Jerusalem
IMAX film at the Reuben H. Fleet Museum, San Diego
By Cathy Breslaw
Jerusalem is an IMAX film opening Friday, November 20th at the Reuben H. Fleet Museum’s Heikoff Giant Dome Theater in San Diego. Five years in the making, this film is an immersive experience of intense sight and sound depicting the multi-cultural layers of this iconic and richly historical city. Like all IMAX-style films, Jerusalem boards us on a 43 minute cinematic journey, taking us soaring in flight high above the Holy Land and then plunging into the marketplaces, religious sites and the geography of the area.
The film is portrayed through the eyes of three young women – one Muslim, one Jew and one Christian. Known as the center of civilization for thousands of years, the film highlights Jerusalem’s history and the religious practices of Islam, Judaism and Christianity. Audiences will be captivated by the first-ever large-format imagery of Jerusalem’s Old City and the entire Holy Land- including the iconic sites of the Western Wall, the church of the Holy Sepulcher and the Dome of the Rock. Rather than focusing on the familiar associated socio-political challenges of the region, Jerusalem amplifies the rich colorful heritage of three major religions and their people, living side by side and among one other.
We see the Easter procession replicating the journey of Jesus through the streets of the Old City on his way to execution, the Muslim religious rites of Ramadan and Jewish families as they celebrate the High Holy Days. Also featured in the film is archaeologist, Dr. Jodi Magness as she tours people through the digging and discoveries of artifacts going back thousands of years, as well as visiting the underground tunnels of bedrock built by ancient peoples as they locate precious drinking water. This film is more than a documentary – it is a highly charged visceral experience of the history and daily lives of this diverse cultural melting pot called Jerusalem. If you’ve been there, it will likely stir your cherished memories, and if not, it will be the next best thing to being there in person!
Jerusalem is an original production of Cosmic Picture and Arcane Pictures and distributed by National Geographic Studios. It was written and directed by Daniel Ferguson, and the executive producer was the late Jake Eberts who produced movies such as Ghandi, Dancing With Wolves, and Chariots of Fire. The film was produced by Taran Davies, George Duffield , Daniel Ferguson, and Reed Smoot of the American Society of Cinematographers.
