As one of the most popular art forms today, movies have a broad audience base and are one of the main entertainment and leisure lifestyles for the post-80s, post-90s, and post-00s generations. Cinema viewing is essentially a high-level experiential consumption, so the film industry has long been making efforts and taking actions to continuously improve people's viewing experience. As we all know, movies are not only an audio-visual art but also a combination of modern technology and art in various forms. In today's era of rapid technological advancement and iteration, besides striving for artistic excellence, a variety of scientific and technological means provide audiences with cool and stunning audio-visual experiences. The leading use of 3D and IMAX technology in the 2009 New Year's film "Avatar" gave Chinese consumers an unprecedented audio-visual shock. This technology, which gave people such a realistic and immersive viewing experience, has since been widely applied. After "Avatar," the number of equipment and theaters equipped with 3D and IMAX technology has grown rapidly like bamboo shoots after rain in the vast Chinese film market. The 2016 New Year's film "Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk" set a new technical standard in film history. In addition to 3D, 4K, and IMAX, the full-format version at 120 frames per second allowed consumers to experience what is called "an extremely clear and real new vision." In May 2017, the film "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales" was released simultaneously in the Chinese market, achieving both critical and box office success. The IP of this series has gained widespread recognition and high acceptance in the Chinese market, but many people may not have a deep understanding of its creative background: the concept of Pirates of the Caribbean originated from the most appealing ride at Disney theme parks worldwide. Disney developed this ride into a film IP, making it one of the most profitable film series globally. Against this backdrop, when "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales" was released in China, it also boosted consumption in many 4D theaters. This "tribute" from amusement to film, and from viewing experience to gaming experience, made the entire film industry deeply realize that using technological means to continuously enhance the viewing experience is the enduring charm of cinema consumption. It is worth mentioning that during the Chinese summer movie season that began in mid-July 2017, consumers once again felt the changes that technological progress brings to people's lives and consumption. "Wu Kong" + UMAX: The Golden Cudgel Splits the Theater, Reaching Heaven and Earth On July 13, "Wu Kong," adapted from the original work by Jin Hezai and directed by Derek Kwok, was released in major theaters across the country, kicking off the hot summer season of 2017. Besides its strong cast and fan appeal, "Wu Kong" also represents the highest technical standards of current domestic film studios. In addition to using mainstream 3D and IMAX technologies, the production team also created more captivating special effects in many plots and shots to give consumers a better sense of immersion. As a result, movie fans watching "Wu Kong" during this summer season had a new viewing experience: "Wu Kong" + UMAX. What is UMAX? UMAX is the latest multi-screen projection technology developed in the industry, a multi-faceted projection system. In simple terms, three huge screens are arranged around the theater—one in front, one on the left, and one on the right of the audience—and through 270-degree multi-faceted projection, images are projected onto the left and right walls of the theater, giving movie fans an experience beyond the traditional film frame—immersion without limits. UMAX is actually an upgrade and innovation of traditional screens. Modern technology has entered an unimaginably fast iteration stage, and UMAX technology will also have a revolutionary impact on traditional screen projection. Let's use a real-life example to better understand: if we compare the traditional screen to the view through a car's front windshield, then UMAX's three-sided 270-degree view is equivalent to the three-dimensional view of the front, left, and right windows in a car. Which one do you think gives the driver more information and a stronger sense of safety? In a UMAX theater, in addition to the central screen where the picture is focused, the audience can also enjoy a wider and more detailed movie picture than traditional screens. In the 270-degree enveloping picture, it feels as if you are completely immersed in the world of the film—a "fully immersive new experience." The combination of "Wu Kong" with UMAX technology this time is the first breakthrough between large-scale domestic content and new technology. During the promotion, the production team repeatedly emphasized that the content and special effects optimized with UMAX technology in the film last a full 40 minutes. Compared with traditional projection methods, the UMAX presentation adds a stronger sense of vividness and immersion. At that time, audiences in UMAX theaters can feel the visual shock brought by the 270-degree three-dimensional surround: the Monkey King's Ruyi Jingu Bang (the golden cudgel) can reduce you to ashes with one strike, or turn the tide with another. The extension of visual space on the left and right sides gives people a sense of being right in the midst of the smoke and fire of battle. UMAX: From Projection Technology Innovation to Brand Communication Carrier In fact, UMAX projection technology is not unfamiliar to movie fans who emphasize the ultimate experience. Their acquaintance with UMAX theaters did not originally come from a specific film, but more from pre-movie advertisements. In an environment of information overload and fragmentation, cinemas have become an increasingly popular advertising channel for brands due to their advantages of covering mainstream audiences, high frequency with low interference, and powerful audio-visual impact. The application of UMAX technology has taken pre-movie ads a step further in terms of visual effect, making them incredibly cool. To date, many classic brands and cases that they know by heart have achieved communication success through UMAX technology. UMAX uses the interaction between the central screen and the side screens to make content presentation more vivid and full, allowing people to see more information that traditional projection cannot provide. The 270-degree three-sided surround effect compared to the flat effect of traditional projection Not only is it three times the area, but it also changes from flat to three-dimensional dimensions Whether it's brand-oriented commercial ads or visually-focused movies In creation, it can better express speed and penetration UMAX projection technology is promoted by Focus Media Cinema Network, the largest film advertising operator in China. Currently, it has implemented UMAX projection technology in nearly 100 theaters across more than 20 cities, including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen. As China's largest film advertising operator, Focus Media Cinema's theater resources cover more than 300 cities from first-tier to fourth-tier, holding a leading market share in mainstream core business districts and high-end quality theaters in first- and second-tier cities, and widely expanding in emerging film markets in third- and fourth-tier cities. In the current era where mobile internet is sweeping everything and numerous new media have caused extreme fragmentation of audience time, we see that the value of cinemas as an inevitable living, leisure, and entertainment space media scene for consumers is becoming increasingly prominent. Relying on high-quality big-screen resources, Focus Media Cinema is committed to integrating quality entertainment content for combined marketing, getting close to young audiences, advocating quality life, and further organically integrating brand spirit, product advantages, fresh creativity, and media innovation, in order to better interpret brand concepts and create an "immersive" advertising and entertainment experience. At the same time, the company's inherent innovative genes will also prompt it to pay more attention to media innovation. In the future, exploration of new technologies and media such as interactive integrated entertainment marketing, LBS-based precise advertising, and audience interactive experiences will continue, aiming to lead the spirit of precise, effective, innovative, and diverse new media advertising marketing. Focus Media Cinema Network has won numerous awards in the industry, including the "China Advertising Media Award Most Loved by Advertisers." As China's largest film advertising platform, it relies on advantageous big-screen resources to launch advertising works far above the industry average. Since the launch of UMAX, it has immediately been favored by major brands and recognized by the media industry. In just two years, it has won multiple industry awards with outstanding cases such as BMW 3 Series, Laneige, Whaley TV, and adidas Originals NMD. In the film advertising and marketing industry, Focus Media Cinema Network has always maintained a leading market share and customer accumulation. With a stable industry position, it also pursues and promotes innovation and progress in industry technology. In today's modern commercial society, people are always seeking higher technological applications to enhance their experience and feelings in the consumption field. On this point, corporate advertising communication and film distribution marketing can easily reach unity and consensus. In the foreseeable future, how projection technology progress will further enhance the viewing experience, let us wait and see. -END-