Christopher Nolan’s recent blockbuster hit, The Odyssey, was the first full-length narrative movie shot entirely on 15/70mm IMAX film, with each frame exposed onto a 70×48.5mm negative. There’s been a countless amount of ink spilled over the challenges of working with the massive cameras needed to shoot the format for every scene (and about how few people were actaully able to see it as the director intended*), but recently the Instagram account for Sunny16Labs shared more details on a production quirk that movie buffs noticed in behind-the-scenes footage: Nolan’s strange choice of director’s viewfinder.
Directors and their cinematographers often carry around devices that allow them to compose and block shots before having to set up the actual camera. This is especially important if you’re shooting film, as those cameras tend to be bulkier and heavier than their digital counterparts (and don’t have the same ability to give you an exact preview of your shot). These devices often have a lens mount, so you can see what the scene will look like through the actual glass you’re shooting with.
One small problem, though: IMAX cameras don’t use the same lenses as their Super35 or full-frame counterparts, and the optics need to be much larger and heavier to cover the massive film format, so there aren’t many pre-made solutions. According to Sunny16Labs, the IMAX team solved this by modifying a Pentax 67, removing the shutter assembly and modifying the mount so the camera could accept the same lenses as the IMAX film cameras.
Of course, taking out the shutter means that the camera can no longer capture images. But because it was designed to shoot stills on medium format 56mm x 70mm film, its viewfinder and mirror are capable of showing the entire image from an IMAX lens. The modified camera also includes frame-line previews for the IMAX negative, allowing Nolan and longtime collaborator and cinematographer Hoyte van Hoytema to choose their lens and framing before having to set up the massive camera rig.
This isn’t actually the first time Nolan and his team have used this kind of setup, as there are also shots of them using it on the set of Dunkirk. Cary Joji Fukunaga, director of the James Bond film No Time To Die, has also been photographed using a 67 with an IMAX logo on the viewfinder. (It could be that it’s the exact same camera; there’s famously only so much IMAX gear out there.) Likewise, cinematographer James Neihouse has discussed using a modified Pentax 67 as a director’s viewfinder, but he says he was able to take pictures with the version he used, suggesting it was a different design that retained the shutter.
When you keep making a billion dollars at the box office, who’s going to tell you no?