LIONSGATE'S GLOBAL BLOCKBUSTER THE HUNGER GAMES TO BE RELEASED IN CHINA IN 67 IMAX® THEATRES IN JUNE

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SANTA MONICA, Calif. and TORONTO, May 24, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- IMAX Corporation (NYSE: IMAX; TSX: IMX), one of the world's leading entertainment and technology companies, and Lionsgate (NYSE: LGF), a leading global entertainment company,  today announced that Lionsgate's blockbuster film The Hunger Games will be digitally re-mastered into the immersive IMAX® format and released in China in 67 IMAX® digital theatres in June. 

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The film will be released nationwide in China, under the new revenue sharing terms outlined in the recently announced WTO agreement, in both dubbed and subtitled prints by China Film Group Corporation in conjunction with Huaxia Film Distribution Co. Ltd., with assistance from Lionsgate's promotional partner in the region, Talent International.

The Hunger Games has already grossed nearly $400 million at the North American box office, making it the 14th highest-grossing film of all time, and it is approaching $650 million at the worldwide box office.  The film is the first in a franchise based on the wildly popular trilogy of books by author Suzanne Collins, which has already generated more than 36.5 million copies in print in the United States alone and has developed a massive fan base.

"The Hunger Games launch in China underscores the franchise's continued emergence as a truly global phenomenon, and we're delighted to extend our successful partnership with IMAX around the globe to offer moviegoers in China a unique, world-class experience," said Lionsgate Motion Picture Group Co-Chairs Patrick Wachsberger and Rob Friedman.  "We're thrilled that we can introduce the film to the Chinese movie-going public in the premium IMAX format that celebrates its status as a special and memorable event."

"The Hunger Games has received critical and public acclaim and is one of the most successful franchises in recent history," said Greg Foster, Chairman and President of IMAX Filmed Entertainment.  "We're excited that Chinese audiences will have the opportunity to experience this film in IMAX, which is the most immersive environment in cinema."

The IMAX release of The Hunger Games will be digitally re-mastered into the image and sound quality of The IMAX Experience® with proprietary IMAX DMR® (Digital Re-mastering) technology. The crystal-clear images, coupled with IMAX's customized theatre geometry and powerful digital audio, create a unique environment that will make audiences feel as if they are in the movie. 

The Hunger Games: The IMAX Experience is scheduled to play day-and-date at the following IMAX theatres:

Please check local listings or IMAX.cn for final theatre listings, launch dates and show times.

About The Hunger Games

Every year in the ruins of what was once North America, the Capitol of the nation of Panem forces each of its twelve districts to send a teenage boy and girl to compete in the Hunger Games.  A twisted punishment for a past uprising and an ongoing government intimidation tactic, The Hunger Games are a nationally televised event in which "Tributes" must fight with one another until one survivor remains.

Sixteen year old Katniss Everdeen volunteers in her younger sister's place to enter the games, and is forced to rely upon her sharp instincts as well as the mentorship of drunken former victor Haymitch Abernathy when she's pitted against highly-trained Tributes who have prepared for these Games their entire lives.  If she's ever to return home to District 12, Katniss must make impossible choices in the arena that weigh survival against humanity and life against love.

The Hunger Games is directed by Gary Ross from a screenplay by Gary Ross and Suzanne Collins and Billy Ray, produced by Nina Jacobson's Color Force in tandem with producer Jon Kilik. The Hunger Games stars Academy Award® nominated actress Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Woody Harrelson, Elizabeth Banks, Lenny Kravitz, with Stanley Tucci and Donald Sutherland.

www.thehungergamesmovie.com

About Lionsgate

Lionsgate is a leading global entertainment company with a strong and diversified presence in motion picture production and distribution, television programming and syndication, home entertainment, family entertainment, digital distribution, new channel platforms and international distribution and sales. The Company has built a strong television presence in production of primetime cable and broadcast network series, distribution and syndication of programming and an array of channel assets. Lionsgate currently has 16 shows on more than 10 networks spanning its primetime production, distribution and syndication businesses, including such critically-acclaimed hits as the multiple Emmy Award-winning "Mad Men," "Weeds" and "Nurse Jackie," along with the powerful drama "Boss," the new network series "Nashville" and "Next Caller," the syndication successes "Tyler Perry's House of Payne," its spinoff "Meet the Browns," "The Wendy Williams Show" and "Are We There Yet?" and the upcoming "Anger Management," starring Charlie Sheen, and "Orange Is The New Black," an original series for Netflix.

