African Adventure at the Austin Imax Theatre

I have been wanting to see a 3D show at the Imax Theatre for a long time, and Saturday evening, I got my chance.  I pranced on over to the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum for an eight o'clock showing of African Adventure: Safari in the Okavango.  $7 got me a ticket and a set of 3D glasses, and I found a seat in the middle of the theatre in front of the enormous screen.

Before the film began, a trailer for another 3D movie, Sharks, also playing at the Imax Theatre, ran for a few minutes.  I was just beginning to adjust to the whole 3D experience when an enormous shark came off the screen and right for my head.  I didn't duck, as that would have been embarrassing, but let's just say it was realistic.  (You may recall Marty in Back to the Future II when a Jaws trailer bursts out of the theater.  This was similar.)

Then the film began.  Leisl Eichenberger, a zoologist, takes us into a boat with her on the Okavango River Delta in the Kalahari Desert in northern Botswana.  I try not to flinch when the brush seems to be hitting my face.  Yes, it is that real. 

She joins wildlife filmmaker Tim Liversedge and his crew, who are... well... filming the wildlife.  From then on, it is filled with remarkable images of African animals, from a pride of lions and lionesses to a family of elephants to hippos, eagles and warthogs.  You get up close and personal, thanks to the 3D, and watch them hang out in their natural habitat.  Tim actually gave up his other line of work to become a filmmaker because he felt that conservation of such places as the Okavango depends on the generosity and support of the international community.  He also felt that it would be impossible to get this support without introducing people to the place itself.  He began to film in Africa and, let me tell you, his method is effective.  I walked out of that theatre ready to plunk down some cash to save the Okavango from becoming a strip mall or something equally modern and egregious.

There were a ton of children in the theatre, and while I worried that this might have hindered the viewing experience - I saw the Shrek movies in the theatre, so I know of what I speak - they were all lovely and well-behaved.  It must have been the fact that the film was so enchanting; they were as drawn in as I was with the big, googly 3D glasses hanging on their little faces.  One little girl behind me giggled each time we rode through the brush, which was simply adorable.

The film was only 40 minutes long, which is good because it ended at just the time when my eyes began to hurt.  Perhaps people who wear glasses shouldn't see 3D movies on enormous screens, but I don't care.  It was so much fun and so educational and enlightening that I will surely be back to see other films there.

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More info on African Adventure: Safari in the Okavango at Big Movie Zone.

More info about the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum and Imax Theatre at their official website.

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April D. Boland is a freelance writer and editor.  Originally from New York City, she now resides in Austin, Texas where she enjoys reading, writing, soaking up culture and taking advantage of the beautiful outdoors that she never had back home.  She is the founder and editor-in-chief of Della Donna, a webzine for women for which she heartily accepts submissions.  Her published work can be found at her website, AprilBoland.com, and she blogs about writing at These Words.