Explore Chattanooga Summer 2026

In this scene from Wild Asia: Life at Extremes 3D, three Bengal Tiger siblings filmed from a drone in Western Nepal, spend daylight hours hiding in the long elephant grass. This helps them keep cool from the intense heat in the months before the monsoon. (Credit: BBC Studios / Henry Lin)

A s the world’s largest continent, Asia is a land of extremes. Spanning 11 time zones, it is home to Mount Everest, the planet’s highest peak; Lake Baikal, the world’s deepest lake; and some of Earth’s most remarkable wildlife. Asia is home to the Siberian tiger, the Komodo dragon, the tiny bumblebee bat, and the massive, reticulated python. With such extraordinary landscapes and species, it’s surprising Asia took so long to become the focus of a major BBC Earth giant screen production. That changes with Wild Asia: Life at Extremes 3D , now showing daily at the Tennessee Aquarium IMAX 3D Theater. “It felt like such a no-brainer,” says director Matthew Wright of BBC Studios’ Natural History Unit. “Asia is like a meeting place between Africa and Europe, and it practically touches North America over the Bering Strait. You get this fantastic flow of animals across the continent. It’s just a glut of creatures.” Before directing Wild Asia , Wright served as series producer for the acclaimed BBC television series Asia ( Planet Earth: Asia in North America). The new 45-minute IMAX experience, narrated by Academy Award winner Colin Firth, delivers a breathtaking “greatest hits” journey across the continent using immersive giant screen 3D technology.

“The 3D is quite remarkable,” Wright says. “Hand in hand with the giant screen, those two things are just so powerful.” Audiences will soar over the Himalayas and the windswept Tibetan Plateau, drift through misty monsoon forests, and dive beneath the colorful waters of the Coral Triangle. Along the way, viewers encounter iconic species such as giant pandas and Bengal tigers, as well as lesser-known animals like the mudskipper, an amphibious fish that spends much of its life out of water. One unforgettable sequence follows the jerboa, a tiny desert mammal from the Gobi Desert with kangaroo-like legs, oversized rabbit ears, and a tufted tail. Captured in immersive 3D, the jerboa leaps through the air hunting moths in a scene Wright says simply wouldn’t have the same impact on a television screen. To learn more or purchase advance tickets, visit Tennessee Aquarium IMAX Tickets. The IMAX 3D Theater is located next door to the Tennessee Aquarium on the banks of the Tennessee River in Chattanooga. Advance tickets are also available at Tennessee Aquarium or by phone at 1-800-262-0695.

In Wild Asia: Life at Extremes 3D, a long eared Jerboa uses its unique features to track down prey in the cool nights of the Gobi Desert. (BBC Studios / Kevin Flay)

In Wild Asia: Life at Extremes 3D, a Moorish Idol swims past a reef covered with coral sea fans, soft corals and branching cup corals. (David Hall / naturepl.com)

explore chattanooga | 17