal Boone Caron
  • Editor: James Lahti
  • Narrated by: Michael Hanrahan
  • Directors of Photography: William W. Reeve, Mark Poirier
  • Original Music by: Michel Cusson

Awards

Best Short DocumentaryLegends of Flight; Skyfest, Asheville, North Carolina, 2011

Silver Palm AwardLegends of Flight; Mexico International Film Festival, 2011

 

Mark Twain’s America 3D

Mark Twain’s America 3D

Mark Twain’s America

Filmed in IMAX 3D

Synopsis

A journey into the life and times of America’s most celebrated author and humorist. Through live-action 3D and astounding stereo images of the 19th century, Mark Twain’s America reveals this author’s remarkable life, and with it, an era of river trade, railroad expansion, wild-west frontiers, civil war and industrial revolution. Across the nation, people are at work keeping the memory of the 19th Century alive—restoring steamboats, re-enacting battles, driving locomotives and dancing to the music of brass bands. Mark Twain’s America captures these remarkable echoes of the 19th Century in magical 3D and weaves them together with classic stereo images of the era.

About the Film

Mark Twain’s America delivers the giant screen’s first autobiography — revealing through 3D imagery and Twain’s own words, his extraordinary life and times. The film rekindles the dramatic events and rich textures of Twain’s America truly for the first time, through the magic of IMAX 3D.

Release date: 1998
Duration: 40 min.
Format: 15/70 3D
Distributed by: Sony Pictures Classics
For availability / licensing, contact: Sony Pictures Classics
Produced by: The Stephen Low Company for Sony Pictures Classics and Ogden Entertainment
Distributed by: Sony Pictures Classics

Stephen Low
Director / Producer / Writer

Mitchell Cannold / Isaac Palmer / Jonathan Stern
Executive Producers

Andrew Kitzanuk
Director of Photography

James Lahti
Editor / Producer

Alexander Low
Screenplay

Anne Bancroft
Narrator

Alan Williams
Music

Production Notes

Mark Twain’s America was shot in 40 days over a 3-month period—covering many locations where Twain lived or traveled including Hannibal, Missouri; Virginia City, Nevada; Hartford, Connecticut; Elmira, New York; Montreal, Canada; Antietam, Maryland and of course, the Mississippi River.

To relive Mark Twain’s vision of America during his time, the production used an extensive collection of 19th century images, both 3D photographs from the California Museum of Photography at Riverside and 2D photos from Mark Twain research centers in Berkeley and Hartford. The 2D images were digitally converted into effective 3D images indistinguishable in quality from native 3D images.

The Last Buffalo 3D

The Last Buffalo 3D

The Last Buffalo

1990 / filmed in IMAX 3D

Synopsis

The Last Buffalo weaves together the visual worlds of a rich and savage ecosystem and of a sculptor who works relentlessly to fashion its wild creatures in metal. Set in the spectacular badlands of Southern Alberta, The Last Buffalo is a poetic 3D exploration of the wilderness—a dramatic and surreal poem with a poignant environmental message.

About the Film

Described as “a work of art” by the press, The Last Buffalo’s magical imagery and poetic visual storytelling demonstrated the tremendous possibilities of the revolutionary new IMAX 3D medium, helping drive forward the adoption of this technology around the world. Produced for the Suntory pavilion at Expo 90 (Osaka, Japan), The Last Buffalo became one of the most popular attractions at the fair, drawing over 1,940,000 viewers over six months. The film was the second produced in the revolutionary 15/70 3D medium for IMAX 3D theaters; it went on from its Expo debut to be exhibited in theaters around the world. The film is still exhibited more than a decade-and-a-half after its release. Release date: 1990 Duration: 27 minutes Format: 15/70 3D (also available in 2D) Produced by: Wild World Films Ltd., a subsidiary of IMAX Corporation Distributed by: IMAX Corporation Stephen Low Director Roman Kroitor and Sally Dundas Producers Susumu Sakane Executive Producer Andrew Kitzanuk, C.S.C. Director of Photography Noel Archambault Stereographer James Lahti Editor Eldon Rathburn Music

Production Notes

Filmed principally in the badlands of Alberta, Canada, the 3D production of The Last Buffalo employed a two-camera, beam-splitter rig to capture the left and right-eye 15/70 stereo footage. The large apparatus weighed nearly 2,000 pounds, posing unique logistical challenges for the team as they worked to capture remarkably intimate footage of plains buffalo, mountain lions, bears, cranes and other creatures. The film features sculptor William Lishman as he shapes likenesses of these creatures out of molten metal.

Clippings

“…startling… engrossing… must-see”
—Seattle Times

“an absolute must…a stunning cinematic achievement, surely one of the most innovative and majestic representations of the art of film…”
—Raymond Tomlin, The Vancouver Echo

“A landmark in the marriage of art and motion picture technology” ***** [5 stars]
—Michael Walsh, The Province

“breathtaking”
—Bill Brownstein, The Gazette, Montreal

“…a visual tour-de-force”
—Robert Bloomberg, StereoWorld Magazine

The Last Buffalo was awarded Japan’s Minister of the Environment Award (1990) and received the Outstanding Film Award from the Audio Visual Association of Japan (1990).