Thursday, March 27, 2014

CinemaCon 2014: Christopher Nolan Talks "Interstellar"

Director Christopher Nolan showed up at CinemaCon this week to promote his upcoming sci-fi epic "Interstellar".


 Speaking with THR and Deadline afterwards, Nolan says the theatrical presentation of this film will be more important than any other flick of his career:

"On this film the technical aspect of how this film is presented is really going to be more important than on any film I've done before, so that means getting into partnership with the studios and theaters. We shot quite a lot of the film in IMAX, more than we had ever done in the past. There will be some really beautiful IMAX film prints that will be in certain key locations. And we are really maximizing the various technical capabilities out there, particularly in the sound mix. We have very ambitious plans in how we are going to take a very big approach as to how we maximize the potential of the existing sound system in theaters."

He also talked about the tone:

"I grew up in an era that was a golden age of the blockbuster, when something we might call a family film could have universal appeal. That's something I want to see again. In terms of the tone of the film, it looks at where we are as a people and has a universality about human experience."

Nolan used practical locations rather than CGI whenever he could. For scenes set within a space shuttle, actual images outside the windows so the actors could see what their characters would see. Nolan used his speech to exhibitors to push for his favorite format - film, more specifically IMAX film:

"I am not committed to film out of nostalgia. I am in favor of any kind of technical innovation but it needs to exceed what has gone before and so far nothing has exceeded anything that's come before ."

He also thinks that cinema technological advances are focused too much on the home movie watching and should be more focused on the theatrical experience, and theater owners should show more re-releases.


Interstellar has been around since 2006, when Steven Spielberg was attached to direct--the younger Nolan came on board to write the screenplay in 2007. As late as 2010, the idea was still in play for those two to collaborate.

The premise springs from "a scientific theory by Kip S. Thorne, a Caltech physicist and expert on relativity. His theory that says wormholes exist and can be used for time travel intrigued Spielberg, who attended a Caltech workshop on the subject with Thorne and other scientists."

Matthew McConaughey Jessica Chastain Casey Affleck Michael Caine Anne Hathaway and veteran character actor Bill Irwin Oscar winner Ellen Burstyn (Requiem for a Dream) Mackenzie Foy (The Conjuring The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2) John Lithgow Wes Bentley David Oyelowo David Gyasi Game of Thrones actor Elyes Gabel Matt Damon and Timothee Chalamet landed roles.

The script was penned by Chris and his younger brother Jonathan Nolan

Christopher Nolan Emma Thomas and Lynda Obst will produce the pic. Jordan Goldberg is executive producing.

All that was known about the plot at first was that it would follow a group of scientists who travel through a wormhole into another dimension.

The Ft. MacLeod Gazette added a key plot point. The "updated synopsis" includes a MINOR SPOILER:
Set in the future, the movie details the toll climate change has taken on agriculture, with corn the last crop to be cultivated. The scientists embark on a journey through a worm hole into other dimensions in search of somewhere other crops can be grown.
The film is set for release on November 7, 2014.

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