Christopher Nolan has criticised the increased digitisation of cinema, claiming that it hampers the experience of the audience.
Speaking about the use of digital technology at the Produced By Conference in Culver City, the director said that he “didn’t have any interest in being the research department for an electronics company”.
“It’s like filmmakers are being encouraged to buy cameras like we are buying iPods,” he explained. “[It’s] devaluing of what we do as filmmakers.”
After denying any involvement in a fourth instalment of the Batman series, Nolan also revealed that he believes film (as opposed to digital) capture and projection produces a better experience for the movie-goer.
“You really are kind of sitting in your living room now watching movies,” he said of the industry’s “rapid” adoption of the medium.
“[It’s] reducing most theaters to showing TV commercials.”
The director also said that those who claim digital filmmaking is low-cost are ignoring the hidden fees involved in post-production. Most people talking about digital production are really talking about “video, like television”, he claimed.
Despite such damning criticism, Nolan did not entirely rule out shooting in digital in the future.
“When it is as good as film and makes economic sense,” he added, “I’d be completely open to it.”
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