If you go down to the woods today, you’re sure of a big surprise… because there you’ll find a home cinema!
Like almost everywhere in Europe, cinemas in Sweden have been shut since mid-March 2020 due to the global pandemic. Recognising the lack of big screen experiences, Swedish distributor, Special-Elektronik, decided to create a fun cinematic experience to mark Valentine’s Day this year, a common time for couples to go to the cinema.
The most unusual thing about this cinema is that it is built deep in a Swedish forest in the middle of winter, posing all sorts of challenges. Brushing over the fact it is difficult to transport the equipment through the forest to the opening, the ground is also not level so the installers had to work hard to ensure everything was lined up correctly.
To bring the idea to life, Special-Elektronik partnered with Krix, one of Australia’s oldest and most successful speaker manufacturers. In this particular project, the company chose to use the MX-10 from Krix’s home cinema series. The MX series is designed to replicate the Krix Infinite Baffle Wall which has been installed in commercial cinemas since the 1980s. Due to the lack of walls, it proved to be very challenging fully integrating speakers in the forest, but the MX-10 was able to fill the open space with great sound even under the suboptimal conditions.
For projection, Special-Elektronik turned to Barco’s Bragi Cinemascope projector coupled with Kaleidescape media server, Strato S. An AudioControl Maestro X7 sound processor was also used as well as two ATI amplifiers.
The company launched a competition on its Facebook page where one lucky couple could win an exclusive cinema experience as a Valentine’s treat deep in the Swedish forest in the middle of winter.
“It was the first time we did a project like this, and as a distributor of AV technology we saw an opportunity to use our products and experience to do something fun and unexpected for someone else,” said Åke Larsson, managing director of Special-Elektronik. “The winners arrived at dusk and were met with a cozy setup where they could just lean back and enjoy a nice movie experience in the middle of the forest.”
The winners of the competition, Madelene and Tomas Holmberg commented on the experience. She said: “After a while you forgot that you were sitting in a forest, it was like being at the cinema. But then you could look up and see the treetops. I thought it was completely magical.”
Tomas added: “All of a sudden you got a gust of wind on your hand and we realised we were actually outdoors. The sound was great too. It felt like sitting in a movie theatre, it was much better than being at home.”
You can watch a video of the cinema being built here.
Tech Spec
Analog Way Eikos 4K 4K60 Multi-Layer Video Mixer
ATI AT525NC Amplifier
ATI AT542NC Amplifier
AudioControl Maestro X7 Surround Processor
Barco Bragi Cinemascope Projector
Belram HGXT2 FiberOptic Extender
Kaleidescape Strato S Media Server
Krix MX-10 Speakers