If you want to watch Christopher Nolan’s ancient Greek epic, The Odyssey, you can easily stream a highly compressed digital file on your phone in a few months. But for a specific, rapidly growing breed of cinephiles, that sounds like absolute heresy.
To experience a film like this the way it was actually shot—on giant, heavy strips of physical celluloid—you need a projector that can handle 70mm film. There's just one problem. The machines capable of running these massive prints are exceedingly rare, and the projectionists who actually know how to operate them without melting the film are an endangered species.
Yet, across Los Angeles, historic theaters have spent the last few weeks in a manic, high-stakes race to revive this analog format. It isn't just about showing one summer blockbuster; it’s a desperate, expensive attempt to pull a century-old craft back from the brink of total extinction.
The Mad Rush to Rebuild the Projection Booth
Take a trip to Brand Boulevard in Glendale. The historic Alex Theatre, a gorgeous 1925 movie palace built with Greco-Roman and Egyptian architectural flourishes, is currently undergoing a massive transformation. For the last 35 years, the Alex functioned primarily as a performing arts space, hosting live music, comedy, and theater. It hadn't screened a movie on physical film since Terminator 2: Judgment Day back in 1991.
That changed when the theater's leadership realized they had a golden opportunity to reclaim their cinematic heritage.
The theater's owner and artistic director, Miles Williams, teamed up with Taylor Umphenour, a veteran projectionist and founder of Film Leader Co.. Together, they embarked on a brutal five-week sprint to completely rebuild the Alex's projection booth from scratch. They tore out several rows of seating in the balcony to make room for a custom-built, soundproofed projector room. They hauled in a massive, dual-gauge 35mm/70mm projector, ran brand-new electrical lines, and installed a state-of-the-art sound system designed to match the sheer physical scale of 70mm film.
This wasn't some casual weekend DIY project. It was a race against the clock, with nail guns echoing off the theater’s plaster Doric columns right up until the paint was practically drying on opening night.
And the Alex isn't alone. Other legendary L.A. houses, like the Westwood Village Theatre, have also structured multi-week, three-times-a-day 70mm runs for the film. These venues are betting hundreds of thousands of dollars that audiences will reject the convenience of digital projection in favor of something far more tactile.
Why 70mm Film Actually Matters
Is this all just hipster nostalgia, or is there a genuine visual difference?
Honestly, the difference is night and day. Standard digital theaters project images in 2K or 4K resolution. A pristine 70mm film print, however, possesses an estimated equivalent resolution of roughly 12K. The sheer physical size of the frame—more than three times the size of standard 35mm film—allows for an unprecedented amount of detail, color depth, and visual texture.
When you watch a 70mm print, you're not looking at a grid of cold, digital pixels. You're looking at light shining directly through microscopic silver halide crystals suspended on a moving strip of plastic. The result is a richer, warmer, and vastly more immersive image.
"By shooting on film, you're really letting the screen disappear," Christopher Nolan has frequently argued when defending his format of choice. "You're getting a feeling of 3D without the glasses."
But bringing that image to life requires a logistical nightmare. A single 70mm print of a lengthy epic can weigh upwards of 600 pounds. The physical film reel is miles long. Shipping these massive platters of celluloid across the country costs thousands of dollars, and they must be handled with extreme delicacy. If a projectionist makes a single error while threading the machine, the heavy-duty bulb can instantly burn a hole straight through the incredibly rare, irreplaceable print.
The Scarcity of the Modern Projectionist
The hardest part of this analog revival isn't finding the vintage projectors—it's finding the people who actually know how to run them.
When the film industry aggressively transitioned to digital projection in the late 2000s and early 2010s, thousands of experienced union projectionists were laid off or forced into retirement. Today, most modern multiplexes are entirely automated. A manager simply presses a button on a computer screen, or a digital schedule trigger starts the movie files remotely. There is no one in the booth.
Reclaiming the medium of 70mm means rebuilding a specialized labor force from scratch. Veteran projectionists like Taylor Umphenour have essentially had to act as mentors, training a new generation of technicians to splice film, align heavy lenses, and monitor the delicate tension of the platter systems in real time.
It’s an incredibly stressful job. During a 70mm screening, the projectionist cannot simply walk away and grab a soda. They have to stand by the machine, listening to the steady hum of the gears, checking for dust, adjusting the focus, and ensuring the film doesn't wrap around the platter and tear itself to pieces. It’s a performance in its own right, happening entirely behind glass at the back of the auditorium.
How to Experience Analog Cinema Yourself
If you're in Southern California and want to see what all the fuss is about, you have a few incredible options that bypass the chaotic, instantly sold-out IMAX venues.
- The Alex Theatre (Glendale): Thanks to their recent renovation, they are running The Odyssey on their newly installed 70mm system. Because the venue is historically known for live events rather than first-run movies, tickets here are often much easier to secure than at the major multiplexes.
- Westwood Village Theatre (Westwood): This classic historic theater is hosting a dedicated three-week run of the film in standard, non-IMAX 70mm, offering an incredibly sharp, classic cinematic presentation.
- Universal Cinema AMC at CityWalk (Hollywood): For those seeking the colossal IMAX 70mm presentation, this remains one of the premier designated locations in the state, though you'll need to book your tickets well in advance.
The mad rush to get these projectors spinning proves that cinema isn't just about consuming content. It's about preservation, scale, and respect for a physical craft. So bypass the standard digital screen this weekend. Seek out an analog print, look back at the little window at the rear of the theater, and appreciate the intense labor keeping the magic of celluloid alive.
