Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: Fim loading the night before

my profile | my password | search | faq & rules | forum home

»	Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE » Operations » Film Handlers' Forum » Fim loading the night before (Page 3)

This topic comprises 4 pages: 1 2 3 4

Author

Topic: Fim loading the night before

James Westbrook
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1133
From: Lubbock, Texas, Usa
Registered: Mar 2006

posted 09-26-2007 12:59 AM

"Canned Presentations".
I walked into a showing of Tarzan The Ape Man (The Bo Derek one) when the music psychedelica thing was on screen. That gave me a WTF moment...later, the movie itself made me wish I was at home doing...laundry or something less surreal than...that.
Anyway, do you remember the psychedelic Coming Soon or Now Showing or (this is on the beginning of the Kill Bill 1 DVD) Our Feature Presentation? I had one of my buddies visiting at the UA theatre and one of those was through the brains of the platter (this was during intermission) and my bud saw it and remarked "Oh NO! You aren't running those crappy music things like Mann Theatres have too, are you? I HATE those things!"

| IP: Logged

Brad Allen
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 688
From: Evansville, IN, USA
Registered: May 2000

posted 09-26-2007 01:45 PM

So, should synthetic oil be used in say Simplex 35 projectors instead of Simplex Oil?

| IP: Logged

Louis Bornwasser
Film God

Posts: 4441
From: prospect ky usa
Registered: Mar 2005

posted 09-26-2007 02:36 PM

ANYTHING is better than Simplex oil.....10% varnish. Louis

| IP: Logged

Mark Gulbrandsen
Resident Trollmaster

Posts: 16657
From: Music City
Registered: Jun 99

posted 09-26-2007 04:20 PM

quote: Brad Allen
So, should synthetic oil be used in say Simplex 35 projectors instead of Simplex Oil?

If you want to yes. Just be sure to get something thats close to Simplex oil in viscosity. They don't use SAE on synthetics. Synthetic compressor oil would be a good choice... Strong actually had considered doing a synthetic fill on new Apogees at the factory and reccomending a once a year change
But like most things at Strong that was only a thought.... [Eek!]

Mark

| IP: Logged

Paul Van Dusen
Film Handler

Posts: 82
From: Roanoke, VA
Registered: Feb 2006

posted 09-28-2007 10:37 AM

quote: Tim Rectanus

My question now is not what the problems are with threading up the night before but what the advantages are. I mean, are you really getting there late enough that you don't have 3-7 minutes to thread up the projector? That is the only decent reason I could think of for threading the night before, time. I think we all try to get things done with the least amount of work and energy but that is a new kind of lazy. Maybe it is different with other systems but our SR takes very little time to actaully thread up.

Ok, I'll admit it, we thread the night before at my theatre, but only on the weekdays. And we have a pretty good reason in my opinion. Mon-Thurs it's just one employee in concessions, and me or my assistant in the box office/starting movies. By the time I get all the money counted and everything else set up to open, customers are arriving and I have to sell tickets. By the time I get the chance to run upstairs I have enough time to turn on the projectors & sound towers, double check my assistant's threading and hit start.

| IP: Logged

Chris Slycord
Film God

Posts: 2986
From: 청주시, 경북도, South Korea
Registered: Mar 2007

posted 09-28-2007 12:25 PM

So the "good reason" is a lack of proper planning?

And money wise, you aren't saving anything by having a guy stay later threading just to save money by not having someone come earlier in the morning.

| IP: Logged

John Wilson
Film God

Posts: 5438
From: Sydney, Australia.
Registered: Dec 1999

posted 09-28-2007 09:36 PM

He shouldn't stay later, just re-thread what finishes first at end of night. The last one or two to drop stay unthreaded.

| IP: Logged

Michael Cunningham
Expert Film Handler

Posts: 186
From: Anchorage, AK
Registered: Nov 1999

posted 09-30-2007 02:28 AM

I dunno, back when I was grinding in a booth, I always had to be there early anyway. When do you : clean screens, clean house vents, clean amp racks (behind screens), do complete projector cleaning (noisy air compressor), drag your ladder into houses to clean ports, vaccuum the booth (also noisy), change oil or belts, etc.? All that stuff that requires hours of daily time but can't be done during show hours?

