Barco

Over the past few years, Barco has worked hard to develop advanced projectors and, more recently, audio solutions that take cinemas into the digital era. Its constant quest for innovation and its commitment to the sector have made it a digital cinema leader: Barco has been capturing more than 50% of the digital cinema projectors worldwide each year, since 2012. To top that off, Barco increasingly delivers innovative solutions that combine high-quality image and sound with unique, interactive experiences to help exhibitors take cinema to the next level. Barco has achieved the status of a key opinion leader in its field, thanks to its clear vision for the cinema of the future and its ‘CinemaBarco’ approach, which was successfully launched during this year’s CinemaCon.

Audience entertainment, Escape and laser
In Barco’s eyes, the cinema of the future can be a true multimedia entertainment, business and educational center, and an important local cultural hub. ‘CinemaBarco’ combines a rich array of entertainment concepts to help exhibitors and storytellers create a true value-added moviegoing experience, before, during as well as after the show. In addition to interactive content leveraging technologies such as Audience Entertainment, CinemaBarco embraces the ‘Escape’ wraparound screen system. Designed to fit into existing multiplex, Escape adds additional screens on either side of the theater. Besides ensuring a bigger, more intense, more encompassing canvas, the Escape system aims to turn pre-show advertising into something audiences will engage with, rather than something to be ignored while they play with their phones. Moreover, Barco’s new 4K laser-illuminated projectors, which also premièred earlier this year, fit perfectly into the CinemaBarco concept too: by offering audiences premium image quality and ultimate brightness, they help revolutionize the cinema experience.

From equipment to thought leadership
“CinemaBarco proves how Barco has evolved from an equipment supplier – the No. 1 in cinema projectors – into a thought leader that is constantly looking for new ways to redefine the concept of cinema. As a visualization expert active in cinema but also in virtual reality solutions, in digital signage, etc. we have all the in-house expertise needed to extend the cinema experience into new areas. Our objective is always twofold: enhance the cinema-going experience for the audience, while also giving exhibitors the ability to generate premium revenues by delivering these value-added experiences,” says Wim Buyens. “We are proud that the 3D Society has spotted our commitment and is happy to get us on board to create a new roadmap for today’s entertainment industry.”

Valuable insights and opinions
Mike DeValue of the Walt Disney Studios, chairman of the International 3D & Advanced Imaging Society: “These are exciting, yet also challenging times for our industry. The 3D Society wants to be a valuable tool to advance the success of exhibitors, studios and everyone involved in the entertainment industry. To achieve that aim, we assemble the world’s key industry players and opinion leaders to discuss new trends, exchange ideas and know-how and learn how we can meet the ever-growing appetite for premium entertainment experiences. Barco’s technology and, more recently, its vision for the cinema of the future and its CinemaBarco concept are testimony to its dedication to our industry. We are therefore confident that Wim Buyens and his team will provide very valuable insights and opinions.”  

Laser projector in for Lumière Award
More than valuing Barco’s vision, the 3D & Advanced Imaging Society also greatly appreciates the Barco technology. Barco’s 4K laser-illuminated projector has been nominated for a Lumière™ Award – one of the prestigious International 3D & Advanced Imaging Society Awards that honor superb technologies that drive the industry forward. The Awards will be presented during a gala session on 24 September at Paramount Pictures Studios in Hollywood, California. Barco’s Wim Buyens, who has become a member of the 3D Society Executive Committee and Board of Governors, will join Mike DeValue in a discussion on ‘the Future of Content’ during the event’s opening session.