Audio Video News

January 27, Lumivision Corporation, released what it claims is the first film on DVD that uses all eight available audio tracks in Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound. Lumivision was also one of the first companies to release DVDs for sale in the Western Hemisphere.

The movie, Africa: The Serengeti, includes English, German (Bavarian), Castilian and Catalan Spanish, French, Japanese, Korean, and Mandarin Chinese. The English track is narrated by famed actor James Earl Jones.

According to the Lumivision press release: "Filmed in IMAX, Africa: The Serengeti takes you on an extraordinary journey to the great migration, following more than two million wildebeests, zebras, and antelope as they travel over 500 miles across the Serengeti plains."

Unlike most DVD releases, which have restricted-play regional coding, Africa plays on all NTSC-standard DVD players and DVD-ROM personal computers worldwide. The majority of Lumivision's DVD titles are available for global distribution.

Other features of this trail-blazing disc include onscreen chapter menus in all eight languages, English subtitles and closed captioning, and compatibility with virtually all PC and Macintosh DVD-ROM-equipped computers. Africa: The Serengeti was transferred from film to Component Digital D1 masters. It's 40 minutes long, with a suggested retail price of $29.95.

Other Imax releases planned for DVD include Ring of Fire, and Mystery of the Maya both with multiple languages as well.

Lumivision specializes in animation, classic cinema, cult films, educational features, fine arts, and titles originally filmed in IMAX. In addition to their website, they can be reached at (303) 446-0400.