“Adventures in Wild California” Delivers Bold Rush of Extreme Nature at Discovery Place

IMAX® film provides extreme look at California’s natural wonders beginning Sept. 8.

August 27, 2009

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Audiences can experience a bold rush of extreme nature on the largest movie screen in the Carolinas as Discovery Place introduces “Adventures in Wild California” in The Charlotte Observer IMAX® Dome Theatre beginning Tuesday, Sept. 8.

The wilds of California are not so much a place as they are a state of mind - a free-spirited, nature-infused way of life that is viscerally captured in “Adventures in Wild California,” an IMAX® theatre adventure from MacGillivray Freeman Films and K2 Communications. Through a myriad of exciting and touching personal stories, the film reveals how the wild lifestyles of California culture are influenced by the untouched California wilderness that surrounds them.

Guests will experience a place inhabited by extreme athletes, innovative scientists and fearless conservationists who keep pushing the limits of what is possible for humans to achieve in nature. The film sends audiences on a virtual expedition careening down icy slopes with snowboarders; twirling on thermals above the clouds with sky-surfers; swimming through the oceans with baby otters and their surrogate human mother; excavating the heart of a thirty-story tall Giant Sequoia with botanists; flying through the air during an aerial landing on a bald eagle’s nest and emerging from under the spray of one of the Pacific’s biggest, surfable waves. The heart-pounding imagery recreates an experience of California’s furthest edges few will ever know first-hand.

Narrated by Emmy® -nominated actor Jimmy Smits, “Adventures in Wild California” reveals how the unique culture and adventuresome spirit of the west are inspired by the beauty and majesty of its many wildernesses. A celebration of California’s wild nature and a call to preserve and protect its wild places for future generations of adventurers, the film introduces audiences to passionate adventurers including skysurfer Troy Hartman; Sequoia Tree Biologist Dr. Stephen Sillett; Maverick’s surfer Jeff Clark; freefall cinematographer Joe Jennings; snowboarder Bryan Iguchi; Sea Otter Aquarist Sue Campbell; Bald Eagle Conservationist Peter Sharpe; and the ironworkers of the Golden Gate Bridge.

“Adventures in Wild California” is directed by lauded, large-format filmmaker, Greg MacGillivray from a script by Mark Krenzien. The film was produced by Greg MacGillivray, Mark Krenzien and Alec Lorimore. The production team includes directors of photography, Greg MacGillivray and Brad Ohlund, production manager, Cris Andrei and production coordinator, Scotty Guinn.

Tickets to “Adventures in Wild California” are $8 for ages 14-59, $7 for ages 2-13 and 60+ and are free for children younger than 2. Special combo tickets for admission to the Museum and “Adventures in Wild California” are $13. Group and Member discounts also are available. Visit discoveryplace.org or call 800-935-0553 for showtimes.

About Discovery Place

Discovery Place is located in uptown Charlotte at 301 N. Tryon Street. Convenient parking is available in Discovery Place Parking Deck at the corner of Sixth and Church streets. For more information about Discovery Place, guests can call 704-372-6261 or visit discoveryplace.org.

One of the top hands-on science museums in the nation and one of the top five most-visited sites among museums and historical attractions in North Carolina, Discovery Place provides ever-changing, entertaining facilities that foster experiences in areas that range from life science to marine biology. More than half million people from all over the United States visit Discovery Place, the IMAX® Dome Theatre and Charlotte Nature Museum each year. Discovery Place is supported, in part, with a Basic Operating Grant from the Arts & Science Council in addition to the generous contributions of the Museum’s philanthropic members, annual fund donors and corporate sponsors.

About IMAX Corporation

IMAX Corporation is one of the world’s leading entertainment technology companies, specializing in digital and film-based motion picture technologies. The worldwide IMAX network is among the most important and successful theatrical distribution platforms for major event Hollywood films around the globe, with IMAX theatres delivering the world’s best cinematic presentations using proprietary IMAX, IMAX 3D, and IMAX DMR technology. IMAX DMR is the Company’s groundbreaking digital remastering technology that allows it to transform digitally virtually any conventional motion picture into the unparalleled image and sound quality of The IMAX Experience. IMAX’s renowned projectors display crystal-clear images on the world’s biggest screens, and the IMAX brand is recognized throughout the world for extraordinary and immersive entertainment experiences for consumers. As of September 30, 2006, there were 280 IMAX theatres operating in 40 countries.

IMAX®, IMAX® 3D, IMAX DMR®, IMAX MPX® and The IMAX Experience® are trademarks of IMAX Corporation. More information on the Company can be found at www.imax.com.

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