Pictureville Cinema Announces UK Premieres And New Cinerama Prints As Part Of 30th Anniversary Of Widescreen Weekend Film Festival

The National Science and Media Museum’s Pictureville Cinema has loaned two rare three-strip Cinerama prints from Hollywood’s Cinerama Dome, including How the West was Won (1962) and This is Cinerama (1952).

Produced in 2002 from the original camera negatives, the prints are in exceptional condition and represent a significant enhancement to Pictureville's existing Cinerama programme. As the world's only public cinema to regularly screen three-strip Cinerama, the acquisition comes as part of Pictureville’s ongoing commitment to preserving and celebrating the unique cinematic format.

The print of How the West Was Won (1962) will make its first-ever screening outside of the US as part of the 30^th anniversary of Pictureville’s Widescreen Weekend film festival, taking place from 24th to 28th September, giving audiences a rare opportunity to experience the epic as it was originally intended to be seen. Beyond the festival, the newly acquired print of This Is Cinerama (U) will become part of Pictureville’s regular Cinerama programme and projection tours, further enhancing the cinema's unique offering all year round.

The festival has also announced its opening night feature, Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), in its UK premiere, presented in a newly restored, director-approved 70mm version. The new 70mm-DTS print of 137-minute Director’s Cut was restored by Sony-Columbia in 2024 and premiered in Bologna, Italy before touring the USA. Now making its way to the UK for the first time to be screened at Pictureville Cinema. 

Celebrating its 30^th anniversary, the festival continues to champion the past, present and future of film through a programme of rare screenings, special guests, presentations and events celebrating large-screen formats and innovative cinema technologies.

This year’s festival will also shine a spotlight on the groundbreaking Technirama process during its 70^th anniversary year, developed as strategic response to the desire to balance image quality with cinematic scale. The strand will feature screenings of epic historical drama Zulu (1964) and Western The Big Country (1958), both on 35mm print, alongside an illustrated talk on the story of the format amongst a host of other screenings.

Continuing its anniversary celebrations, this year’s Widescreen Weekend also includes a full programme in the museum’s iconic IMAX screen – a further nod to the venue’s unique film history as the first IMAX in Europe, opening in 1983. This year’s strand includes the return of critically claimed blockbuster Sinners (2025) and a celebration of two blockbuster filmmakers, Stephen Spielberg and Christopher Nolan. 

Other strands in the programme include Showstoppers, a tribute to musical theatre including a screening of The Sound of Music on 70mm and a special 25th anniversary presentation of Baz Luhrmann’s dazzling Moulin Rouge on 35mm, and an exploration of the Indian Western, created in partnership with writer, scholar and international film curator Dr. Omar Ahmed.

Beyond themed strands, Widescreen Weekend will also present a programme of special screenings celebrating landmark and cult classic films across formats. Highlights include a special 35mm screening of Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affair (2026), presented as a single uninterrupted feature, and Paul Thomas Anderson's Academy Award-winning One Battle After Another (2025) on 70mm. Leeds-based culture collective Rat Depot will also present a special screening of Peter Greenaway's cult classic The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover (1989).

Sally Folkard, Head of Screen and Cultural Engagement at the National Science and Media Museum commented: “The 30th anniversary of Widescreen Weekend is a significant milestone that we’re all so proud of and it’s incredibly fitting that we’re marking the occasion with the acquisition of these remarkable Cinerama prints. Their arrival not only strengthens Pictureville's unique Cinerama programme but also ensures future generations can continue to experience this landmark format on the big screen. We're thrilled that audiences at this year's festival will be the first outside the United States to see How the West Was Won from this remarkable print alongside the rest of our rich and diverse programme.”