35mm, 70mm, IMAX: What’s the Difference?

MOVEMENT 01

35mm: The workhorse of a century of cinema

For more than a hundred years, 35mm celluloid was the standard gauge of theatrical projection. Four perforations tall per frame, a 35mm print carries organic photochemical grain, physical reel changeovers, and a warmth in skin tones and highlights that digital projection emulates rather than reproduces. In a well-maintained repertory booth, 35mm turns a screening into a living performance.

“Four perforations tall per frame, a 35mm print carries organic photochemical grain, physical reel changeovers, and a warmth in skin tones and highlights that digital projection emulates rather than reproduces.”

MOVEMENT 02

5-perf 70mm: Wide-gauge warmth, depth, and clarity

Standard 70mm film runs vertically through the projector at five perforations per frame, offering more than three times the image area of 35mm. Originally championed for roadshow epics like Lawrence of Arabia and 2001: A Space Odyssey—and revived in modern cinema by Paul Thomas Anderson, Christopher Nolan, and Brady Corbet—70mm delivers extraordinary fine detail without losing the tactile texture of film stock.

MOVEMENT 03

15/70mm IMAX vs. Digital IMAX: Knowing which room you are in

Not every theater with IMAX on the marquee is projecting film. True 15-perf 70mm IMAX runs 70mm film horizontally through the projector—fifteen perforations per frame, roughly ten times the frame area of 35mm—filling a towering 1.43:1 screen. Dual-laser IMAX can also fill a 1.43:1 screen digitally with remarkable contrast, while standard multiplex Xenon or single-laser IMAX rooms project a 1.90:1 digital image. When a listing specifies 70mm IMAX, you are seeing the largest photochemical format in cinema.

MOVEMENT 04

How to choose the right format for the movie

Match the projection format to how the film was made and why you are going. If a film was shot on 65mm or finished photochemically, seek out a 70mm or 35mm print. For intimate dramas and archival revivals, a sharp 35mm print in a 300-seat repertory house beats an oversized auditorium every time.