The Dark Knight Rises (2012): Nolan Shoots 45-50 Minutes In IMAX

Christopher Nolan was the first director to incorporate the use of both 35mm and IMAX cameras in a major film, with The Dark Knight. 

Now, in an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Christopher Nolan, the director of The Dark Knight Rises, revealed that after the edits are finished, about 45-50 minutes of the third Batman installment will have been shot in IMAX as well.

“We shot about twice what we did last time [on The Dark Knight], at least. Last time we were about 25 minutes [in IMAX]. Obviously, I haven’t cut [the rest of The Dark Knight Rises] yet, so I don’t know the exact running time, but I think we’ll be in the 45 to 50 minute range. Basically all the actions sequences, and some of the more large-scale other bits of the film that aren’t necessarily action. We even shot some dialogue scenes and some quite intimate dramatic scenes, which we haven’t done before. And so some of that will make its way into the film.”

Nolan is then asked if he ever considered shooting The Dark Knight Rises entirely with an IMAX camera.

“I didn’t, because the cameras are so loud and so large, it wouldn’t really have been fair for the actors to make them do all the dramatic scenes that way. Although, I have to say, there were some very intense scenes that we did do in front of this massive camera that sounds like a generator or something, and they really did a spectacular job.”

What about another movie?

“Oh, it would depend on the film. I don’t like to use ADR sound — I don’t like to record the dialogue afterwards. And so, unless they could make an IMAX camera that was quiet enough to shoot dialogue scenes, I think I’d always want to go to 35mm,  or 65mm like we did with Inception.”

The Dark Knight Rises hits theaters July 20th, 2012 and is directed by Christopher Nolan starring Christian Bale as Batman, Tom Hardy as Bane, Anne Hathaway as Selina Kyle/Catwoman, Gary Oldman as Commissioner Gordon, Morgan Freeman as Lucius Fox, Michael Cain as Alfred, Juno Temple and Josh Pence as a young Ra’s al Ghul.

Head on over to the Cosmic Book News The Dark Knight Rises Movie Hub for even more news, trailers and images.