Imax
Dinosaurs Alive!
The world's most charismatic megafauna star in a gorgeously shot, meticulously rendered IMAX® film. Watch the science of paleontology evolve from the early 20th century through today, as the ultimate predators take over the ultimate big screen.
When filmmakers Bayley Silleck and Dave Clark read about the early 20th century naturalist and explorer Roy Chapman Andrews, they felt his story was a great tale of discovery that had not been widely told. They trekked their 225-pound cameras to Mongolia, where the fossils of the Late Cretaceous represent the end of the dinosaurs' reign on Earth. They paired antique footage of Andrews's adventures with their own shots of the remote, sandstorm-swept Gobi desert. A new, smaller IMAX camera enabled them to film from the nose of a helicopter and the front bumper of a Jeep.
Then they recorded modern paleontologists at work in New Mexico, a location perhaps less exotic, but no less stunning. There, scientists are still uncovering fossils from the dawn of the dinosaur age, the Triassic Period.
Witness the painstaking process of locating and excavating dinosaur fossils as scientists uncover secrets locked in time. Then, be amazed by the work from top digital animators to create the most realistic dinosaurs on film, depicting each flared nostril, dripping tooth, and glinting eye in full detail. Leading paleontologist Mark Norell, who works for the American Museum of Natural History just as Andrews did a lifetime ago, provided approval for the dinosaurs' physical appearance and walking effects based on the best and latest fossil evidence.
Dinosaurs Alive! conveys how the study of dinosaurs has progressed — how new insights build on previous work, and how each new generation of paleontologists continues the legacy of people like the illustrious Roy Chapman Andrews. The real stars of the film, however, prove just how far the technology of computer-generated graphics has come.
Dinosaurs Alive! was produced by David Clark, Inc., Giant Screen Films, the Maryland Science Center, and Stardust Blue LLC, in association with the American Museum of Natural History. Major funding and support provided by the National Science Foundation, the Museum Film Network, and the 3D Film Interest Group.
| Format | Omni Film |
| Grades | 3 – 12 |
| Author | n/a |
| Source/Publisher | n/a |
| Location | Mugar Omni Theater — Museum of Science, Boston |
| Website | n/a |
| Media | OPEN VIDEO |
| Educator Guide | dinoimax_edguide.pdf |
| Reservation | Required at least two weeks in advance |
| Fee | $3 per person with Museum Exhibit Halls admission; $6 per person for Omni only |
| Related Links | Dinosaurs Alive! website |
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Dinosaurs Alive!
+ View Detailed Standard Connections
Primary Connections:
Massachusetts History and Social Science Curriculum Framework (2003)
(Massachusetts)
- Geography > North and East Asia (Grade: 6)
MA Science and Technology/Engineering Framework (2006)
(Massachusetts)
- Life Science (Biology) > Adaptations of Living Things (Grade: 3 – 5)
- Earth and Space Science > Earth's History (Grade: 6 – 8)
- Life Science (Biology) > Evolution and Biodiversity (Grade: 6 – 8)
- Technology/Engineering > Engineering Design (Grade: 3 – 5)
National Science Education Standards (1996)
(National)
- Earth and Space Science > Earth's history (Grade: 5 – 8)
- Earth and Space Science > Properties of earth materials (Grade: K – 4)
- Life Science > Diversity and adaptations of organisms (Grade: 5 – 8)
- Life Science > Diversity and adaptations of organisms (Grade: 5 – 8)
- Science in Personal and Social Perspectives > Natural hazards (Grade: 5 – 8)
Secondary Connections:
MA Science and Technology/Engineering Framework (2006)
(Massachusetts)
- Life Science (Biology) > Adaptations of Living Things (Grade: 3 – 5)
- Earth and Space Science > Earth's History (Grade: 3 – 5)
- Earth and Space Science > Soil (Grade: 3 – 5)
- Earth and Space Science > Rocks and Their Properties (Grade: 3 – 5)
- Life Science (Biology) > Changes in Ecosystems Over Time (Grade: 6 – 8)
- Life Science (Biology) > Evolution and Biodiversity (Grade: 6 – 8)
- Earth and Space Science > Earth's History (Grade: 6 – 8)
National Science Education Standards (1996)
(National)
- Earth and Space Science > Earth's history (Grade: 5 – 8)
– View Concise Standard Connections
Primary Connections:
Massachusetts History and Social Science Curriculum Framework (2003)
(Massachusetts)
- Geography > NEA.1 North and East Asia (Grade: 6)
On a map of the world, locate North and East Asia, the Pacific Ocean, and the Arctic Ocean. On a map of East Asia, locate the Sea of Japan, the Yellow Sea, the East China Sea, the Gobi Desert, the Himalayas, and the Huang He (Yellow) and Chang Jiang (Yantgtze) Rivers. On a map of North Asia, locate Siberia and the Yenisey, Lena, and Kolyma rivers.
