Chris Hemsworth plays the villainous Dementus in the Warner Bros. “Furiosa: The Mad Max Saga.”
Warner Bros. Discovery
In George Miller's new Mad Max film “Furiosa,” a red paint glow explodes and casts the theater screen in a saturated crimson cloud.
Feet away, between rows of gyroscopic 4DX chairs, plumes of fog roll in, catching the red of the screen as if the flame had somehow gotten past the fourth wall and crept into the cinema. Focused on the fog parts, Chris Hemsworth as Dementus smiling at the audience.
This is the 4DX viewing experience. It's one of many multi-sensory moments programmed for “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga,” which opened in theaters Friday, to immerse audiences in Miller's final visit to the vast wasteland. It amounts to major showcase value at a time when movie theaters are desperate to attract moviegoers back, especially those in the younger demographic.
“We make movies different,” said Duncan McDonald, head of global marketing and theater development for CJ 4DPlex Americas. “We're very different there, with our mobility and environmental impacts.”
In the wake of the pandemic, audiences have become accustomed to shorter theatrical windows and access to more content at home. Meanwhile, pandemic-related shutdowns and production stalls due to two strikes in Hollywood have dramatically limited the amount of content reaching theaters. As a result, consumers stopped going to movie theaters.
Returning moviegoers are looking for premium experiences — high-quality picture and sound — and they're willing to pay more for those tickets. 4DX is one of the options in the premium large format market along with its ilk IMAX And Dolby Cinema. CJ 4DPlex also has the ScreenX format.
“Premium cinema experiences are key to the health of the industry and with fewer films on the market on average than in years past, the importance of a company like 4DX and its essential nature is coming into sharp focus,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst. On comScore.
The 4DX system uses moving seats, practical effects and sensory elements to immerse viewers in the movie. to Warner Bros. “Wonka” The company smelled chocolate during shows.
The experience is “complementary” to routine movie theater experiences, says Don Savant, CEO of CJ 4DPlex Americas, noting that 4DX cinemas are attracting younger consumers, mostly in the 10- to 30-year-old age group, who are looking for more experiential viewing.
4DX is a 4D movie projection system developed by CJ 4DPlex, a subsidiary of the South Korean cinema chain CJ CGV. It allows movies to be enhanced with various practical effects, including moving seats, wind, strobe lights, simulated snow, and scents.
CJ4D-Plex
For consumers, a 4DX experience costs an average of $8 more than traditional ticket prices, meaning a ticket can range from $20 to $30 each. But the extra cost doesn't seem to deter fans.
Last year, 4DX locales generated $53.4 million in ticket sales.
“It is worth noting that the high price of premium cinema tickets is not an obstacle to its success, but rather is seen as a strong value proposition for audiences seeking the best possible experience on the big screen,” Dergarabedian said. “This is good news for theater owners who are faced with fewer large-scale films in the market, and they can increase revenue on a per-ticket basis while giving their patrons a great experience that will keep them coming back to theaters more often.”
For larger titles, 4DX technology has proven to be more popular. Sell tickets for Disney Avatar: The Way of Water grossed $83.6 million in 4DX, or about 3.6% of the film's total box office revenue. It is currently the highest-grossing film for the screen format, Savant said.
“We want to give customers an easy excuse to leave their homes and visit their local Regal theater,” said Eduardo Acuna, CEO of Regal Cinemas. “Premium formats like 4DX deliver a movie viewing experience that can't be replicated by any home theater setup. Each premium format serves a different storytelling purpose, and each heightens the enjoyment of movie viewing in a different, immersive way.”
Acuna noted that 4DX auditoriums are a “strong box office performer” for Regal.
Regal is the largest operator of 4DX displays domestically, with 50 of its 62 locations in the United States and Canada. Globally, there are approximately 750 4DX screens with numerous theater partners. Highest volume in Asia and Europe.
Savant said 4DX is adding about 25 to 30 screens a year worldwide, but is looking to raise that number to 50 to 60 screens a year. The company aims to have about 1,200 4DX locations in the next five years. On average, each theater has about 140 seats.
Moviegoers who venture off their couches and into a 4DX theater to watch Warner Bros. Furiosa will feel from his seat the action of motorcycles racing through the desert, smell gunpowder in the air during epic gun battles, and even get hit with a fine spray of water as it moves across a character's face on screen.
Last year, 4DX programmed more than 100 movies to enhance the viewing experience. About 40 to 45 of them were major Hollywood titles, Savant said. Other content included concert content, musical hits, anniversary titles and local language films.
Typically, 4DX programmers, based in Seoul, have between two and three weeks to craft movement and special effects, although Savant said they can produce a film within a week if the need arises. The 4DX can program three titles at a time.
MacDonald and Savant both referred to 4DX programmers as “artists,” describing the process — from the in-seat speakers to the fog machines — as different brushstrokes in a work of art.
“Every movie is different,” MacDonald said. “So we look at the nuances of the different films that we have and how to program them.”
In some cases, filmmakers will step in, making suggestions about when to use certain effects and how subtle or stylized they should feel or look.
“It's the most dynamic way to watch (the film),” Savant said.
