The Big Picture | "the story of the people reclaiming the cinema"

The Big Picture tells the story of the forgotten IMAX cinema in Bristol and its recent revival as a community cinema space. Plans for the cinema emerged in the 1990s, and it was opened for the millennium, but various problems led to it being closed down by 2007. It then just sat there, unused until a few years ago. Now – as part of Bristol Aquarium – it’s known as Bristol Megascreen, and is available for film festivals, one-off film events, and community hire.

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Directed by Bristol-based multi award-winning filmmaker Arthur Cauty, at the heart of the story is the film community in Bristol, who were able to revive this amazing space and get it showing films again. Here’s a chat with Arthur about the doc.

What inspired you to make The Big Picture?

The moment I learned about the Bristol IMAX, I thought, “This would make a really cool film.” Just the fact that it had remained intact but also weirdly completely forgotten, right in the middle of a city with such a thriving film scene—I thought was crazy. But what really grabbed me was the story of the people reclaiming the cinema. It wasn’t demolished, it wasn’t taken over by some corporation—it was revived as a community space. That was really exciting to see.

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When did you first hear about the Bristol IMAX?

I moved to Bristol long after the IMAX had closed, but I’d lived and worked here as a filmmaker for the best part of a decade before I’d heard anything about an IMAX being here. I knew the building—a big, cylindrical, red brick tower in the harbourside—but as it was right next to the aquarium, I’d just assumed it was a giant fish tank. Turns out a lot of people shared that assumption.

I first learned about the IMAX when Forbidden Worlds Film Festival came along, and Dave Taylor at 20th Century Flicks got in touch with me about showing my short film The Last Video Store as part of the festival.

Former Bristol IMAX Director Tracey Guiry

What was it like seeing your film on an IMAX screen?

It was mad! It’s always great to see your work on any cinema screen, but this was something else. I was a bit nervous about how it would look on such a huge screen, but the moment it started, any little worries quickly evaporated. It looked amazing. And it was sold out—there were 300 people in there! To hear them all clap and applaud as the credits rolled was something I’ll never forget. And then I stuck around to watch Mad Max 2, which was even more amazing at that scale!

But the cinema’s not running as a proper IMAX anymore?

It’s not a proper IMAX in the sense that it’s not currently able to show IMAX films. The team behind Forbidden Worlds have got the space up and running, filling the screen as best they can with a Christie digital projector—and it looks seriously impressive—but it’s not a “proper” IMAX in its current state. It is an IMAX screen, and the original 70mm IMAX GT projector is still there—it’s the size of a car, so you’d need to demolish the building to get it out. It’s certainly got the capacity to show IMAX again. It just needs a teeny tiny cash injection. Cough cough Christopher Nolan? James Cameron? Anybody?

What’s so special about 70mm IMAX?

IMAX is short for “Image Maximum”. The idea behind it is that it’s big—big sound, big image—creating the most immersive cinema experience possible, with the picture filling your entire peripheral vision.

You get IMAX screens in multiplexes, but those use 4K laser projection. The Bristol IMAX was set up to show 15/70, which is the original 70mm IMAX film format. It’s widely regarded as the highest-resolution film format ever conceived, equivalent to about 16–18K in digital terms. Mechanically there’s nothing quite like an IMAX 70mm projector. A single print of a two-and-a-half hour movie is about ten miles long and weighs over a quarter of a tonne – and for a 3D show, you’d have two of those prints! When Oppenheimer came out, there were only around 30 cinemas in the world that could show the film in 70mm. There are two theatres in London capable of showing it, possibly one in Manchester, but all the others in the country have closed. Bristol could do it—but again, it needs the money!

What attracted you to Bristol as a filmmaker?

Bristol is known for its political culture, punk ethos, sense of independence and community, and there’s a vibrant arts, music, and film scene here—which is part of what drew me to the city. I’ve always found the film community here to be friendly and welcoming. Less gatekeeping, fewer egos, and more collaboration. Compared to other places I’ve worked, it’s been easier to make films here, easier to get stuff done. And making The Big Picture was no exception. It was just a case of reaching out to a handful of people, and the response was, “Absolutely – let’s do this!”

How did you approach making The Big Picture?

The film scene in Bristol is rich and varied, and there’s lots going on, but it’s also quite small and tight-knit. You need to meet maybe half a dozen people and you’re networked into everything that goes on film-wise. And that’s very much how The Big Picture came together. I reached out to a few of the people I knew, and it grew pretty quickly and organically from there.

In fitting with the theme of the film, and also my background as a filmmaker, it was a fairly grassroots affair—so a very small budget and an even smaller crew. A few favours, some goodwill, and a lot of DIY mentality. The aquarium staff were amazing from the get-go, offering us access to the IMAX time and time again, often with very little notice. We shot a lot of the interviews in there and spent many days rifling through the projector room, unearthing bits of archive and old offcuts of 70mm film.

We were due to start filming at Forbidden Worlds Film Festival in May 2024, but a couple of days before the festival I caught Covid and ended up missing the whole thing! So there was a certain amount of rolling with the punches and adapting, as with any production.

Interviewing Ti Singh at the Former IMAX. Courtesy of Katie Simmons

What were the biggest challenges you faced while making the film?

The first thing that comes to mind was trying to get across the sheer enormity of the screen and the auditorium. It’s a bit like the Grand Canyon. You can shoot a photograph of it and it can look beautiful, but you don’t necessarily get a sense of the scale. You really need to be there to experience it for yourself. And that was very much my experience of filming in the IMAX. Use a wide lens to fit everything in the image and it makes everything look small. Use a longer lens and nothing fits. Hopefully I’ve done it justice!

It was also tricky locating any archive from when the place was a functioning IMAX. Usually, it’s easy to find stuff on stock sites, social media or YouTube, but we’re talking about the years 2000–2007. I mean, iPhones didn’t even exist yet, and YouTube was barely a thing. Bristol Aquarium didn’t really have anything. We The Curious didn’t have much. I found one old leaflet in a museum in Devon. It was looking pretty sparse for a while. Luckily, Andy—the original projectionist—had a bunch of old Mini DV footage of the projector room, which was mostly salvageable, and a couple of other former staff members had some bits and pieces too. Once I’d tracked them down, things started to come together.

Director Arthur Cauty Filming in the IMAX Projector Room. Courtesy of Katie Simmons

Tell us about your background in film.

I’m self-taught. I started out as a kid making films with my brothers and friends on an old VHS camcorder. We’d shoot weird Monty Pythonesque comedy sketches and ultra-violent slasher films we were too young to watch, let alone make. We didn’t have editing facilities, so we’d play the soundtrack on a stereo in the background and record each shot in order, taping over anything that didn’t work.

Thankfully, I’ve advanced a bit since then! I worked as a camera operator and editor in broadcast for a while. For the past ten years I’ve been making documentaries—mostly shorts—which have played at festivals such as Raindance, Aesthetica, Indy Shorts, and Bristol’s own Encounters.

I won first prize in the documentary category of the world’s biggest short film competition, My RØDE Reel, in 2020, which is how I funded The Big Picture—and also where all my lights and sound kit came from! The Big Picture is my second feature.

Where can we see The Big Picture?

Currently, the only place to see The Big Picture is at our world premiere at Bristol Megascreen (the former IMAX) on Wednesday 28 May, which is the opening night of this year’s Forbidden Worlds Film Festival. After that, we’re hoping for a decent film festival run, and eventually a home on one of the streaming platforms. Watch this space!