Nolan’s The Odyssey: IMAX Ambitions and Ingenious Solutions

Christopher Nolan has never been one to shy away from a challenge, but his latest project, The Odyssey, appears to have set a new bar even by his standards. This swords-and-sandals epic, with Matt Damon stepping into the role of Odysseus, is the first major Hollywood production to be filmed exclusively on IMAX cameras—a technical feat that’s left many in the industry raising their eyebrows.

Filming with IMAX kit is not for the faint-hearted. The cameras are famously cumbersome and, more to the point, sound like a kitchen appliance on the rampage. Matt Damon, reflecting on the experience during a recent podcast appearance, described the ordeal in vivid terms:

“IMAX cameras are really loud. It sounds like a blender, like a Cuisinart in your face when the camera's close to you. So, there's never been these dialogue [scenes in IMAX]. We couldn't have this conversation with a normal IMAX camera because you wouldn't be able to hear us. They built this giant thing around the IMAX for those dialogue scenes and a system of mirrors, so your eye line would be close to the camera, and you could talk to the other actor. The amount of work that went into figuring out how to do [that], because he wanted to do 100 percent IMAX and he did it!”

Engineering Around the Noise

Dialogue scenes have always been a sticking point for IMAX, given the racket the cameras make. Nolan’s team, however, weren’t about to let a bit of noise get in the way. They constructed a hefty enclosure around the camera for those crucial close-ups, complete with a clever system of mirrors to keep the actors’ eyelines natural. It’s the sort of workaround that sounds simple until you try to pull it off on a working set, with the clock ticking and tempers fraying.

Rich Gelfond, the head of IMAX, recalled being approached by Nolan with the idea well before shooting began. Gelfond’s initial reaction was less than enthusiastic, given the logistical headaches: reloading film stock, the faff of reviewing dailies, and, of course, the ever-present sound issues. Nolan, undeterred, laid down the gauntlet:

“If you can figure out how to solve these problems, we will make [Odyssey] 100 percent in IMAX. And that's what we're doing.”

True to his word, Nolan and his crew pressed on, refusing to compromise on their vision.

Pushing the Boundaries of Filmmaking

Nolan’s reputation for pushing the envelope is well-earned. He’s long favoured practical effects over digital trickery, and his films have a habit of making the impossible look routine. After the aerial dogfights in Dunkirk, the 747 crash in Tenet, and the nuclear blast in Oppenheimer, one might have thought he’d run out of ways to surprise audiences. Yet, with The Odyssey, he’s managed to up the ante once again.

This adaptation of Homer’s classic poem follows Odysseus as he attempts to return home after the Trojan War, facing a string of misadventures and the wrath of Poseidon, who’s none too pleased about the blinding of his son, Polyphemus. The production wrapped last August, and anticipation has been building steadily ahead of its July release. IMAX tickets are already being snapped up by eager viewers keen to see what all the fuss is about.