La Géode, the iconic hemispherical cinema screen located at the heart of Parc de la Villette in Paris, has reopened its doors after six years of renovations. Over the past four decades, the venue has attracted around 25 million spectators.
In an Instagram post, the film distributor Pathé France highlighted the revamped experience, "offering a lineup of essential daytime documentaries and unmissable cinematic films in the evening".
The animated feature Mufasa: The Lion King and documentaries on the human body, blue whales, and the T. rex are currently screening.
Equipped with France's first IMAX Laser 4K dome projector, La Géode now offers "sharper images, deeper contrasts, and an expanded color range, along with enhanced sound quality".
The Gaumont-Pathé group now oversees operations at the venue, which is easily recognisable by its 36-meter shimmering spherical exterior, located next to the Cité des sciences et de l’industrie in the 19th arrondissement.
'First of its kind'
When it first opened in 1985, La Géode was the first of its kind in France, with a screen covering nearly the entire room and an IMAX projector that immersed viewers in the action.
Initially focused on showing spectacular documentaries, the cinema's popularity waned due to growing competition from cinemas offering new technologies and the rise of alternative viewing platforms.
Although it attracted one million visitors annually in its early years, the venue had been operating at a loss since 2010.
In 2017, Universcience, the public institution overseeing the Palais de la Découverte and Cité des sciences et de l’industrie, launched a call for projects to revitalise it.
The cinema had been closed since 2018 for renovations.
(with AFP)
