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Author Topic: Regal to Implement Digital Projection by End of Next Year! Jesse Skeen Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1517 From: Sacramento, CA Registered: Aug 2000 posted 12-06-2002 01:41 PM                     The thing I've always resented about ads in theatres is that the ticket prices are high enough anyway (while the theatres still might not get to keep very much of that, $8 or more per ticket is really too much to spend)- on top of that, when the ads are being shown, you know somebody's being paid to show them but not passing anything along to the customer (again, this may be the fault of the movie studios not letting the theatres keep enough of the ticket price, but to the customer they just know they've paid enough regardless of who it goes to.) If ticket prices were closer to $3 or so, it might be more understandable to see ads to offset the low prices. The concept of commercials on TV was that you weren't paying to watch TV, so the commercials were how the stations made money and watching them was the price you paid. That's why I've never accepted cable or satellite, since several channels on that show commercials AND you have to pay to receive them.  |  IP: Logged Charles Everett Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1470 From: New Jersey Registered: May 2001 posted 12-06-2002 05:57 PM                     I came across two versions of this system in New York-area UA theaters this summer. The version at the UA Union Square is exactly the way Mike Olin described it -- search the Film Handler's Forum for "Sunshine State". The version at the UA Cortlandt Stadium uses digital video between shows with rolling stock, trailers and the feature on 35mm.  |  IP: Logged Thomas Procyk Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1842 From: Royal Palm Beach, FL, USA Registered: Feb 2002 posted 12-07-2002 12:48 PM                     We don't have too many ads: -Volvo SUV commercial. (SUVs are now safe because they're Volvo??) -Drive-Thru PSA Showing how pot is more dangerous than SUVs -Warcraft III Videogame so kids will spend more time indoors. -Coke to show that colored sugar-water really is good. Four is not too bad for most people. (four too many for me!) Total time for commercials is about 3 minutes, Total time with trailer package is about 12-15 minutes. If Regal is serious that it will eliminate rolling stock film ads and keep the print "clean" with only trailers, that may be a good thing. But think of the future when they find out they can generate MORE ad revenue if they have ads before the feature AND attatched to the print! =TMP=  |  IP: Logged Jeffry L. Johnson Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 809 From: Cleveland, Ohio, USA Registered: Apr 2000 posted 12-07-2002 05:50 PM                        The Cedar Lee Theatre in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, has just installed DLP for their playdate of _Standing in the Shadows of Motown_ starting Wednesday, 2002 November 27. CEDAR LEE SELECTED FOR DIGITAL INDEPENDENT CINEMA TEST (excerpted from 2002 Nov 14 NY Times): "As the major Hollywood studios bicker with theater owners over who should pay for the digital equipment that allows films to remain free of dirt and scratches no matter how many times they are viewed, a luxury car maker and the world's largest software company have stepped into the breach, casting themselves as the unlikely champions of independent digital cinema. BMW and Microsoft are spending several million dollars to exhibit eight independent films in diigtal format over the next year at theaters in 25 cities." The Cedar Lee Theater in Cleveland, OH, is one of those theaters. The first is STANDING IN THE SHAWOWS OF MOTOWN, a documentary about the Funk Brothers, studio musicians whose role in creating the Motown sound made famous by vocalists like Marvin Gaye and the Supremes is little known. The film opens at Cedar Lee on Wednesday, November 27 and will be presented Digitally in High Definition using Microsoft Windows Media 9 Series. http://www.clevelandcinemas.com/cedarlee/index.asp The following is in the 2002 November issue of "Film Journal International." It describes the system installed at the Cedar Lee Theatre. here Indie 2003 Windows Media & BMW Race to the Movies By Andreas Fuchs 'Technology has always been a key part of my palette as an artist and filmmaker. Digital media is transforming our industry at every level, from the iterative process of creating the film itself with digital dailies to the promotion and distribution of our work via the Internet and on physical formats such as CD and DVD, even to the big screen of the theatre itself with the promise of digital cinema.' --James Cameron during the launch of Microsoft's Windows Media 9 Series, Sept. 4, 2002 'Ultimately, I'm not sure technology will change the nature of entertainment as much as it will change the nature of how entertainment is produced and consumed. I'm a believer that the more ways people have to easily enjoy entertainment media--whether it's music or video--the more they value it. And that is an opportunity I think the whole industry can get excited about.' --Bill Gates