CULVER
CITY, Calif. – Sony Pictures Entertainment announced today
that it is teaming with both Dolby Laboratories, Inc. and Barco to mix The Amazing Spider-Man 2™, the
highly anticipated next chapter in the story of Peter Parker, in both the Auro
11.1 system and the Dolby® Atmos™ cinema sound system, to deliver a more
natural and realistic soundtrack that moves sound around and above audiences.
These innovative technologies open new possibilities to enhance storytelling
through sound, giving the moviegoer a more immersive, exciting and compelling
experience.  The picture will be released in theaters internationally beginning
April 16, 2014, and domestically on May 2, 2014.

The
studio has also converted its landmark William Holden Theater to support both
technologies for mixing.  The studio teamed with both Dolby and Barco to install
a 56-speaker system and related equipment that is capable of mixing and playing
both formats.  The resulting facility, which combines state-of-the-art
audio technologies with the latest projection technology, including 4K digital
projection and 3D capabilities, reinforces Sony Pictures Studios as one of the
industry’s landmark post-production destinations. 

Commenting
on the announcement, Rory Bruer, president of Worldwide Distribution for Sony
Pictures, said: “We’re thrilled to be working with Barco and Dolby, both to
convert the William Holden Theater and to incorporate these innovative
technologies into The Amazing
Spider-Man 2. 
We are always looking for ways to offer greater definition and further enhance
the moviegoing experience.  These technologies are one more way that we
offer consumers a richer and unique theatrical experience.”

Paul
Massey and David Giammarco will be creating both the Dolby Atmos and Auro 11.1
mixes.  Commenting on the announcement, they said: “We are thrilled
to have these groundbreaking formats available for audiences viewing The
Amazing Spider-Man 2. Both Atmos and Auro will allow us the creative
freedom to fully immerse the audience with ‘3D’ sound as Marc Webb’s vision of
Spider-Man’s world unfolds. Every member of the audience will experience what
it’s like to be Spider-Man swinging from building to building above a busy New
York street!”

Auro
11.1 by Barco, which was developed by Auro Technologies, is designed along
three layers of sound (traditional surround sound, with height, and overhead
layers). Thanks to this layered approach, the technology not only enables sound
mixers to move objects around in space, it also allows them to reproduce the
immersive aspects of a film soundtrack in a more natural way.   

   

“Barco has channeled our industry-leading cinema technologies into
an immersive audio solution that provides uniquely significant benefits to
studios and exhibitors around the world,” comments Brian Claypool, Senior
Director of Strategic Business Development for Barco Entertainment. “We are
deeply honored to have this opportunity to work with Sony Pictures and by
empowering film makers with the perfect rendering environment that integrates
seamlessly with their existing workflows, we can help them easily and
cost-effectively deliver the most realistic, natural and comfortable immersive
listening experience to bring their movies to life.”

Dolby Atmos unleashes the potential of sound in storytelling by
giving filmmakers the creative freedom to easily place or move sounds anywhere
in the movie theatre, even overhead, with object-based audio to create a
lifelike, virtual reality of sound.

“Dolby Atmos, the world’s first and only object-based cinema sound
platform available today, marked a giant step forward in the evolution of movie
storytelling. We are proud to have pioneered an approach to sound that delivers
a sense of being in the moment alongside your favorite characters,” said
Doug Darrow, Senior Vice President, Cinema, Dolby Laboratories. “We have
successfully deployed Dolby Atmos in hundreds of cinemas around the globe, and
dozens of the world’s leading filmmakers embrace our new approach to sound.”

About
“The Amazing Spider-Man 2™”

We’ve
always known that Spider-Man’s most important battle has been within himself:
the struggle between the ordinary obligations of Peter Parker and the
extraordinary responsibilities of Spider-Man. But in The
Amazing Spider-Man 2™, Peter
Parker finds that a greater conflict lies ahead.

It’s
great to be Spider-Man (Andrew Garfield).  For Peter Parker, there’s no
feeling quite like swinging between skyscrapers, embracing being the hero, and
spending time with Gwen (Emma Stone).  But being Spider-Man comes at a
price: only Spider-Man can protect his fellow New Yorkers from the formidable
villains that threaten the city.  With the emergence of Electro (Jamie
Foxx), Peter must confront a foe far more powerful than he. And as his old
friend, Harry Osborn (Dane DeHaan), returns, Peter comes to realize that all of
his enemies have one thing in common: OsCorp.  Directed by Marc
Webb.  Produced by Avi Arad and Matt Tolmach.  Screen Story and
Screenplay by Alex Kurtzman & Roberto Orci & Jeff Pinkner.  Based
on the Marvel Comic Book by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko. 

About
Sony Pictures:

Sony
Pictures Entertainment (SPE) is a subsidiary of Sony Entertainment Inc., a
subsidiary of Tokyo-based Sony Corporation. SPE’s global operations encompass
motion picture production, acquisition and distribution; television production,
acquisition and distribution; television networks; digital content creation and
distribution; operation of studio facilities; and development of new
entertainment products, services and technologies. For additional information,
go tohttp://www.sonypictures.com.

About
Barco

Barco
Digital Cinema is internationally recognized as a global leader in delivering
cutting-edge technologies that enable the “Cinema of the Future.” This includes
a rich palette of digital cinema solutions: the brightest, award-winning
projectors, immersive cinema sound, digital signage, managed services, and the industry’s
best training and certification program. Barco also
designs and develops visualization solutions for a variety of professional
markets including healthcare, entertainment, industrial and government,
simulation and virtual reality, and defense and aerospace. As a global
enterprise, Barco maintains all corporate functions within three distinct regions:
Europe, North America and Asia Pacific. Barco (NYSE Euronext Brussels: BAR) is
active in more than 90 countries with about 3,900 employees worldwide. Barco
posted sales of 1.156 billion euro in 2012. For more information, visit www.barco.com.

About
Auro Technologies

Auro
Technologies (www.auro-3d.com; www.auro-technologies.com) is a spin-off of
the Galaxy Studios Group and owner of the Auro-3D® Technology Suite. The
Auro-3D® system has been designed by Wilfried Van Baelen, founder of Galaxy
Studios, which is renowned worldwide for its state-of-the-art leadership in
audio innovation for music and film sound. The Auro-3D® suite offers
ground-breaking, easy-to-use and unprecedented levels of sound reproduction
capabilities to the professional, automotive, broadcast and consumer
electronics (such as gaming, smart phones, multimedia PC, notebooks, tablets,
audio players, digital TV, media libraries and packaged media) markets.

About
Dolby Atmos

Dolby Laboratories is equipping the cinema world with its new
Dolby Atmos technology, the only object-based cinema sound platform available
today. Dolby Atmos unleashes the potential of sound in storytelling by
providing sound experts the creative freedom to easily place or move specific
sounds anywhere in the movie theatre, not just where there happen to be
speakers. The result is what moviegoers have described as the most engaging and
lifelike cinema sound experience ever.