In 1983, a young director stepped behind the camera for the first time and began to shoot a film which he thought might be both his first and his last. An ardent fan of \u201cB\u201d cinema, Jim Wynorski decided to cram this film with everything he loved. “I got my first break doing The Lost Empire for Plitt Theatres,\u201d says Jim Wynorski. \u201cThe late owner, Henry Plitt (a decorated war hero), wanted to make a low budget sci-fi action picture as a tax loss. I never knew that when I made the show, so I put my heart and soul into the project. When it finally got completed, Plitt actually liked it enough to give it a wide theatrical release – where it actually made some money,\u201d comments Wynorski.<\/p>\n
The film had a limited theatrical release followed by an initial release on VHS. As a result of a series of corporate changes at Plitt, \u201cThe Lost Empire\u201d was set aside and lost to generations of genre movie fans. Wynorski’s career took off and resulted in an immense body of work. \u201cIt was always a deep regret of mine that my first film was caught in this limbo,\u201d says Wynorski \u201cFor years I did all kinds of detective work trying to get my film seen.\u201d<\/p>\n
In 2007, Wynorski began working with Indiana based producer, Bill Dever. Dever was more than familiar with Wynorski’s work and was by his own admission \u201ca big fan\u201d. Off and on they began searching for The Lost Empire. \u201c We had a lucky break when we discovered who purchased the assets of Plitt,\u201d says Dever. \u201cFrom there the pieces fell into place; for me it was an honor to be involved in the resurrection of The Lost Empire\u201d<\/p>\n
They re-acquired the rights and Wynorski went to work readying his first born to the world for the second time. Dever engaged the sponsorship of Doremi Labs, a leader in digital cinema technology. Doremi has been in the forefront of leading the digital cinema revolution. \u201cDoremi not only is a company deeply involved financially in digital cinema,\u201d says Michael Archer VP Of Digital Cinema for Doremi, \u201cWe also care deeply for the legacy and tradition of cinema and for us this was a natural fit.\u201d<\/p>\n
In the fall of 2013 projection lamps throughout North America will again illuminate screens with Wynorski’s vision with the help of some friends and the dedication of a company very much aware of the history of the industry it serves.