in The Hollywood Reporter, Sept. 5, 2002 Films and cars have long enjoyed a successful relationship, from the very first antics in the Keystone comedies to the racetracks of Le Mans and the Fast and Furious streets of downtown Los Angeles. However, this article is not about exciting stunts or profitable product placement, not even about the option to broadcast live the annual championship race from Indianapolis to a theatre near you, but about introducing a unique alliance of cutting-edge technology, creativity and sponsorship. With the upcoming release of Standing in the Shadows of Motown, the BMW Films Digital Cinema Series shifts into its first gear. The program will feature eight full- length independent films to be projected digitally in commercial theatres nationwide throughout 2003. It is expected that the second title will be announced during the Sundance Film Festival, but the latest short film spectaculars from The Hire are already booked to be shown theatrically along with the feature attraction. After more than 13 million views were registered at www.bmwfilms.com for the original segments directed by John Frankenheimer, Ang Lee, Wong Kar-Wai, Guy Ritchie and Alejandro González Iñárritu, the action cycle returns with big-budget spots from Tony Scott, John Woo and Joe Carnahan. 'We are proud to be part of a program that will make accessible the work of emerging filmmakers who push boundaries, take risks and challenge us to see a subject in an entirely new light,' says Jim McDowell, VP of marketing for BMW of North America. The carefully selected theatres are equipped with projector and server setups devised by Los Angeles-based Digital Cinema Solutions. All the feature and short films will be screened using the Microsoft Windows Media Audio and Video 9 Series platform. After three years and 500 million development dollars, on Sept. 4 and right at the heart of Hollywood and Highland in Los Angeles, Microsoft chairman and chief software architect Bill Gates hailed its beta release as 'designed to realize the true potential of digital media on the PC.' During the keynote address attended by more than 1,000 media professionals, entertainment executives and technology developers, Gates highlighted the ways in which the latest Media 9 innovations 'offer benefits for the media and entertainment industry, consumers in the home, and in how businesses communicate.' The proclaimed 'foundation for the digital future' consists of high-definition video at six times the resolution of DVD's MPEG2, the first 5.1-channel surround-sound streaming audio, and a 'faster, more television-like experience' for media on the Web. 'The Windows Media 9 Series will power the next wave in audio and video,' promises Tim Harader, business development manager at Microsoft's Digital Media Division. 'Delivering the best playback experience, unmatched quality and secure digital rights management make it the most comprehensive and easily accessible platform to-date. We want to make known that our technology is available here and now for the development of digital media products and the enjoyment of such services. Not just for personal use at home or in industrial and commercial applications, but, as part of the BMW Digital Cinema Series and maybe other programs, also where it matters most--in theatres and on the big screen.' During the recent IFP/IFFM, where four feature-length projects where shown using the Media 9 platform, Film Journal International inquired about the advantages to an industry that is already looking at too many options and not enough standards. 'Windows Media 9 Series enables independent distributors and exhibitors to take advantage of the cost savings made possible with digital technologies,' Harader said of the expected positive impact. 'Our ability to deliver high-resolution video and multi- channel audio at relatively small file sizes is the key. Compression is enhanced by 20 percent for audio and by as much as 50 percent for video, compared with the previous version and other standards. File sizes that take 50 to 70 gigabytes for a feature film are down to five and seven gigabytes without any presentation loss. We deliver unmatched audio and video quality at any bit rate and over any medium. Files can be stored on one DVD-ROM and sent over wired and wireless networks. For the BMW Cinema Series, the films are installed through an IP-based virtual private network, remotely and right onto the hard drive. Delivery time and streaming costs are greatly reduced. With built-in playlist and other management capabilities, it's as simple to use as any computer when setting up showtimes and program sequences. In combination with the robust and renewable security offered through encrypted digital rights management, the Media 9 Series is particularly attractive for future theatrical exhibition scenarios, in which shorter runs and more targeted distribution plans will become profitable.' While the association of indie film and cutting-edge technology is more than a symbolic match, Harader 'in no way' wants to emphasize that digital projection is a function of production. 