If our first show was at noon, I always had to be there by 9 anyway so plenty of time for threading as I went along. Not that this is a complaint against threading at night, but it doesn't seem like a time saver to me.

| IP: Logged

Mike Blakesley
Film God

Posts: 12767
From: Forsyth, Montana
Registered: Jun 99

posted 09-30-2007 08:24 PM

Michael - you must remember that at a whole lot of places they don't do any of the items on your list.

| IP: Logged

Frank Angel
Film God

Posts: 5305
From: Brooklyn NY USA
Registered: Dec 1999

posted 10-01-2007 06:14 AM

I was taught both things: 1) warm up your machines sans film -- with that same reason given about getting oil moving (and that was decades ago), and 2) leave all the spring-loaded parts opened (or "relaxed"). The latter, except for the pressure roller on the drum which can develope flats, I think is much over blown. I mean, those springs are engaged all day long when the projector is running, no? How come that doesn't negatively affect the springs? Be that as it may, I still follow old habits and "unspring" everything at night.

And we never thread-up the night before. Just come in on time, damnit--which means enough time to thread your machines!

| IP: Logged

Ken Lackner
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1907
From: Atlanta, GA, USA
Registered: Sep 2001

posted 10-01-2007 08:04 AM

I am not advocating threading the night before, but I know that the reason some theaters do it is not to save money by having the operator come in later, but in case the operator doesn't show (and don't start saying they should hire more responsible people who will show up on time; anyone can get in a car accident or something like that), the manager can head upstairs and start shows.

| IP: Logged

Chris Slycord
Film God

Posts: 2986
From: 청주시, 경북도, South Korea
Registered: Mar 2007

posted 10-01-2007 10:00 AM

If your operator regularly doesn't show and you must thread early for this... maybe you should be firing his/her ass.

| IP: Logged

John Walsh
Film God

Posts: 2490
From: Connecticut, USA, Earth, Milky Way
Registered: Oct 1999

posted 10-01-2007 10:40 AM

Some people (not everyone) are assuming there are 'projectionists' at theaters. My experience is when there are 12 screens or less, there isn't any; the manager must handle it, usually sending ushers /concession staff up to do it.

If other things are well-run, I'd say OK; you've got to pick the battles.

| IP: Logged

Ken Lackner
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1907
From: Atlanta, GA, USA
Registered: Sep 2001

posted 10-01-2007 10:44 AM

Dude, did I not JUST say that I'm not talking about irresponsible people not showing? I'm talking about someone not showing due to a car accident or other unforseen occurence. It can happen to anyone.

| IP: Logged

Brad Miller
Administrator

Posts: 17775
From: Plano, TX (36.2 miles NW of Rockwall)
Registered: May 99

posted 10-01-2007 05:54 PM

quote: Frank Angel
The latter, except for the pressure roller on the drum which can develope flats, I think is much over blown. I mean, those springs are engaged all day long when the projector is running, no? How come that doesn't negatively affect the springs?

Nobody is worried about the pressure roller's spring. They are saying that when the pressure roller is sitting in the clamped position on the sound drum and it is NOT spinning, that flat spots develop.

That's not a myth, it is reality. (It is also a retarded soundhead design, but that argument can be saved for another day.)

Remember though, every projector is different as to what parts should be reopened at night and what parts should be left closed in the "running" position. Personally, other than the stupid Simplex/RCA/boatanchor soundheads out there, I've not found any issues over time with just leaving everything closed at night after the tail runs out.

| IP: Logged

All times are Central (GMT -6:00)

This topic comprises 4 pages: 1 2 3 4

Printer-friendly view of this topic

The Film-Tech Forums are designed for various members related to the cinema industry to express their opinions, viewpoints and testimonials on various products, services and events based upon speculation, personal knowledge and factual information through use, therefore all views represented here allow no liability upon the publishers of this web site and the owners of said views assume no liability for any ill will resulting from these postings. The posts made here are for educational as well as entertainment purposes and as such anyone viewing this portion of the website must accept these views as statements of the author of that opinion and agrees to release the authors from any and all liability.