Its feature film business has been fueled by such recent successes as the blockbuster first installment of "The Hunger Games" franchise, which has already grossed nearly $650 million at the worldwide box office, "The Expendables," "The Lincoln Lawyer", Cabin In The Woods," "Tyler Perry's Madea's Big Happy Family" and "Margin Call." With the January 2012 acquisition of Summit Entertainment, the Company now has the two leading young adult franchises - the blockbuster "Twilight Saga," which has grossed more than $2.5 billion at the worldwide box office, and "The Hunger Games." Recent Summit hits include "Red," "Letters to Juliet," "Knowing," the "Step Up" franchise and the Academy Award-winning Best Picture, "The Hurt Locker."

Lionsgate's home entertainment business is an industry leader in box office-to-DVD and box office-to-VOD revenue conversion rate. Lionsgate handles a prestigious and prolific library of approximately 13,000 motion picture and television titles that is an important source of recurring revenue and serves as the foundation for the growth of the Company's core businesses. The Lionsgate and Summit brands remain synonymous with original, daring, quality entertainment in markets around the world.

About IMAX China

IMAX China is a wholly-owned subsidiary of IMAX Corporation, and is incorporated under the laws of Hong Kong. IMAX China was established by IMAX Corporation specifically to oversee the expansion of IMAX's business throughout Greater China.

About IMAX Corporation

IMAX Corporation is one of the world's leading entertainment and technology companies, specializing in the creation and delivery of premium, awe-inspiring entertainment experiences. With a growing suite of cutting-edge motion picture and sound technologies, and a globally recognized entertainment brand, IMAX is singularly situated at the convergence of the entertainment industry, innovation and the digital media world. The industry's top filmmakers and studios are utilizing IMAX theatres to connect with audiences in extraordinary ways, and as such, the IMAX network is among the most important and successful theatrical distribution platforms for major event films around the globe. The Company's new digital projection and sound systems - combined with a growing blockbuster film slate - are fueling the rapid expansion of the IMAX network in established markets such as North America, Western Europe, and Japan, as well as emerging markets such as China and Russia. IMAX deliver the world's best cinematic presentations using proprietary IMAX®, IMAX 3D®, and IMAX DMR® (Digital Re-Mastering) technologies. IMAX DMR enables virtually any motion picture to be transformed into the unparalleled image and sound quality of The IMAX Experience®. 

IMAX is headquartered in New York, Toronto and Los Angeles, with offices in London, Tokyo, Shanghai and Beijing.  As of March 31, 2012, there were 643 IMAX theatres (510 commercial multiplex, 20 commercial destination and 113 institutional) in 52 countries.

IMAX®, IMAX® 3D, IMAX DMR®, Experience It In IMAX®, An IMAX 3D Experience® and The IMAX Experience® are trademarks of IMAX Corporation. More information about the Company can be found at www.imax.com. You may also connect with IMAX on Facebook (www.facebook.com/imax), Twitter (www.twitter.com/imax) and YouTube (www.youtube.com/imaxmovies).

This press release contains forward looking statements that are based on IMAX management's assumptions and existing information and involve certain risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from future results expressed or implied by such forward looking statements. Important factors that could affect these statements include, but are not limited to, general economic, market or business conditions, including the length and severity of the current economic downturn, the performance of IMAX DMR films, the opportunities that may be presented to and pursued by IMAX, competitive actions by other companies, conditions in the in-home and out-of home entertainment industries, the signing of theatre system agreements, changes in law or regulations, conditions, changes and developments in the commercial exhibition industry, the failure to respond to changes and advancements in digital technology, the failure to convert theatre system backlog into revenue, new business initiatives, investments and operations in foreign jurisdictions and any future international expansion, the inability to protect IMAX's intellectual property foreign currency fluctuations and IMAX's prior restatements and the related litigation.  These factors and other risks and uncertainties are discussed in IMAX's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and most recent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q.

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SOURCE Lionsgate