New footage from Christopher Nolan’s hotly anticipated film Dunkirk shows a propeller stopping mid-air and soldiers packed like sardines on a pier cowering in fear of an unseen threat.

The images left CinemaCon audiences on the edge of their seats as the director premiered new footage from his long-awaited epic about the Second World War evacuation.

Christopher Nolan, director of the upcoming film "Dunkirk," discusses the film during the Warner Bros. Pictures presentation at CinemaCon 2017
Christopher Nolan at the presentation (Chris Pizzello/AP)

“It’s something British people grow up with. It’s in our DNA,” Christopher said. “It’s something that’s been close to my heart for a long time.”

He told the audience of cinema owners that he wanted to tell the story in the most visceral way possible, putting audiences on the beaches, in the air and running with the troops.

The Interstellar and Dark Knight director shot the film entirely on large format celluloid and said cinemas are the only way to experience the suspenseful survival story.

“The only platform I’m interested in talking about is theatrical exhibition,” he said. “I want to thank you all for everything you’ve done for my films. Without you there is no audience.”

The film’s large eclectic ensemble cast includes veterans such as Kenneth Branagh, Nolan mainstays Tom Hardy and Cillian Murphy, pop star Harry Styles and a few newcomers like Fionn Whitehead.

It arrives in UK cinemas on July 21.