'Windows Media 9 guarantees the highest-quality presentation, regardless of whether the content was acquired digitally. It doesn't matter if the story or document were captured on 35mm, Super 16 or digital video.' In selecting which films will become available as part of the Digital Cinema Series, Harader envisions that 'Microsoft and BMW will work with a range of companies, such as Artisan Entertainment, to positively enhance plans they already have in place. In each market, the features may also open in other conventional theatres in accordance with the distributor's general release plan for each title. We are relying on the expertise of both distributors and theatre owners, who know what audiences want to see. We are not going to make demands on existing partnerships and patterns.' Equally not on their agenda are films that have not found theatrical distribution. 'While our brands lend promotional power and joint advertising will highlight the Media 9-powered engagements, the BMW Cinema Series is looking to enhance rather than first build awareness. All parties want to be involved with exceptional films and theatres that can showcase the quality of Microsoft technology, evoke the spirit of BMW, speak for the talent of the filmmakers and, of course, live by the drawing power of a given location.' 'We are looking to represent a complete network of top theatres in the most important markets,' adds Jim Steele, founder and president of Digital Cinema Solutions (DCS), the company selected to outfit the 25 target cinemas in top demographic market areas. Since DCS is not only providing technological expertise but also system financing, Steele's business model evolves around a 'long-term relationship with the theatre that gives preferential treatment to both partners. As part of a network, exhibitors can enjoy advantages such as sponsor-driven events and we can easily tap into a market with a pre-defined audience. Our marketing department is aggressively exploiting non-premium hours of theatre operations that can generate greater revenue streams.' Despite the active goal to provide additional content and improved services, 'we are primarily a technology enabler,' Steele continues. 'Recognizing the potential of Windows Media early on, we can already empower a market segment while everyone else is still evaluating all the other options. I have been actively involved in setting up this project for about 18 months, which is another indication of how quickly and reliably we can work with the available technology.' After pioneering digital presentations and workshops during various festivals, for its current theatrical installations DCS has decided upon hardware configurations from Digital Projection Inc. (DPI) and servers from Dell with two high-speed processors. 'The DPI HIGHlite 6000 DSX is the only mid-range projector that uses Texas Instruments' dark chip' technology with 900:1 black-to-white contrast,' Steele substantiates his choice. 'At a high-definition 1280 x 1024 lines [SXGA], the image resolution is exactly the same for everybody. The main difference to the big guns, which are using 12,000 to 16,000 lumens, is that our output measure is 6,000 ANSI lumens bright. [Pre-show projectors fill the average screen with around 2,000.] The majority of the screens, however, are sized below 24 x 34 feet, which is exactly the range of the DPI projector that we feel comfortable with. When it comes to how quickly the light is processed mechanically, there are some more differences that we believe are only discernible by machine calibration. If you put both presentations side by side, and I am not saying that Hollywood should not be aiming for the highest standard, the human eye will not be able to see the difference. When faced with a retail price of $60,000 versus $125,000 to $200,000, we once again made the decision in favor of the independent and art-house markets. Windows Media 9 can save filmmakers, distributors and exhibitors money. Right now and without compromising on quality.' Information about BMW Group products is available via the Internet at www.bmwusa.com, www.bmwmotorcycles.com and www.miniusa.com. The film series can be seen online at www.bmwfilms.com. The beta version of the entire Windows Media 9 Series platform including the new player (in 26 languages), encoder, streaming server and software development kit is available for public download at www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/download/default.asp © 2002 FilmJournal International. All rights reserved here Microsoft, BMW and Artisan Debut BMW Films Digital Cinema Series With Premiere of "Standing in the Shadows of Motown" Gala Premiere Nov. 7 at World-Famous Apollo Theater in New York Begins With Screening Of "Beat the Devil," From bmwfilms' Award-Winning Series of Short Films, "The Hire" NEW YORK -- Oct. 30, 2002 -- Microsoft Corp., Artisan Entertainment and BMW of North America, LLC, today announced the launch of the BMW Films Digital Cinema Series on Thursday, Nov. 7, with a premiere screening of Artisan's "Standing in the Shadows of Motown" and sneak preview of bmwfilms' "Beat the Devil," part of "The Hire" short film series at the historic Apollo Theater in New York. The film will be encoded and screened digitally using Microsoft® Windows Media® 9 Series technology