Unit 1.1 Research

The BFI IMAX is a 500-seat (including wheelchair spaces), state-of-the-art, large-format cinema on the South Bank.

• The screen is more than 20 metres high (nearly the height of five double-decker buses) and 26 metres wide.
• A 11,600-watt digital surround-sound system
• An IMAX projection system (the most sophisticated motion-picture projection system in the world).

Working together, these elements immerse viewers in larger-than-life images and ultra-realistic digital sound, making them feel as if they are literally "in the picture".

The IMAX building
It was opened in 1999 and was made possible thanks to £15 million from the Arts Council of England's Lottery Fund.

It was designed by award-winning architect Bryan Avery of Avery Associates Architects

The multi-storey, glass-enclosed cylinder, illuminated by coloured lighting effects at night, serves as a beacon to the revitalised South Bank.

The BFI London iMax is situated in the centre of Waterloo, literally in the middle of a huge roundabout. Since it opened in 1999 it has become an iconic building and something of a London landmark and popular tourist attraction. Apart from being a state-of-the-art cinema in which films are shown on the iMax format, the building itself with its innovative, circular design and glass exterior is worth visiting.

Despite being surrounded on all sides by the constant hum of the capital’s road traffic, the building itself is virtually immune to any noise pollution as it was specifically designed to absorb noise. In fact, the whole building floats gracefully on a series of bearings, as it perches just above a tube line and the rumble of trains would not have been a welcome addition to a night at the cinema. So, when you’re watching a film, the closest you’ll come to noticing a double-decker bus is by looking at the screen, which stretches up to the height of five of them.

The iMax format is well known around the world and there are currently over 60 iMax cinemas. Most of these showcase documentary or specialist films and many of the buildings tend to be of a pioneering or ground-breaking nature, with design being a key feature, rather than the often bland look of many conventional cinemas. The London iMax certainly has a wow factor and it stands out from the more traditional buildings that sit across from it. The modernity of the building is actually in stark contrast to some of its neighbors but this only adds to its appeal. It does have a few more modern cousins situated nearby and it is actually very well placed as a piece of iconic architecture, sitting as it does in the pathway to the South Bank.