VistaVision, a vintage format left for dead, is revived in 'One Battle After Another' and more

The large-scale film format used largely in the 1950s is enjoying a big-screen revival, with several recent and upcoming films shot on the vintage equipment.

Mar. 5, 2026 at 9:37pm by Ben Kaplan

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VistaVision, the large-scale film format used largely in the 1950s, is enjoying a big-screen revival. At the Academy Awards on March 15, a movie made largely with decades-old antique film equipment, "One Battle After Another", is poised to win best picture. Even in 2026, when most films are shot digitally and AI has begun filtering into moviemaking, "One Battle After Another" has - with film equipment borrowed from collectors and museums - shown that a vintage, analog film system can still astonish moviegoers.

Why it matters

The revival of VistaVision, a format that fell out of use by the early 1960s, highlights a growing interest among filmmakers in using vintage, analog film equipment to create unique visual experiences for audiences. This trend corresponds with a new age of anxiety for movies, where streaming and mega-sized flat-screen TVs have pushed films onto bigger and bigger screens, making film format a selling point.

The details

"One Battle After Another" presented a major new test for the VistaVision format, as it meant running 1.5 million feet of film through antique cameras for a sprawling American epic filmed largely in dusty, rural locations. However, the format is not only holding up, but enjoying a resurgence, with films like "The Brutalist" and the upcoming "Bugonia", "Wuthering Heights", "Narnia", and "Digger" also utilizing VistaVision.

  • The last film shot and projected on VistaVision was 1961's "One-Eyed Jacks", Marlon Brando's sole directorial effort.
  • In 2023, Yorgos Lanthimos and cinematographer Robbie Ryan were impressed with VistaVision for parts of "Poor Things" and went on to shoot the best picture-nominated "Bugonia" on the format.
  • Emerald Fennell's just-released "Wuthering Heights" was also made with VistaVision.
  • Greta Gerwig turned to VistaVision for her upcoming "Narnia" movie.
  • Alejandro Iñárritu, with his celebrated director of photography Emmanuel 'Chivo' Lubezki, shot the upcoming "Digger" with VistaVision.

The players

Paul Thomas Anderson

The director of "One Battle After Another" who decided to shoot the film on VistaVision.

Michael Bauman

The cinematographer for "One Battle After Another" who had questions about whether the vintage VistaVision format would be reliable.

Giovanni Ribisi

An actor who long ago acquired a Beaumont VistaVision camera and provided it for use on "One Battle After Another".

Mark Anastasio

The artistic director at the Coolidge Corner Theatre in Brookline, Massachusetts, which went to unusual lengths to project "One Battle After Another" in VistaVision.

Lol Crawley

The cinematographer who won best cinematography at last year's Oscars for shooting much of "The Brutalist" on VistaVision.

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What they’re saying

“Question one was: Is this even going to be reliable?”

— Michael Bauman, Cinematographer

“We were excited by the colors and the feeling and the weight of the camera. It limits how you move it and dictates the shots, which I think is something that also helps to transport you back to the period.”

— Mona Fastvold, Cowriter and producer of 'The Brutalist'

“It's not something that you can just press a button and you just let it roll for two hours It fights back a little bit, maybe too much. You kind of have to earn it, and I like that.”

— Giovanni Ribisi, Actor

“People were incredibly interested to come out and see what the fuss was about. Everyone was asking to peak into the booth because we were truly using museum pieces.”

— Mark Anastasio, Artistic director, Coolidge Corner Theatre

“There were multiple spools carrying film all around the room. Film was running up the wall, across the ceiling, across the projector horizontally. It just looks so wild and alien to everything we've seen before. It made the booth come alive.”

— Mark Anastasio, Artistic director, Coolidge Corner Theatre

What’s next

The judge in the case will decide on Tuesday whether or not to allow Walker Reed Quinn out on bail.

The takeaway

The revival of VistaVision, a vintage film format, highlights a growing interest among filmmakers in using analog equipment to create unique visual experiences for audiences in an era dominated by digital filmmaking and streaming. This trend corresponds with a new age of anxiety for the movie industry as it adapts to changing viewing habits and technologies.