for a high- quality theater experience without a film print. As a supplement to the film's theatrical release campaign, which begins Nov. 15, "Standing in the Shadows of Motown" also will roll out to 25 commercial theaters across the country specially equipped with the new DCS Cinema System product introduced by Digital Cinema Solutions (DCS). "Standing in the Shadows of Motown" will screen digitally in New York and Los Angeles, in addition to its traditional 35mm film exhibition. Each digital screening also will feature a film from the groundbreaking bmwfilms' series, "The Hire." The series, featuring short films directed by John Woo, Tony Scott and Joe Carnahan, stars Clive Owen as the mysterious, unnamed driver-for- hire whose unshakable poise and superb driving skills are put to the test. The film series can be seen online at http://www.bmwfilms.com/. Working with a variety of companies, including Dell Computer Corp., Echo Digital Audio Corp., Intel Corp. and NViDIA Corp., Digital Cinema Solutions of Los Angeles has developed Cinema Systems, which combines the high quality and contrast of "dark chip" digital light processing (DLP) projection with the cost-effectiveness and quality of the Windows Media 9 Series format. The DCS Cinema System is an integrated, plug- and-play solution running on PCs that feature the Intel® 2.8 GHz Pentium® 4 processor that allows distributors and exhibitors in the specialty theatrical space to utilize efficiencies in digital exhibition and to explore alternate revenue streams without displacing their current 35mm infrastructure. "Our Digital Cinema System complements the currently installed 35mm film infrastructure of movie theaters rather than competing with it, and this enables distributors and exhibitors to easily begin delving into this new paradigm without jeopardizing their traditional business models," said Jim Steele, president of Digital Cinema Solutions. As part of the BMW Digital Cinema Series, DCS is able to provide these systems as a service to participating exhibitors at no cost. Once the Cinema System is installed, DCS can continue to provide sponsor- driven programs such as the BMW Films Digital Cinema Series and work with the exhibitors on alternate programs such as virtual concerts, sports events, corporate rentals and multiplayer gaming events. "Standing in the Shadows of Motown" is the first of eight feature films in the series to be encoded in Windows Media 9 Series and digitally projected in theaters nationwide. Each digital screening will be preceded by one of the new bmwfilms.com shorts in the critically acclaimed "The Hire" series. Shot entirely on location in Detroit from December 2000 through January 2001, "Standing in the Shadows of Motown" is the rousing film of Motown's legendary studio band, The Funk Brothers, who backed classic Motown artists such as Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, and Diana Ross and the Supremes. "Beat the Devil," directed by Tony Scott, will debut Nov. 21 on http://www.bmwfilms.com/. With a nod toward pop culture, this satirical duel between good and evil finds The Driver hired to chauffeur the legendary James Brown to a meeting with the devil (Gary Oldman). Decades ago, the rock star sold his soul in exchange for fame and fortune, and now, in his twilight years, wants to renegotiate. Hired to take Mr. Brown to a rendezvous with the devil, The Driver soon finds himself entangled in fiendish plans. Rocker Marilyn Manson adds an edgy note to this already soulful short. About bmwfilms.com Hailed by critics across the country as "groundbreaking," with a "cinema connoisseur's dream team of directors," "The Hire" Internet film series received international acclaim when it premiered in 2001 with original short films directed by five of Hollywood's most noted directors. More than 14 million film views were registered last year on the digital-quality streaming video Web site bmwfilms.com for the first five films of the series, directed by John Frankenheimer, Ang Lee, Wong Kar-Wai, Guy Ritchie and Alejandro Gonzales Inarritu. This fall, "The Hire" returns with three new short films, directed by John Woo ("Hostage"), Joe Carnahan ("Ticker") and Tony Scott ("Beat the Devil"). The constant in each short film is star Clive Owen, the mysterious, unnamed driver-for-hire around whom all the films revolve. Joining Owen is an illustrious supporting cast: "Hostage" features Maury Chaykin and Kathryn Morris; "Ticker" stars F. Murray Abraham and Don Cheadle, with special cameo appearances by Ray Liotta, Robert Patrick and Dennis Haysbert; and "Beat the Devil" pits Gary Oldman against James Brown in a race between good and evil, with a special cameo appearance by Marilyn Manson. The second installment of "The Hire" is executive-produced by Tony Scott, Ridley Scott and Jules Daly, and produced by RSA USA Inc. and Fallon Worldwide. Journalists interested in "The Hire" can access photographs and press releases on the bmwfilms.com press Web site, located at http://www.wirepix.com/newsphotos/. About Artisan Artisan Entertainment Inc. is the leading independent producer and distributor of theatrical, television and home entertainment product. The company coordinates its business