<\/p>\n
\n\tThere\u2019s a fine line, if any, between \u201cWish You Were Here\u201d and FOMO. When David Gilmour<\/a> returned to touring last year after eight years of not doing live dates, it was only in four cities, globally, leaving many fans of his solo material and Pink Floyd<\/a> classics looking at the virtual postcards being sent from the host cities and wishing they were in L.A., New York, London or Rome. But now they can be in that last city, or as close as an Imax<\/a> screen will allow, as \u201cDavid Gilmour Live at the Circus Maximus, Rome\u201d plays in theaters this week.<\/p>\n \n\tThe two-and-a-half-hour concert film will play on regular screens as well as in Imax presentations, with most of the screenings set for Wednesday night, followed by encore screenings on Saturday and Sunday. (Local showtimes can be found here<\/a>.) It will also be coming to home theaters soon enough, and the music will be available in boxed sets or separate CD, vinyl and Blu-Ray editions. However they experience it, it will mark a further welcome reunion of Gilmour with his fans following the well-received \u201cLuck and Strange\u201d studio album of 2024 as well as the handful of dates behind it. (For more on what went down at these rare shows, read Variety<\/em>\u2018s review of the L.A. engagement, under the headline \u201cDavid Gilmour Leaves Fans Comfortably Dumbfounded at the Intuit Dome, in First U.S. Show in Eight Years\u201d<\/a>). <\/p>\n \n\tOn the eve of the theatrical premiere of the Rome-based concert movie, Variety<\/em> Zoomed with one of the world\u2019s most beloved singer-guitarists to find out why he has a love of performance films in awe-inspiring settings\u2026 which stretches back to \u201cPink Floyd at Pompeii,\u201d the 1972 movie that got its own big-screen revival earlier this year. We also inquired how much he had to do with the forthcoming 50th anniversary boxed set of Pink Floyd\u2019s \u201cWish You Were Here\u201d that was just announced, one of the first projects to come out after the band members sold their recording rights to Sony Music. Here\u2019s a spoiler on that: He does not wish he was living in the past.<\/p>\n \n\tDoing several concert films now as you have, is part of that thinking about how you limit your touring and knowing you won\u2019t reach everyone you might like to without creating something for cinemas? Or do you just like the idea of having them captured for posterity?<\/strong><\/p>\n \n\tWell, you know, posterity \u2014 good word. I\u2019m not sure. I mean, it is just selfish. It\u2019s for me more than for anything to have these things down for the record, to be able to come back to and watch and share with people. Yeah, I mean, obviously there\u2019s a huge advantage to it being out there for people who can\u2019t get to a show, because we only did four cities on this tour, as a result of me being less willing to travel as much and live out of a suitcase and fly and everything every single day. So it\u2019s sort of a slightly selfish desire to make people come to me, rather than the other way around.<\/p>\n \n\tYou\u2019re on the big screen twice this year. The \u201cPink Floyd at Pompeii\u201d film did so well, particularly in Imax theaters. Does anything strike you about how people are seeing you 60 feet tall, 50 years ago and now again in the present day?<\/strong><\/p>\n \n\tYou know, I thoroughly enjoyed watching the \u201cPompeii\u201d reissue. It\u2019s amazing that that is the first time that anyone really has been able to see it in anything remotely close to what it was actually filmed in, which is actually shot on film. An edit was done on film, but that\u2019s not a thing that people have seen. It\u2019s all was been transferred to video 50 years ago or something, whenever it was, \u201871, \u201872, and shown on VHS tape. And now Lana, my wonderful research person, found all the original cans of film and had them all cleaned and scanned to 4K. And it was quite an experience with Steven Wilson\u2019s new sound mix and just sort of amazing to see that. And then, as you say, to see myself, now, a couple of years later [laughs], in modern times, also in brilliantly sharp video and brilliant sound.<\/p>\n