The Malaga Festival, with Christie Solaria One digital projection technology

Christie's digital projection technology, specifically its Solaria One models with S2K DLP Cinema technology from Texas Instruments, will be one of the protagonists of the XVII Edition of the Malaga Festival, which opens its doors today until March 29, completing the digitalization project of the four screens of the Albéniz cinema, venue of the event.

The Malaga Spanish Film Festival (FMCE) opens its doors today, until March 29, to celebrate its 17th edition dedicated to disseminating and promoting the Spanish film industry, and awarding the films in competition with the Biznaga de Oro.

On this occasion, one of the novelties will be the complete digitalization of the three rooms that remained to be migrated to this technology at the Albéniz cinema, venue of the event, which now have three projectors Christie Solaria One, with S2K DLP Cinema technology Texas Instruments, supplied, installed and integrated by the company Sercine, partner de Christie.

The Malaga Film Festival was looking for three DCI digital projectors to complete the digitization of the four screens of the Albéniz cinema, headquarters of this event, which had begun in 2010 with the acquisition of a Christie CP2220 projector installed in its main hall.

To this end, those responsible for this film festival called a public tender, which was awarded to the company Sercine, Christie's partner in Spain, which installed three Solaria One model projectors from this multinational visualization solutions company with S2K DLP Cinema technology from Texas Instruments in rooms 2, 3 and 4 of the Albéniz.

This film competition, one of the most important in Spain, had a tight budget and needed compact projectors due to the limited space available in the projection booths. As Fernando Ramírez, head of audiovisuals at the Albéniz cinema, explains, “we evaluated different brands and projectors and, finally, we opted for Christie's Solaria One systems due to their size and reliability, in addition to being approved by the DCI (Digital Cinema Initiatives) standard.”

The Malaga Film Festival's confidence in Christie's digital projection technology goes back years, since before having acquired its first digital projector in 2010, specifically the CP2220 model for Hall 1 of said cinema, this event used different projectors from this manufacturer years ago, such as the Roadster S+16K; HD8K and HD6K, to carry out digital and high definition projections of this event of the Spanish film industry.

For Javier Jiménez, commercial director of Sercine, the company that won the contest, “Solaria One was the projector that best fit the technical prescriptions that came out for the public contest, due to DCI compatibility in the first place, but also due to other factors, such as the 3 DMD DLP Cinema 0.69” S2K chips; have lamps and optics included, as well as reduced measurements and weight.”

All-in-one design

Thanks to its all-in-one design, the Christie Solaria One projector includes a zoom lens, a high-performance xenon lamp, a built-in IMB (Integrated Media Block) and an SMS (Screen Management System) to control the system. This system provides a brightness of 8,000 lumens in the DCI color space and 9,000 for alternative content. Plus, it's 3D ready and can be easily upgraded to display HFR (high frame rate) movies.

Another decision that influenced his choice, Jiménez points out, “was the reduced price of the Solaria One, since at this time it is one of the most economical projectors of its type on the market.” In this regard, Christie points out that this model is especially designed for application and marketing in emerging markets and movie theaters with screens less than 10.6 meters wide.

Luminosity and adaptation to space

Regarding the digitalization of the Albéniz cinema, the screens in rooms 2 and 3 have dimensions of 7 meters wide by 3 meters high, with a capacity of 158 and 148 seats, respectively, while room 4 has a screen measuring 6x 2.56 meters, and capacity for 55 people. For its part, room 1 of the cinema, equipped with the CP2220 projector, has a 9.80x 4.17 meter screen and can accommodate 360 ​​spectators.

Fernando Ramírez positively values ​​this choice, since "they are very good projectors that provide great luminosity despite their compact size. In addition, they are very easy and intuitive for the operator's daily work, and in fact our operators are delighted to work with them."

Another feature that the audiovisual manager of the Albéniz cinema highlights is that the Solaria One model incorporates the IMB, unlike what happens with other projectors, which require the use of external servers. "That was a decisive factor when choosing the Solaria One, in addition to the excellent quality-price ratio of these projectors", while highlighting the work carried out by the installer chosen for this project and Christie partner: "we lean towards Sercine for their experience and, above all, for their human treatment. Working with them is an unbeatable experience."

In addition to being the main venue of the Malaga Festival, the Albéniz cinema also projects commercial premieres and alternative content, such as opera and ballet broadcasts in HD, 3D projections (one of its rooms is prepared for 3D with the MasterImage system), different audiovisual events and film series. In this sense, Christie Solaria One incorporates dual DVI/HDMI inputs and network ports, allowing you to display virtually any type of alternative content.