Iwerks Celebrates the One Year Anniversary of the Iwerks Extreme Screen Branding Campaign.

Business Editors

BURBANK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 17, 2000

Iwerks Entertainment(R) (Nasdaq: IWRK), a leading provider of special venue theaters, marks the one-year anniversary of the Iwerks(R) Extreme Screen(TM) branding campaign this month.

Since rolling out the campaign in May 1999, Iwerks Entertainment has inked contracts for 12 new-branded Iwerks(R) Extreme Screen(TM) theaters around the world in institutional and commercial venues, 10 of which will be open by mid-year. Iwerks is the number two market leader in the giant screen cinema industry, providing 70mm 2D and 3D cinema systems that project images onto screens measuring up to 80 feet high by 60 feet wide.

Currently there are more than 80 Iwerks large format theaters installed or in development around the world, comprising about 20 percent of the giant screen theater market. Iwerks 8/70 systems feature the patented 8/70 Linear Loop(R) projector, which received an Academy Award for Scientific and Technical Achievement this year.

With these dozen theaters, the Iwerks(R) Extreme Screen(TM) brand has penetrated major urban markets, forming relationships with high-profile institutional and commercial clients. New Iwerks(R) Extreme Screen(TM) customers include such major marquee clients as Warner Village Cinemas, Virgin Cinemas, National Amusements Showcase Cinemas and CEC Theaters. The venues range from museums and science centers, to entertainment centers and amusement parks, to megaplexes and destination theaters.

Those currently open include Iwerks(R) Extreme Screen(TM) theaters at two new state-of-the-art science centers: Science City Union Station in Kansas City, Mo., and COSI in Columbus, Ohio; as well as the entertainment theater destinations Warner Village Cinemas in Chesire Oaks, U.K., and Virgin Cinemas in Scotland. The next wave of Iwerks(R) Extreme Screen(TM) theater launches will see the brand positioned on four continents. Future installations include National Amusements Showcase Cinemas in Buenos Aires, Argentina; CineGrand in Montreal, Aztec on the River in San Antonio, Texas; Liseberg Amusement Park in Gothenberg, Sweden; and Lomond Shores in Balloch, Scotland.

The Iwerks(R) Extreme Screen(TM) brand supports the recent dramatic growth in the large format theater network, which has nearly doubled in size over the past two years, with a strong shift toward commercial venues. Exhibitors use the brand to differentiate giant screen theaters from conventional screens.

"The Extreme Screen(TM) brand has created a unique identity for Iwerks theaters, helped our clients position their products and raised general public awareness of the giant screen experience and the Iwerks brand," said Don Iwerks, chairman and acting CEO of the company. "Giant screen theaters are opening in record numbers at megaplexes and malls, and commercial operators need a way to position this new product. The Iwerks(R) Extreme Screen(TM) name helps identify these theaters, and the tagline, 'Far Too Big for the Average Show,' holds the promise of something new and exciting."

Large format films with broad audience appeal, such as recent releases "Everest" and "Cirque du Soleil(TM) Journey of Man," have helped to bring many new audiences to these theaters and attracted the notice of exhibitors and theater developers as well as film producers.

Educational exhibitors have also benefited from adopting the new brand. "The Iwerks(R) Extreme Screen(TM) campaign has had equal appeal to our institutional clients," noted Christina Frueh, Iwerks vice president of marketing. As commercial operators move into their territories, museums and science centers are adapting their marketing strategies to retain and grow their own audiences. Some institutions have started offering night-time and weekend programming in order to capitalize on the new mainstream awareness of giant screen theaters.

"Our comprehensive Iwerks(R) Extreme Screen(TM) client marketing program is designed to help them do just that," said Frueh.

"Having our name linked to Iwerks has definitely been a boon to us," remarked David Wanamaker, marketing director for the North American Museum on Ancient Life (N.A.M.A.L.) near Salt Lake City, which will launch its Iwerks(R) Extreme Screen(TM) theater in June 2000. "We've received several calls from the media who first heard about us through the Iwerks(R) Extreme Screen(TM) marketing program."

With 12 branded theaters in less than 12 months, Iwerks deems its Extreme Screen(TM) branding campaign a success, both in terms of actual sales and interest generated in the cinema community.

"Our clients are just as enthused as we are," said Frueh. "These theaters are an installation base that will help launch many more and strengthen the position of our company."

Frueh continued, "We knew the campaign would be pivotal in propelling us onto the radar screens of the institutional and commercial theater exhibition markets. We're gratified by just how robust the response has been. The partnerships we have formed sharpen our competitive edge and have significantly bolstered our opportunity to increase market share. We're looking forward to adding many more Iwerks(R) Extreme Screen(TM) theaters to the worldwide large format theater network."

Iwerks Entertainment Inc., founded in 1986, is the No. 2 provider of Large Format Theatre systems worldwide and the industry leader in ride simulation. Iwerks' technologies include Giant Screen (Iwerks(R) Extreme Screen(TM)), ride simulation (Iwerks TurboRide(TM)), turnkey 3D/4D theatres (Iwerks(R) 3D/4D FX Theatre(TM)) and other specialty attractions. Iwerks has more than 250 installations in 38 countries worldwide at location-based entertainment centers, amusement parks, movie theatres, museums, science centers, family entertainment centers, shopping centers, casinos, resorts, nightclubs, restaurants and more. The Iwerks patented Linear Loop(R) Projection system is the recent winner of the Academy of Scientific and Technology Award. In 1998, the company's founder, Don Iwerks received an Oscar(R), the coveted Gordon E. Sawyer Award, for his lifetime of technical achievements. Visit Iwerks Entertainment at www.iwerks.com.

        Iwerks(R) Extreme Screen(TM) Theaters Around the World

COSI, The Fascination Destination
Location: Columbus, Ohio
Date Opened: November 1999

Science City at Union Station
Location: Kansas City, Mo.
Date Opened: November 1999

Warner Village Cinemas
Location: Chesire Oaks, U.K.
Date Opened: December 1999

Virgin Cinemas at Fountainpark Leisure Complex
Location: Edinburgh, Scotland
Date Opened: February 2000

Dunbartonshire Enterprises' The Spirit of Loch Lomond
Location: Balloch, Scotland
Opening Date: June 2000

Rebranding of Maxvision's Blue Mountains Theatre
Location: Katoomba, Australia
Date Opened: 1996

National Amusement's Showcentre Norte
Location: Buenos Aires, Argentina
Opening Date: Summer 2000

The North American Museum of Ancient Life
Location: Salt Lake City, Utah
Opening Date: June 2000

CineGrand at the Montreal Forum Entertainment Center
Location: Montreal, Canada
Opening Date: August 2000

Cinema Entertainment Corporation's (CEC) Century Theatre
Location: Fargo, N.D.
Opening Date: August 2000

Aztec on the River
Location: San Antonio, Texas
Opening Date: November 2000

Liseberg Amusement Park
Location: Gothenberg, Sweden
Opening Date: Spring 2001

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