The head of the largest cinema network announced the ban on showing Russian films in IMAX

The Canadian company IMAX, which left the Russian market on June 1, banned the use of the format of the same name in Russia for showing domestic films. This was stated in an interview with RBC by Alexei Vasyasin, director general of the united cinema network Cinema Park and Formula Kino.

According to him, the equipment for showing films in the IMAX format belongs to domestic distributors. But to show the film in IMAX format, you need permission from the company.

“Technically, a projector can show any film. Another issue is that it is impossible to show a film in IMAX format without IMAX permission. Even Russian films in this format — “Movement Up”, “Stalingrad” — now, unfortunately, we cannot show, because there is a direct ban on the use of the format by the company,” Vasyasin said.

He believes that IMAX, which closed the Russian office, will return as soon as possible, but the Russian side intends to revise the terms in order to exclude the possibility of a unilateral withdrawal.

If IMAX does not return, she will face trials. “First, we will file lawsuits; secondly, we will show movies in a different format on this equipment. We have a very strict contract with them, according to which they are obliged to work here. If they don’t remember this contract by the end of this year, there will be a trial, ”concluded Vasyasin.

IMAX (short for Image Maximum, that is, “maximum image”) is a special film format that allows you to make the image brighter and clearer, creating an immersive effect for viewers due to the larger scale and special screen length that exceeds the human field of view. IMAX technology is patented by the Canadian company of the same name. Moreover, their rights extend not only to reproducing equipment, but also to special cameras, video processing software, and even to special speakers that create surround sound.

IMAX has been operating on the Russian market since 2003. In a report for the second quarter of 2022, the company said that as of June 30, the technology is being applied in 54 Russian cinemas.

Since June 2022, IMAX has not been operating in Russia. The Canadian company IMAX, which provides the cinema system of the same name, has left the Russian market since June 1.

“IMAX Corporation left Russia, the last day of its official representation and work here was May 31. All employees were fired - accordingly, the management of the corporation (represented by the vice president for Eastern Europe, India and the Middle East, who was based in Moscow) moved to London. From June 1, 2022, the IMAX Corporation no longer operates in Russia, ”said Roman Isaev, member of the Board of the Association of Cinema Owners.