Welcome back to Friday Feature, IMAX fans.
It’s an exciting time at the movies as Warner Bros.’
and DC Comics’ eagerly anticipated
Wonder Womanlaunches today in IMAX theatres worldwide.
Wonder Woman— which marks the first live-action
blockbuster released in IMAX to be directed by a woman, the
incredibly talented Patty Jenkins — stars an amazing roster of
supremely kick-ass women, led by Gal Gadot as the titular
superhero.
The release of
Wonder Woman— the first superhero studio tentpole to
feature a female protagonist at its center — really is a watershed
moment in Hollywood.
Here are some of our favorite, most inspiring wonder women (both
fictional and IRL) from past IMAX films:
—
Toni Myers:Kicking off our list is none other than
the acclaimed filmmaker Toni Myers, who is a trailblazer not only
for IMAX, but within the film industry at large. Myers has had a
brilliant career that spans decades having directed some of the
most successful IMAX documentaries, including
Space Station 3D(2002),
Hubble(2010) and last year’s
A Beautiful Planet.
Myers commented on her career as a
documentarian saying, “The whole idea of making
A Beautiful Planetwas [based on] the hope that I could
inspire a new generation to appreciate their world through that
lens, and if this film can inspire [young people] to go out and
work toward a solution and work together and spread the word then
that will make me extremely happy.” Read the full Q & A
HERE.
—
Jennifer Yuh Nelson:While Patty Jenkins marks the
first woman to direct a live-action blockbuster in IMAX, Jennifer
Yuh Nelson helped pave the way on the animation front having
directed
Kung Fu Panda 2in 2011 and co-directed 2016’s
Kung Fu Panda 3with Alessando Carloni.
—
Scarlett Johannson:One of the world’s most
recognizable movie stars, Scarlett Johannson has had an incredible
career in IMAX having been featured in eight IMAX releases,
including both
Captain Americaand
Avengersfilms,
Iron Man 2,
Lucy,
The Jungle Bookand
Ghost in the Shell. IMAX fans will see Johannson next year
in
Avengers: Infinity War.
—
Emma Watson:Though she’s only 27, Emma Watson
likewise has had an extensive career to date in IMAX starring in a
remarkable ten IMAX releases, including all eight
Harry Potterfilms (thanks largely to last year’s
Harry Pottermarathon in IMAX),
Noah(2014) and this year’s blockbuster hit
Beauty and the Beast.
Fun fact:Scenes from this year’s indie film
The Circle, starring Watson and Tom Hanks, were actually
filmed at IMAX headquarters in Playa Vista.
—
Jyn Erso (from Disney’s
Rogue One):Switching gears a bit, on the
fictional side, one of the most empowering female protagonists to
have graced an IMAX screen is Jyn Erso, played by Felicity Jones,
in
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. A reluctant hero, Erso, who
Jones imbues with grace and spunk, represents one of the most
pivotal players in the entire
Star Warssaga. Let’s face it,
Rey(an honorable mention here) wouldn’t have even
existed if not for the courage of Erso.
—
Katniss Everdeen (from
The Hunger Gamesfranchise):Another landmark
heroine from a massively popular movie series in IMAX, Katniss
Everdeen in
The Hunger Gamesfranchise, kick-started a whole new wave
of empowered female protagonists featured in teen fiction
adaptations (think the
Divergentseries). And for good reason. Katniss,
immortalized by the incomparable Jennifer Lawrence, represents the
kind of dogged heroine of impeachable character that every person
could admire.
Fun fact:Lawrence, who narrated
A Beautiful Planet, told
Peoplemagazine in 2014 that one of her post-
Hunger Gamesambitions was to do some voiceover work.
—
Imperator Furiosa (from
Mad Max: Fury Road):Lastly, what’s a list of some
of the most kick-ass modern women (fictional or otherwise) without
the revolutionary character, Imperator Furiosa? Played by Charlize
Theron with the sort of steely fury rarely seen on the bigscreen,
Furiosa is a heroine for the ages. So much so, one nearly forgets
the movie is called
Mad Max.
—
By Andrew Stewart, Manager, Corporate Communications