MA Science and Technology/Engineering Framework (2006)
(Massachusetts)
- Life Science (Biology) > 06 Adaptations of Living Things (Grade: 3 – 5)
Give examples of how inherited characteristics may change over time as adaptations to changes in the environment that enable organisms to survive, e.g., shape of beak or feet, placement of eyes on head, length of neck, shape of teeth, color. - Earth and Space Science > 07 Earth's History (Grade: 6 – 8)
Explain and give examples of how physical evidence, such as fossils and surface features of glaciation, supports theories that the earth has evolved over geologic time. - Life Science (Biology) > 11 Evolution and Biodiversity (Grade: 6 – 8)
Recognize that evidence drawn from geology, fossils, and comparative anatomy provide the basis of the theory of evolution. - Technology/Engineering > 2.2 Engineering Design (Grade: 3 – 5)
Describe different ways in which a problem can be represented, e.g., sketches, diagrams, graphic organizers, and lists.
National Science Education Standards (1996)
(National)
- Earth and Space Science > Earth's history (Grade: 5 – 8)
Fossils provide important evidence of how life and environmental conditions have changed. - Earth and Space Science > Properties of earth materials (Grade: K – 4)
Fossils provide evidence about the plants and animals that lived long ago and the nature of the environment at that time. - Life Science > Diversity and adaptations of organisms (Grade: 5 – 8)
Extinction of a species occurs when the environment changes and the adaptive characteristics of a species are insufficient to allow its survival. Fossils indicate that many organisms that lived long ago are extinct. Extinction of species is common; most of the species that have lived on the earth no longer exist. - Life Science > Diversity and adaptations of organisms (Grade: 5 – 8)
Biological evolution accounts for the diversity of species developed through gradual processes over many generations. Species acquire many of their unique characteristics through biological adaptation, which involves the selection of naturally occurring variations in populations. Biological adaptations include changes in structures, behaviors, or physiology that enhance survival and reproductive success in a particular environment. - Science in Personal and Social Perspectives > Natural hazards (Grade: 5 – 8)
Internal and external processes of the earth system cause natural hazards, events that change or destroy human and wildlife habitats, damage property, and harm or kill humans. Natural hazards include earthquakes, landslides, wildfires, volcanic eruptions, floods, storms, and even possible impacts of asteroids.
Secondary Connections:
MA Science and Technology/Engineering Framework (2006)
(Massachusetts)
- Life Science (Biology) > 07 Adaptations of Living Things (Grade: 3 – 5)
Give examples of how changes in the environment (drought, cold) have caused some plants and animals to die or move to new locations (migration). - Earth and Space Science > 12 Earth's History (Grade: 3 – 5)
Give examples of how the surface of the earth changes due to slow processes such as erosion and weathering, and rapid processes such as landslides, volcanic eruptions, and earthquakes. - Earth and Space Science > 04 Soil (Grade: 3 – 5)
Explain and give examples of the ways in which soil is formed (the weathering of rock by water and wind and from the decomposition of plant and animal remains). - Earth and Space Science > 03 Rocks and Their Properties (Grade: 3 – 5)
Identify the three categories of rocks (metamorphic, igneous, and sedimentary) based on how they are formed, and explain the natural and physical processes that create these rocks. - Life Science (Biology) > 17 Changes in Ecosystems Over Time (Grade: 6 – 8)
Identify ways in which ecosystems have changed throughout geologic time in response to physical conditions, interactions among organisms, and the actions of humans. Describe how changes may be catastrophes such as volcanic eruptions or ice storms. - Life Science (Biology) > 12 Evolution and Biodiversity (Grade: 6 – 8)
Relate the extinction of species to a mismatch of adaptation and the environment. - Earth and Space Science > 06 Earth's History (Grade: 6 – 8)
Describe and give examples of ways in which the earth's surface is built up and torn down by natural processes, including deposition of sediments, rock formation, erosion, and weathering.
National Science Education Standards (1996)
(National)
- Earth and Space Science > Earth's history (Grade: 5 – 8)
The earth processes we see today, including erosion, movement of lithospheric plates, and changes in atmospheric composition, are similar to those that occurred in the past. earth history is also influenced by occasional catastrophes, such as the impact of an asteroid or comet.
Dinosaurs Alive!
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Dinosaurs Alive!
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