Theatre Design & Technology - Dec 1970 - 8

Some indication of the success of the 'storm at sea' effect at the Mitsubishi Pavilion. Images projected on the left
and right-hand walls are reflected in the mirrored endwall, ceiling, and floor. Although these individual surfaces may still
be discerned, their linearity has been effectively disguised.

into the center of a room. The front and real walls
are covered with mirrors. A film showing volcanic
activity is projected on the ceiling and sidewalls,
while an erupting volcano and cracking earth are
simulated on the floor.
The next attraction in this pavilion is the world's
largest smoke screen. When we arrive at the exit
of a room named "Sea," we almost bump into a
large fish swimming in the air. The child's dream
of seeing a fish in the air has come true.
The smoke screen measures 12 by 8 feet, and
the image is seen on both its sides. The technical
department of Toho, one of the leading film
makers in Japan, became interested in projecting
images on smoke and studied the principle of the
air curtain. Various experiments were made, and in
1968, they made a smoke screen approximately
two feet square by sandwiching a layer of smoke
between two layers of flowing air. However, they
were unable to enlarge the size due to the instability and flutter effect of the flowing air. At this
point, Mitsubishi joined in the project and some
wind-tunnel experiments were conducted at the
Aviation Research Institute. The experiments
finally succeeded in obtaining a flow of smoke,
continuously emitted by a regulator.
Another new development of Mitsubishi is a
spherical projection system. Called a "Crystal
Ball Screen," it is 7'6" in diameter, is made of
acrylic resin, and is 20-mm thick without seams.
The image is projected on the inner surface of the
sphere (which is coated with a luminescent pigment)

by a pair of projectIJrs made from 16-mm Bell and
Howell Mark 300's. The projectors are equipped
with one Pro-Nikkor F2, f= 2 mm, ultra-wide-angle
projection lens, specially designed for this display
by Nikon. The lens covers a projection angle of
220 degrees. The two projectors are used alternately for a continuous run. The film is entitled
"The Joy of Living," and emphatically utilizes the
distortion, magnification, diminuation, and rotating
effects caused by the sphere.
The multi-screen system is overwhel mingly popular in those pavil ions that use second category of
projection techniques. The Japanese Government
Pavilion, for example, is the largest of all, accommodating 1,000 people. It is equipped with eight
screens placed concavely in front of the audience,
providing a total screen 50 feet high and 145 feet
wide. A film made by Kon Ichikawa titled "Japan
and the Japanese" lyrically describes the seasonal
changes around Mt. Fuji and the Japanese way of
life as focused around this immortal symbol. Eight
70-mm film projectors are operated by a central
control, which coordinates the entire operation. It
is a spectacular show, but there are lines between
the screens that constantly obstruct the effect of
a wholly uniform image (especially when all eight
screens are used to show an entire view of Mt.
Fuji). In addition to the dividing lines, the flicker
effect of the projectors is very disturbing.
Other interesting exhibitions use the multi-screen
system. In the Suntory Pavilion, six screens are
placed in three horizontal rows with two screens

[JJ]IITJ THEATER DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

DECEMBER,1970

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