After being run by ODEON for the last 10 years, the British Film Institute is taking the reins of its massive IMAX screen back.
The circular BFI IMAX in Waterloo is a London landmark for cinephiles. It’s the biggest cinema screen in all of Britain and a glorious one at that. Yes, it’s a little cramped but it’s huge, the image is crystal clear and the sound is piercing. For the last 10 years, ODEON has been running things although the venue has still been called BFI IMAX.
That tenure is now coming to an end and BFI will continue to operate the cinema, which is close to their Southbank venue. According to a press release, BFI IMAX will close for a short period of time, before opening again on July 22 to screen Thor: Love and Thunder. The next films to screen on the biggest screen in Britain are Bullet Train and Jordan Peele’s highly anticipated Nope.
The press release calls the cinema a “a flagship BFI cinema venue in London” and states that “it will be fully operated and programmed in-house again by the BFI, continuing its relationship with IMAX to present audiences with the best formats possible via IMAX digital 4K projection and IMAX 15/70, the large format IMAX GT projection system.”
The release also promises a proper re-launch later in the year; “The new vision and plans for the venue will be announced in the autumn.” Tickets can be booked early July for Thor. While the screen will most likely continue to showcase some of the biggest films of the year, perhaps now with the BFI in charge of programming, there will now also be room for smaller, visually equally grand films as Thor to have screenings.
