Upcoming Batman sequel The Dark Night will be the first feature film to contain footage shot in the Imax format.

Director Christopher Nolan will film four scenes, including the introduction of villain The Joker, played by Heath Ledger, in the follow-up to his own Batman Begins for Imax cinemas.

There are only 280 Imax cinemas, which have screens up to eight storeys high, worldwide - less than 100 of these screen feature films.

But Nolan believes the format is the future for action cinema.

He says, "There's simply nothing like seeing a movie that way. It's more immersive for the audience. I wish I could shoot the entire thing this way."

"You can't do this on any home theatre. Batman has some of the most extraordinary characters in pop culture. We wanted The Joker to have the grandest entrance possible."

"I figure if you could take an Imax camera to Mount Everest or outer space, you could use it in a feature movie."