Shanghai Omnijoi International Cinema's Design is an Ode to Film

Behind the Concrete is a monthly snippet where we introduce a piece of architecture that has a unique design and/or interesting story.

Project name: Shanghai Omnijoi International Cinema
Location: Minhang, Shanghai
Area: 3,345sqm
Design company: One Plus Partnership Limited (Hong Kong)

The brief: During the process of filmmaking, rails are often used in tracking shots to allow the cameraman to keep the camera steady while shooting an action sequence. Designers of Shanghai’s Omnijoi International Cinema adopted rails as the main theme for this project and planted copper colored metal tubes throughout the entire space as a tribute to the hard work that goes into making a movie. 

Upon entering the lobby, the intertwining metal rails that extend from the ceiling down to become seats and ticketing counters are the first things one notices. Copper-colored fluorocarbon coating on the metal creates a strong visual contrast with the black flamed granite-tiled walls and flooring, while the elongated light bulbs inside the tubes create a dramatic lighting effect.

The copper-colored rails extend into the auditoriums, and the designers have incorporated them in different ways along the walls of each room. For instance, the IMAX auditorium features fragments of the tubes as decorations on the walls.

Lights spilling out at different angles from the two ends of the twisting tubes add extra depth to the overall design. Seats in the auditoriums are mainly in orange with some gray ones mixed in at random spots to mimic the black and copper color contrast in the lobby.

Inside the bathrooms, the same copper-colored rails are found on the ceiling as well as the water taps.

Photos by Jonathan Leijonhufvud

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