activities through two wholly owned operating divisions, Artisan Pictures and Artisan Home Entertainment. About Windows Media Windows Media is the leading digital media platform, used by consumers, content providers, solution providers, software developers and corporations throughout the world. The new Windows Media 9 Series will power the next wave of digital media, delivering the best playback experience, unmatched audio and video quality, and integrated optional digital rights management technology, and is the most comprehensive platform for developing digital media products and services. The Windows Media platform includes Windows Media Player; Windows Media Services, the powerful streaming server for distributing content; Windows Media Encoder for content creation; Windows Media Audio and Video for the best quality audio and video; Windows Media DRM for protecting content; and the Windows Media Software Development Kit for software developers. Windows Media Player, available in 26 languages, is the fastest-growing and now leading media player. More information about Windows Media can be found at http://www.microsoft.com/windowsmedia/. About Microsoft Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq "MSFT") is the worldwide leader in software, services and Internet technologies for personal and business computing. The company offers a wide range of products and services designed to empower people through great software -- any time, any place and on any device. Microsoft and Windows Media are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries. The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners. Note to editors: If you are interested in viewing additional information on Microsoft, please visit the Microsoft Web page at http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/ on Microsoft's corporate information pages. Web links, telephone numbers and titles were correct at time of publication, but may since have changed. For additional assistance, journalists and analysts may contact Microsoft's Rapid Response Team or other appropriate contacts listed at http://www.microsoft.com/ presspass/contactpr.asp. http://www.uemedia.com/CPC/article_3246.shtml http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/2002/sep02/09-04BMWFilmsPR.asp Digital Projection Highlite 6000Dsx here Dell Dimension 8200 here When I arrived at the Cedar Lee Theatre on Friday, 2002 November 22 at 0745, a manager, a Microsoft technician, and two men from the freight delivery company had uncrated the rollaround console rack for the system. They were deciding that the rack was too large to maneuver up the stairs and through the projection booth door (23 inches wide) to Screens 1 and 2. So the digital projection system could not be installed in #1 as planned. The next best solution was placing the system in Screen 6. So that's where we installed the system. The console rack weighs about 200-250 pounds. The Highlite 6000Dsx projector weighs about 100 pounds. Inside the console rack is a Dell Dimension 8200 running Windows XP. In addition there is an APC uninterruptible power system, a wireless network device, other computer device peripherals, and an audio and video interface panel. The projector mounts onto a hydraulically adjustable shelf on top of the console rack. On top of the console rack behind the projector is a touch screen. This touch screen is the only user interface for the system. The Dell computer has no keyboard or mouse. The Microsoft technician recommends leaving the computer system powered up at all times. The audio and video interface panel on the front (towards the screen) of the console rack has connectors for video inputs (S-video, component, others) and audio outputs. The video inputs allow the system to use other video systems, like videotape or computer PowerPoint presentations for example. These alternate video sources must provide their own audio outputs for the theater sound system (if needed). The console rack audio outputs connect to a Gaines Audio Balanced Line Interface installed in the #6 sound rack. This device connects to the UltraStereo Mag inputs for audio playback in screen #6. The console rack has audio outputs for Left, Center, Right, Subwoofer, Surround Left, and Surround Right. The UltraStereo JS only has inputs for Left, Center, Right, and Surround. Surround Left and Surround Right were combined using an ST-MX3 Line Level Mixing Amplifier to provide the single surround source to the UltraStereo. Subwoofer was not connected. The Microsoft technician just verified that sound was coming from all speakers. This system needs channel level setting becuase the surrounds greatly overpower the screen channels. We did not adjust the trim pots on the "balanced-to-unbalanced" device. (The theater's service technician adjusted these levels later.) The Digital Projection technician arrived about 1000. We determined that we needed additional height to clear the viewing port in #6. So the Microsoft tech and I went to Home Depot and Radio Shack while the DP tech started calibrating the Highlite 6000Dsx. We used several pieces of 4x4 lumber to shim the projector up to a usable height. The maximum projectable image is slightly