The IMAX Camera That Shot Christopher Nolan’s ‘The Odyssey’ Has Gone on Public Display

The camera used to shoot Christopher Nolan’s upcoming epic The Odyssey — the first movie ever to be shot entirely on IMAX cameras — has gone on public display in Los Angeles.

The IMAX Keighley, which was developed in conjunction with Nolan so he could shoot feature films on the large-format camera, is being shown to the public in its entirety for the first time. Movie critic Erik Davis shared photo and video of the Keighley to X.

Davis notes that the name Keighley comes from David Keighley, who was IMAX’s first Chief Quality Officer. He worked with the company for several decades, carefully checking theaters around the world to ensure the format was being presented to audiences correctly. He passed away last year, age 77 years old.

That Nolan has wrapped a film using nothing but IMAX cameras marks a milestone in movie-making. The cameras have traditionally been considered too large, noisy, and unwieldy to use for an entire production. That changed following a direct challenge from Nolan to IMAX.

“Chris called me up and said, ‘If you can figure out how to solve the problems, I will make [The Odyssey] 100 percent in IMAX.’ And that’s what we’re doing,” IMAX CEO Rich Gelfond said at the Cannes Film Festival last year.

Last year, it was reported that the new generation of IMAX cameras is 30 percent quieter and considerably lighter, with improved film processing techniques that enable quicker access to daily footage. Recently, YouTuber Adam Savage toured the IMAX HQ in L.A. when Nolan was checking dailies for The Odyssey.

It was reported that Nolan shot more than two million feet of IMAX film for The Odyssey, which puts the budget for raw film stock at around $3 million.

Y.M. Cinema Magazine calls the format one of the “most demanding motion picture formats ever built.” That’s because the 15-perforation, 70mm film runs horizontally through the camera instead of vertically. The physical image is almost 10 times the size of standard 35mm film. It means that The Odyssey will be a visual treat for anyone lucky enough to see the film in an IMAX theater on a 70mm projector.

Image credits: IMAX