kinOptikum Gaspoltshofen

kinOptikum - a cinema museum where visitors can gain an insight behind the scenes of cinema...

The "kinOptikum" in Gaspoltshofen provides an insight behind the scenes of cinema.

The "kinOptikum" is divided into four main areas, from the developments and inventions of the 19th century to the digital age. It starts with an active station and a "laboratory", in which visitors are given a vivid demonstration of how a film is made and what the first "attempts" at cinema looked like.

The first feature films were created through film editing and montage, albeit without sound. At the same time, fixed cinemas were built - the great age of silent film had begun. Icons of the time who are still household names today were Pat & Patachon, Charly Chaplin and Buster Keaton.

In the 1920s, the optical sound process made it possible to synchronise sound and image. This topic is illustrated by numerous "sound devices". The post-war period called for numerous innovations. The projection booths were equipped with two projectors for uninterrupted enjoyment of the film. Widescreen and Cinemascope were introduced in the mid-1950s. Sound quality also steadily improved, leading to the Dolby Surround quality we know today.

The latest step in the technical development of cinema is digitalisation. This development is shown in the "mini cinema" of the "kinOptikum", which seats around 50 people. Here, visitors can watch the film of their choice from a large selection.

A visit to the new kinOptikum offers a unique opportunity to immerse yourself in the world of cinema. In addition to the latest digital technologies, you will find examples of rare film projectors from the last century. You will learn how the cinema developed from the fairground tent to the cinema palace and finally to the multiplex. With film rarities, you will experience the cinema atmosphere of times gone by.

Focus of the exhibition:

• How are moving images created?
• Cinema through the ages
  with rare exhibits (film projector from 1899)
• Photography, cine film, video, television
• Films for a wide range of interests:
  - old newsreels
  - school films
  - Advertising films of Austrian companies
  - Nostalgic films of all kinds
  - animated films
  - The greats of the silent film era
• Special exhibitions (such as "Coal and Light")

A visit to the kinOptikum is worthwhile for all interest groups. The sightseeing programme is varied in a lively way:
for excursions with buses (clubs, pensioners, spa guests,...), for school groups, for cinema fans and technology enthusiasts, for excursionists of all kinds!

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Cinema museum
Cinema Archive
Laboratory