smaller than the 35mm 1.85:1 image, so the left/right and top masking need to be moved to the edge of the DLP image. Because this system uses the viewing porthole, there is no access to the 35mm projector. We really cannot have a combined program of 35mm film and DLP without changing masking and realigning the DLP unit onscreen. Digital Cinema Solutions, the software and content provider for this system, will have access to the system at any time. Using a theater provided DSL line via a wireless network, DCS can upgrade the system software, and add or delete content (features, shorts, trailers, advertisements) at any time. DCS may also send content on optical media for installation onto the 80 gigabyte hard drive in the Dell Dimension 8200. The Microsoft technician said that the 10 minute BMW short (by John Woo) takes about 5 minutes to load onto the computer hard drive. So be patient, because there is no transfer status indication. There is no interface with the theater automation. Shows must be run manually. If a show stops before completing, it cannot restart from the stop point. The system will only start at the beginning of the show. Touchscreen Menus: Library Manager Playlist Manager Now Playing Audio Projector Control Messages Help Feature: Standing in the Shadows of Motown Aspect: 1280x720 Audio: 5.1 Duration: 01:48:13 Trailer: BMW Films Digital Cinema Short: BMW - The Hostage  |  IP: Logged Daryl C. W. O'Shea Film God Posts: 3977 From: Midland Ontario Canada (where Panavision & IMAX lenses come from) Registered: Jun 2002 posted 12-07-2002 06:16 PM                        quote: If a show stops before completing, it cannot restart from the stop point. The system will only start at the beginning of the show. AFAIK that has been changed, mostly due to the gripes of a particular forum member.  |  IP: Logged John Pytlak Film God Posts: 9987 From: Rochester, NY 14650-1922 Registered: Jan 2000 posted 12-07-2002 06:54 PM                        With that high level of compression, what artifacts are visible, and when do they show up? The "documentary" footage in "Standing in the Shadows of Motown" may hide alot, but the new performances looked good in a film print when I saw it at ShowEast, so how did they translate in the compressed version?  |  IP: Logged Jeffry L. Johnson Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 809 From: Cleveland, Ohio, USA Registered: Apr 2000 posted 12-08-2002 12:49 PM                        I haven't critically watched this. My first impression was that it's good video. The screen is about 25 feet wide. One annoyance is that this system is on a roll-around cart. The system was aligned 5 days prior to opening. So after video alignment, the cart was rolled out of the way to allow access to the 35mm projector. The next shift I worked there, 5 days ofter opening, I noticed black on one side of the image and below part of the image. Plus the top masking had not been moved down to the top of the feature's image. So, nudge the cart and winch the top masking down. It's still not perfect. It is eerie to not hear the projector running.  |  IP: Logged John Pytlak Film God Posts: 9987 From: Rochester, NY 14650-1922 Registered: Jan 2000 posted 12-09-2002 09:11 AM                        Jeffry L. Johnson wrote: ". My first impression was that it's good video. The screen is about 25 feet wide." Do you feel the quality was any better/worse than simply playing a DVD with progressive scan? In other words, if they are compressing the image and sound into only about 6 gigs, is the quality any better than currently available DVD technology already used for home theatres? If not, the only selling point of the system is that it is transmitted over broadband to the theatre, rather than delivering a hard copy DVD.  |  IP: Logged Jeffry L. Johnson Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 809 From: Cleveland, Ohio, USA Registered: Apr 2000 posted 12-13-2002 04:09 PM                        here Movie Posters That Talk Back By MICHEL MARRIOTT MOVIE posters - paper-and-ink enticements that can be traced to the days of nickelodeons - have over the decades become so commonplace in theater lobbies that they have practically faded into the wallpaper for millions of American moviegoers. Noticed, maybe, yet never really seen. But what if those posters could talk? What if Leonardo DiCaprio could stare out from a wall and wink at passers-by? What if, rather than being frozen on a poster for the latest James Bond movie, Pierce Brosnan and Halle Berry could leap in a full-motion, fist-flying fury to a stereo soundtrack? And what if these posters could interact with film patrons, recognizing their tastes and quickly matching their interests with trailers and show times for movies that they most likely want to see? For the last five years Stephan Fitch and his company, Thinking Pictures, have been quietly working to recast movie posters with precisely those capabilities and more. "Our view is that this is a window into the lobby for the studios to take advantage of,'' said Mr. Fitch, the 42-year-old founder and chief executive of the company, which is based in New York. With his displays, he said, studios can collect general information that can help