At a teaser event in Johannesburg, today, Ster Kinekor Theatres CEO Fiaz Mohamed announced that his division will bring IMAX theatres back to South Africa.

The company is in the process of upgrading its flagship cinema in Gateway Mall, in Durban, to retrofit the larger screen required for IMAX screenings. IMAX theatres are generally fitted with screens that are 22 metres wide and 16 metres high, and audiences sit closer to the screen to  be closer to the action. The use of the larger 70mm film format also adds to impact of the visuals.

Fiaz Mohamed says that more details will be available next week, but revealed that the first planned film for the Gateway IMAX theatre is the sequel to 2011’s Thor, set to release in the coming months. The company also plans to have a theatre in the Gauteng region, though no more details were offered.

While IMAX theatres were previously operated in South Africa by rival theatre company, Nu Metro, Mohamed said that it’s now more feasible to do so thanks to digital technology. The company is in the process of upgrading all its existing cinemas to digital theatre projection and sound, and the addition of IMAX on digital is just a case of right place, right time, right price.