About "Chapter 51" - in70mm.com EXCLUSIVE | Read more at in70mm.com The 70mm Newsletter |
| Written by: Paul Rayton, Hollywood, USA. | Date: 25.05.2025 |
 Cast and crew and friends taking their seats. Picture: Paul RaytonTyler Shields has been circulating around the fringes of Hollywood for a number of years. He’s had a number of photography exhibitions featuring his work, and has done a couple of low-budget features. All these were preparatory exercises for his surprising new feature, “Chapter 51”, which had a premiere/cast&crew screening at the AMC Universal Citywalk multiplex, in Los Angeles, on Mon., May 19, 2025. Projected in digital Imax, it was presented in their Screen #19, the Imax house, bumping out 2 screenings of the Imax 70mm film "Sinners" to accommodate the rental. (Clearly, the rental had been arranged prior to the announcement of the 1-week return engagement of “Sinners”, or he’d never have been able to schedule it!) The first “claim to fame” for this 1 hr. 40 min. film is that it is produced in, and ideally is to be shown in, Imax, “The King of Film Presentation”. But there’s much more to it than that: Shields utilized a veritable extravaganza of diverse film technologies to create the show. • Go to "Chapter 51" - Review - New Imax Movie You'll Probably Never See - in70mm.com EXCLUSIVE • Go to "Chapter 51" Q & A Session - in70mm.com EXCLUSIVE | More in 70mm reading: "Chapter 51" - Review - New Imax Movie You'll Probably Never See - in70mm.com EXCLUSIVE "Chapter 51" Q & A Session - in70mm.com EXCLUSIVE in70mm.com's page about IMAX & Omnimax VistaVision Visits the TCL Chinese Now showing in 70mm in a theatre near you! 70mm Cinemas in North America in70mm.com's list of films blown up to 70mm 70mm Engagements by Title 35mm to 70mm Engagements by Year Large Format 7OMM Engagements Month by month premiere list of wide gauge and 3-strip films Chronological premiere list of major 70mm films 70mm Blow Up List Dolby Stereo |
 The IMAX camera is starring in a film filmed in IMAX. Picture from the screen. Picture: Paul RaytonThe key point is, he emphasizes, that it was photographed exclusively on film. It was created using all the available film gauges (65/70mm, 35mm, 16mm, and Super-8mm), both in B&W and color. But it’s a lot more than that, too: He’s used 70mm both horizontally and vertically (i.e., Imax film, as well as “conventional” 5-perf 70mm formatting) and literally dozens of other variations. VistaVision gets used for a cameo appearance, as does Ultra Panavison 70. One brief scene was photographed using a hand-cranked camera from the silent days. He also innovated a bit by making some scenes in what he called “anamorphic Imax”, a new concept entirely. All of the various elements were put together into a bit of a noir-ish, comedic drama that plays out in multiple aspect ratios. These aspect ratios change frequently during the course of the movie, as it shifts between contemporaneous events and clips from past movies, etc. Storyline is an “autobiographical” tale of an FBI Inspector who was “retired” from the force somewhat involuntarily, and the mysterious case of sequential murders which precipitated it all. (A separate review will discuss the film's plot and characters in more detail.) It took Mr. Shields some 4 years to put it all together, and one can only imagine the amount of time he personally invested in it, along with the cooperation (i.e., donation) of film and borrowed equipment to make this melange all come together. | |
 Post LA screening 19. May 2025. Left to right: Monib Abhat, Logan Huffman, Tyler Shields, Abigail Breslin, Neuman Mannas, Rich Cook, Tu Morrow, Todd Mandel, John Mocker. Picture: Paul RaytonMr. Shields leaps into the category of “multi-hyphenate” with this project, in that he’s the director-writer-cinematographer-actor-producer (with some other shared producer credits). There are several performers who have some previous screen credits, notably Colman Domingo Abigail Breslin, and Charlotte Lawrence. The packed house of performers, contributors, and industry pros enjoyed the screening. It could be considered quite a miracle that so many disparate pieces of film could be assembled and run successfully, but Mr. Shields accomplished that with a flourish! Following the screening, Mr. Shields conducted a Q&A between the audience and himself, along with several cast & crew members. | |
About "Chapter 51" | |
 Story:• The story is told somewhat as a “film inside a film” tale, with a fictional mega-hit movie “Dissident” being the central thread. The thing about “Dissident” was that 3(!) of the actresses playing the lead in that movie were strangely murdered in the course of the stress-riddled several years of production of the movie. By some miracle, the 4th actress brought in to play the part was mysteriously spared that fate, although the attempt was made. Three deaths in the course of a production are remarkable, to put it mildly, but the perpetrator then had the audacity to post online videos of his misdeeds – and still the FBI seemed to be unable to solve the whodunit. Starring • Abigail Breslin, Allie Marie Evans, Andy Janbek, Annie Given Fink, Charolette Lawrence, Colin Paolo, Colman Domingo, Connor Paolo, Dan Huffman, David Sullivan, Donnie Calloway, Dylan Sprayberry, Eloisa Huggins, Emily Alyn Lind, Emily Robinson, Heston Horwin, Ivan Rodrigues, John Mocker, Laurel Marsden, Logan Huffman, Mike Gray, Mo Abhat, Monroe Cline, Olivia Wachsberger, Pruette Carl, Rich Cook, Rob Bailey, Sadie Chandler Credit • Tyler Shields (Director, Writer, Editor, Cinematographer), Keenan Thompson & John Ryan Jr. (Executive Producers), Neuman Mannas (Composer) Running time • 104 min (1 hour 44 min) Photographic systems: IMAX 65mm, Panavision System 65, and Ultra Panavison 70. About 70% of feature is shot on 65mm, 35mm and 70mm prints are expected. From Tyler Shields Instagram Tyler Shields will debut "Chapter 51", a film that has been in the making for four years and kept completely secret until now. The film features an incredible cast, including two Oscar nominees, and is the first *) in history to be shot in every film format, including 8mm, 16mm, 35mm, 65mm, and even a brand-new format never seen before. Screenings • April 14, 2025, at Lincoln Square in New York City (Screen #13, their IMAX auditorium) • May 19, 2025, Cast & Crew screening at the AMC Universal Citywalk multiplex #19, Los Angeles *) Danish short film "CUT" premiered in 2024 - shot in 8, 16, 35 and 65mm | |
 Tyler Shields wrote, directed and photographed "Chapter 51" largely in 65mm. Picture: Tyler ShieldsFrom the official Kodak Instagram page: • "For the past four years, Tyler Shields has been working on a secret film. It’s the first feature in history to be shot on every film format, including 8mm, 16mm, 35mm, and 65mm—and it even features a brand-new format that no one has ever seen before. The film, titled "Chapter 51", was shot using Panavision 35mm, the Panavision System 65, and Ultra 70, including the legendary lenses used in "Ben-Hur" (1959). It is also the first film since the 1960s to record sync sound in VistaVision. However, the majority of the film was captured using IMAX film cameras.” • Go to Now showing in 70mm in a theatre near you! • Go to IMAX to develop new fleet of next generation IMAX film cameras • Go to News about "Sinners" by Ryan Coogler | |
 • Go to About "Chapter 51" - in70mm.com EXCLUSIVE | |
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