their marketing efforts, like how many times their posters and trailers are shown, how many people were intrigued enough to walk up to them, how long they looked at them, even how close they got to them. Eventually the displays may also be able to obtain more specific data on individual consumers' tastes by reading electronic "smart cards'' that patrons would receive by volunteering information about themselves and their moviegoing habits in return for discounts. Mr. Fitch's interactive posters, while dazzling some moviegoers at the multiplex, are raising concerns among others who say they do not want to look at posters that may be looking back. But for better or worse, the devices, formally known as ThinkPix Smart Displays, are part of a rapidly growing number of winking, blinking, beckoning digital displays stuck almost anywhere human eyes are likely to fall upon them. Increasingly described as ubiquitous computing and the Outernet, examples of this newest, more aggressive means of advertising and information bombardment abound. In pedestrian-packed places like the Las Vegas strip and Times Square, electronic billboards, news zippers and interactive displays are many and obvious. But small-screen technology has also enabled advertisers to pipe marketing messages into any town or hamlet at A.T.M.'s and gasoline pumps, and on smallish screens in restrooms, taxicabs and airports. A new McDonald's restaurant in Midtown Manhattan has 27 flat screens positioned along a counter, each screen playing an almost endless loop of commercials and trivia for customers munching on their Big Macs. AdSpace Networks recently announced that it has been selected to control the largest digital billboard in North America, a 165-foot-tall screen that stands over the Long Island entrance to the Queens-Midtown Tunnel. AdSpace's plasma screens, commonly known as Coolsigns, are already bringing commercial messages to more than 1,000 locations, including airports, department stores, casinos and movie theaters, said Karen Katz, the company's president and chief executive. "Anybody can put pretty pictures on screens," Ms. Katz said. "We have created the network and software that controls what people see across thousands or hundreds of thousands of displays in public spaces." The Regal Entertainment Group, the largest movie chain in the United States with 5,711 screens, said it was in the midst of an aggressive campaign to establish a digital network linking many of its theaters to a delivery system for electronic ads and promotions on lobby screens and the main screens in its auditoriums. John Fithian, president of the National Association of Theater Owners, said that Regal was only one of the group's members exploring digital methods of marketing to patrons. But the interest in high-speed networks and digital displays goes beyond marketing, Mr. Fithian said: the same electronic infrastructure may one year soon carry and store all-digital feature films as traditional film projectors are replaced with digital ones. "The plasma screen is one component in a rather massive transition in our industry," Mr. Fithian said. "Movies for 100 years have been using the same technology, celluloid, film. But a new technology is coming on line." Mr. Fitch's interactive displays can be seen as a vanguard of this new technology. Paul Rosenbloom, associate director of the Information Sciences Institute at the University of Southern California, said that the idea of interactive movie posters in theater lobbies "sounds like the direction that much of advertising is trying to go in the future.'' "It is certainly related to what they have tried to do on the Web,'' said Mr. Rosenbloom, who is also a professor of computer science at the university. "Now they are taking it out of the PC, where you were expected to sign in in some form. They are trying to bring it out into the world and find ways to get it to interact with people there." David Sameth, the head of creative advertising for the Hollywood studio DreamWorks, said that interactive movie posters, as a concept, have a number of advantages. For one thing, like conventional posters, they are seen by consumers who have already shown by being in a theater that they are interested in movies. But Mr. Sameth explained that conventional posters seldom draw moviegoers' interest for very long. "When we create a one-sheet" he said, using the industry term for a poster, "the goal is to get someone to look twice. That's the most you can expect." If dynamic, electronic displays of posters on plasma screens can make consumers look more than twice, if it can make them linger on its images and messages, then electronic posters may make a significant difference in promoting a film. But Mr. Sameth cautioned that if an era arrives in which practically all signs are electronic, moving and chattering away, "we will suffer from overload" and tune out the visual noise, moving posters included. Carl Goodman, curator of digital media and director of new media projects at the American Museum of the Moving Image in Queens, said: "If you look at media and culture and the Internet, the moving image is a way we make community with each other. But it has been something that they