After a sneak preview over the weekend, Iowa’s first “I-MAX” theatre will open to the public later this week. The Science Station in downtown Cedar Rapids is home to the huge new facility. A spokesman says the I-MAX experience is so remarkable due to the film size.Micah Zirnhelt is marketing coordinator for the dome theater. He says standard movies use 35-millimeter film while the I-MAX used 70-millimeter film for sharper pictures, better clarity and contrast. It’s also shown on a 60-by-80-foot wrap-around screen. The 180-degree dome effect makes viewers feel like they’re in the middle of the film. Zirnhelt says there’s a growing library of I-MAX films to show, with about 200 available.The projection system alone cost one-point-six million dollars. The theatre is part of a seven-point-three million-dollar expansion of the science museum. He says the surround-sound audio system has ten thousand watts of power.The grand opening of the dome theater in Cedar Rapids is Friday. For more information, surf to “www.sciencestation.org” on the Internet. Iowa’s second I-MAX theatre is planned for Davenport.
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