If the space doesn’t fit the theater, try digging deeper. That’s the strategy Murray Kunis of Future Home took with this elaborate California home theater project. Illusion is everything in home theater, so creating the sense of an open room despite low 8-foot ceilings was Kunis’ first move. “I convinced the homeowner to cut the slab at the front of the room so we could drop the seating for tiers,” Kunis says. “That made the front of the room taller.”

There was another issue. The room serves as a pass-through between rooms in the lower level of this three-story house. Theater designer Theo Kalomirakis of TK Theaters created a room within a room, keeping the three rows of theater seating within a visual space defined by ornate columns. He designed walkways outside of the theater area to allow for a clear runway between rooms. Another Kalomirakis coup: The structural beam in the ceiling disappeared, thanks to the new elaborate design.

Kunis went high-end for the projector and sound system. The Runco VX-2D is a special-edition projector offering high-grade lenses and the quality of a three-chip DLP design. “We went with this one because there are no artifacts with the three-chip DLP and because it’s THX certified for digital cinema,” he says.

JBL Synthesis got the nod for the 7.1-channel sound system. “There are only a few reference-grade systems out there,” Kunis says. “It plays very loud and we [use] it for people who want a true theatrical presentation.”

The theater’s impressive equipment rack is six feet away in an adjacent room. There, the homeowners can access all the audio/video gear while whirring fans keep the hot-running DLP projector cool. Kunis wouldn’t have it any other way: “We want our clients to focus on the performance of the theater and not have the technology interfere with the space.”

Equipment List: Video

• Runco VX-2dc DLP projector
• Runco DHD digital video processor
• Escient DVDM 100 DVD management system
• Sony 777 ES DVD changer
• Hughes HD10-250 HD TiVo recorder
• Marantz DV 9600 DVD player
• JVC HRS 5912 Super VHS VCR

Equipment List: Speakers

• JBL Synthesis II main speakers
• JBL Synthesis S4A surround speakers
• JBL 18-inch subwoofer

Equipment List: Electronics

• JBL Synthesis amplifiers
• JBL Synthesis Digital EQ

Equipment List: Other Equipment

• Crestron ST 1700c wireless touchscreen controller
• Panamax M 5500 AC power conditioner

Systems & Room Design
Future Home
Los Angeles, CA
www.futurehometheater.com

TK Theaters
New York, NY
www.tktheaters.com