made and we watched. That is changing." As advertisers and marketers seek to improve the methods by which they can learn whether their messages are being received, Internet-based technologies like those being used by Mr. Fitch's company and others are being tapped. "It is a disquieting vision that, like we see in movies like 'Minority Report,' is a potentially oppressive and enslaving one," Mr. Goodman said. In Steven Spielberg's "Minority Report," a science-fiction thriller set in 2054, store advertisements are depicted as holographic, each capable of scanning people's eyes to identify them and then speaking directly to them, as in a 3-D model in a Gap ad asking Tom Cruise's character if he was interested in a collection of sweaters. Mr. Fitch's Smart Displays are not so intrusive yet. They are 42-inch flat plasma screens coupled with custom-made computers and off-the-shelf PC speakers. The displays are fitted into a panel designed to mount in standard theater poster frames. The face of the panel has a circular motion detector on top that oddly enough evokes the eyelike presence of the HAL 9000, the soft-spoken yet lethally flawed computer in Stanley Kubrick's science fiction classic, "2001: A Space Odyssey." Each display is linked by a broadband Internet connection to the theater's server, also made by Thinking Pictures. The servers are connected over a broadband network to Mr. Fitch's company in the Chelsea section of Manhattan, where the display's content is developed and distributed. It is the digital network, not the displays, that is central to Mr. Fitch's plans to transform Hollywood's static one-sheets into microchip-smartened, two-way windows for moviegoers, studios and exhibitors, he said. In the last couple of years, Mr. Fitch has been extending his high-speed network and installing his Smart Displays. So far, the system has about 30 displays and operates in a handful of theaters on the East Coast and in the Midwest. But Mr. Fitch added that he hopes to have his motion poster system in another 20 to 30 theaters soon, with up to 100 interactive displays winking for attention. While Mr. Fitch would not disclose details of how much each display costs, he said the panels are generally leased to a user and advertising revenues are shared between Mr. Fitch's company and the theater's owner. Mr. Fitch was vague about precise financial arrangements his company has with studios and exhibitors, but he did note that in some cases he paid exhibitors to have his displays in their theater lobbies. Nonetheless, Mr. Fitch said the displays were a "win-win-win proposition" for studios that received information about moviegoers' interests, for exhibitors that shared in the ad revenue and for movie patrons who were informed and entertained by the posters. Bonnie Curtis, one of the producers of "Minority Report," said Mr. Spielberg largely depended on a group of futurists and his own imagination for much of the technological applications in the movie. As far as Ms. Curtis knew, the film's creative team was not aware of Mr. Fitch's interactive posters when "Minority Report" was being made. When told about Mr. Fitch's displays, however, she called them "fantastic." The movie notwithstanding, Ms. Curtis said, "there is no telling where technology is going to take us." One possibility, she added with a chuckle, might be posters so interactive that they call out to prospective moviegoers in the voice of a film's director, like Mr. Spielberg. "When I hear him say, 'Hey, Bonnie, I like that blouse. Why haven't you come to see my movie?' " Ms. Curtis said, "then I'd say we are getting very close."  |  IP: Logged Thomas Procyk Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1842 From: Royal Palm Beach, FL, USA Registered: Feb 2002 posted 12-13-2002 05:15 PM                     I saw something like this at the Seattle Cinerama. Without all of the "information gathering", but it was an LCD panel in a poster case. It showed the movie's poster, played trailers sometimes, displayed showtimes... it was really cool! Does anyone know who makes those? =TMP=  |  IP: Logged Blake Zaugg Film Handler Posts: 57 From: Lafayette, LA Registered: Sep 2002 posted 12-13-2002 10:59 PM                     Back to the first topic We've had digital projectors (data projecors) installed in our theatre for about a year now. We have Toshiba's. They are primarily for our slide presentation, which looks 100 time better than slides and eliminates individual slide production costs. If we need a slide made up right away we can have it up within minutes. With typical slides you have to wait for the slide to be made at photolab or where ever. We've also used them several times for business meetings. Costco for example has rented the theatre for staff meeting presentations. Cell phone companies too. We are much cheaper to rent in the morning than a hotel conference room. It also opens the door for other events like WWE, Survivor wrap up parties, etc... The image is quite good...obviously not as good as what a $10,000 or more projector would be but it's not bad. Best of all Playstation and Xbox on the big screen for staff parties  |  IP: Logged

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