Christopher Nolan Explains His Views On IMAX, 3D And Film

Christopher Nolan might be hesitant to talk about "The Dark Knight Rises," but he doesn't hold back when it comes to discussing his filming process.

The director recently sat down and talked to the Director's Guild of America magazine and elaborated on the way he prefers shooting his movies. As fans of his work might have noticed, Nolan is one of the few directors in Hollywood to continue to choose 35mm film cameras over digital ones, and also has managed to avoid succumbing to the 3D craze. It turns out that he is pretty passionate about maintaining both of those stances.

"For the last 10 years, I've felt increasing pressure to stop shooting film and start shooting video, but I've never understood why," he said. "That's the way everyone was doing it 10 years ago, and I've just carried on making films in the way that works best and waiting until there's a good reason to change. But I haven't seen that reason yet."

Nolan also talked about his frustrations with 3D and why he believes IMAX is a superior format. His qualms with 3D -- which he refers to as "stereoscopic imaging" because, as he points out, all "films are 3D" -- is that it caused the image in front of the audience to be much smaller than a usual print.

"I prefer the big canvas, looking up at an enormous screen and at an image that feels larger than life," he said. "When you treat that stereoscopically, and we've tried a lot of tests, you shrink the size so the image becomes a much smaller window in front of you. So the effect of it, and the relationship of the image to the audience, has to be very carefully considered. And I feel that in the initial wave to embrace it, that wasn't considered in the slightest."

He continued about IMAX, "Right before Christmas I brought some filmmakers together and showed them the prologue for 'The Dark Knight Rises' that we shot on IMAX film, then cut from the original negative and printed. I wanted to give them a chance to see the potential, because I think IMAX is the best film format that was ever invented."

Also, if you were wondering why we always see Nolan dressed up so nicely, it turns out that it's just how he was raised.

"I went to a boarding school where we had to wear a uniform, and I got used to using all the pockets in my jacket," he said with a laugh. "It's just what I'm comfortable in. I don't like to think about what to wear, so I just wear the same thing every day."

Do you agree with Nolan's takes on IMAX, 3D and 35mm film? Tell us in the comments section below or on Twitter!