JOURNEY TO MECCA

Year: 2009
USA: SK Films
UK: SK Films / Cosmic Picture
Cast: Ben Kingsley (narrator), Chem Eddine Zinoun, Hassam Ghancy, Nadim Sawalha, Nabil Elouahabi
Director: Bruce Neibaur
Countries: USA / Canada
USA & UK: 46 mins
UK Certificate: PG contains mild violence and threat
USA Release Date: 7 January 2009 (Limited Release - IMAX theaters)
UK Release Date: 18 June 2010 (Limited Release - London, BFI IMAX)


Synopsis

Following the unprecedented documentary coverage of Mecca, SK Films and Cosmic Picture proudly present the ground-breaking award-winning dramatic and documentary feature for IMAX® JOURNEY TO MECCA: IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF IBN BATTUTA.

JOURNEY TO MECCA tells the extraordinary story of one of the greatest travellers in history, the scholar Ibn Battuta, and his first epic pilgrimage from Tangier to Mecca in 1325 to perform the Hajj. His journey resonates with adventure and presents an unforgettable picture of 14th century Islamic civilisation. We witness the Hajj as it has been experienced for hundreds of years and by millions today.

IMAX® films can take people to places they would otherwise never go, from Mt Everest to the deep sea to outer space. The Hajj, the greatest recurring assembly of human beings on the planet, is a spectacular and unique experience for the medium. For non-Muslims it is the closest they will ever come to witnessing this extraordinary event, and for Muslims it takes on an even deeper significance.

JOURNEY TO MECCA marks the first and only time an IMAX® camera has captured an aerial view of the Hajj from a helicopter hovering 200 feet above Mecca, and the first time an IMAX® team has been admitted into the most sacred sanctuary of Islam - the Grand Mosque in Mecca. The film's presenters, The King Abdulaziz Public Library and the King Faisal Centre for Research and Islamic Studies, on behalf of HRH King Abdullah, were responsible for granting the 85 permits required for the team of 85 people, drawn from over thirty different nations, to embark on the largest and most ambitious production ever to take place in the Gulf region. The film recently won the 'Most Popular Film Award' at the La Geode Giant Screen Film Festival in Paris, and 'Best Dramatic Short' at the Houston International Film Festival.

JOURNEY TO MECCA is produced by Taran Davies, Dominic Cunningham-Reid and Jonathan Barker, a Cosmic Picture/SK Films Production in association with National Geographic, with Jake Eberts serving as Executive Producer. The film is directed by Bruce Neibaur, stars Chems Eddine Zinoun (as Ibn Battuta), Hassam Ghancy, Nadim Sawalha and Nabil Elouahabi, with narration by Ben Kingsley.