CinemaScope

CinemaScope is a widescreen film format introduced by 20th Century Fox in 1953. It uses anamorphic lenses to squeeze a wide image onto standard 35 mm film, then expands it during projection.

Anamorphic widescreen: A widescreen process that optically compresses an image during filming and expands it during projection. CinemaScope is the best-known early commercial use of anamorphic widescreen.
The Robe: A 1953 biblical epic directed by Henry Koster and the first film released in CinemaScope. Its release introduced CinemaScope to theatrical audiences.
The Egyptian: A 1954 historical drama directed by Michael Curtiz and filmed in CinemaScope. It shows how the format framed large settings and ensemble compositions.
Television: A system for transmitting moving images and sound to distant receivers. CinemaScope was promoted as a theatrical spectacle that television could not match.
Anamorphic lens: A lens that compresses or expands an image more along one axis than another. CinemaScope cameras used anamorphic lenses to fit wide scenes onto 35 mm film.
20th Century Fox: An American film studio formed in 1935 through the merger of Fox Film and Twentieth Century Pictures. The studio developed and promoted CinemaScope as its widescreen system.
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: A 1954 Walt Disney adventure film directed by Richard Fleischer and photographed in CinemaScope. Its underwater spectacle demonstrates the format's use for expansive adventure imagery.
Academy ratio: The 1.37:1 motion-picture frame standardized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 1932. CinemaScope's much wider frame challenged the dominant pre-widescreen theatrical shape.
35 mm film: A motion-picture film gauge whose strip is 35 millimeters wide. CinemaScope preserved the familiar film gauge while producing a wider projected image.
Henri Chrétien: A French astronomer and inventor who developed the Hypergonar anamorphic lens system. Fox adapted Chrétien's lens technology for CinemaScope.

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