Academy Celebrates 70mm All Summer Long

June 1, 2012 by J!-ENT 

Beverly Hills, CA – The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will kick off its summer screening series, “The Last 70mm Film Festival,” on Monday, July 9, with a big-screen presentation of “It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World” (1963). The six-film series, which will run through August 13, will showcase 70mm classics from different genres, and will include a new print of “Spartacus” and rarely screened 70mm short subjects. All screenings will be held on Monday evenings at 7:30 p.m. at the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater. Pre-show festivities will begin at 7 p.m.

As theaters increasingly move towards digital projection, there has never been a better time to celebrate these vibrant, clear 70mm prints.

The complete schedule for “The Last 70mm Film Festival” is as follows:

July 9         ”It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World” (1963)
“The Miracle of Todd-AO” (1956), a short film detailing the technological advancement of the Todd-AO wide-angle lens and the widescreen format as used in “Around the World in 80 Days” and “Oklahoma!”
July 16         ”Sleeping Beauty” (1959)
“Williamsburg: The Story of a Patriot” (1957), the longest continually running motion picture in American film history, which still runs daily in VistaVision at the twin Patriot Theatres in Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia.
July 23         ”Grand Prix” (1966)
“The March of Todd-AO” (1959), follow-up to “The Miracle of Todd-AO,” featuring the technology as used in “South Pacific.”
July 30         ”The Sound of Music” (1965)
August 6         ”2001: A Space Odyssey” (1968)
“To Be Alive!” (1965), the Academy Award®-winning documentary short subject that shows the progression from childhood to adulthood in different cultures around the world.
August 13         ”Spartacus” (1960)
From a new 70mm print.
An updated list of pre-show details will be available at Oscars.org.

Series passes for “The Last 70mm Film Festival” are on sale now. Passes are $20 for the general public and $15 for Academy members and students with valid ID.

Tickets to individual evenings, if still available, will go on sale Friday, June 29. Tickets are $5 for the general public and $3 for Academy members and students with valid ID. They may be purchased online at www.oscars.org, by mail, in person at the Academy during regular business hours or, depending on availability, on the night of the screening when the doors open at 6:30 p.m. The Samuel Goldwyn Theater is located at 8949 Wilshire Boulevard in Beverly Hills. For more information, call (310) 247-3600 or visit www.oscars.org.