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Topic: Slow transition to digital

Jonathan Althaus
Master Film Handler

Posts: 435
From: Bedford, TX
Registered: Dec 2008

posted 01-26-2012 09:58 AM

From what I've seen, all 1st run "major" chain theaters are 100% converted and the discount sites have a couple digital screens, but still run a majority of houses in 35mm

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Tim Asten
Film Handler

Posts: 98
From: Brighton, United Kingdom
Registered: Nov 2006

posted 01-26-2012 06:33 PM

Perhaps now all the dollar houses are getting new prints instead of scratched hand-me-downs [Smile]

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Tom Mundell
Expert Film Handler

Posts: 120
From: Silver Spring, MD, USA
Registered: Nov 2007

posted 01-27-2012 09:32 AM

quote: Jonathan Althaus
From what I've seen, all 1st run "major" chain theaters are 100% converted

That definitely varies by area, around here Regal and AMC still have more film than digital, other areas I've been to are mostly/all digital.

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Jonathan Goeldner
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1360
From: Washington, District of Columbia
Registered: Jun 2008

posted 01-27-2012 04:22 PM

I hear ya Tom, it's really annoying that AMC is being really slow in converting the two large screens at Mazza (Friendship Heights - DC) - management said screen 1 is too large for Sony 4K, and getting a Christie unit is on order - and... ?? well hurry up then.

Landmark is the other chain that's been resistant to the digital conversion, but I've heard that the DC area, they will start converting late this spring (at the earliest)

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Victor Liorentas
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 800
From: london ontario canada
Registered: May 2009

posted 01-27-2012 04:46 PM

I take it their film presentation is horrible in DC?

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Monte L Fullmer
Film God

Posts: 8367
From: Nampa, Idaho, USA
Registered: Nov 2004

posted 01-27-2012 05:22 PM

quote: Jonathan Goeldner
management said screen 1 is too large for Sony 4K, and getting a Christie unit is on order - and... ?? well hurry up then.

Give the manufacturers a million and they will speed things up for you...they're not like a McD's hamburger factory, or a FORD auto factory - takes time to build/test/certify these units before rollout.

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Jonathan Goeldner
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1360
From: Washington, District of Columbia
Registered: Jun 2008

posted 02-19-2012 11:29 PM

Of all the five years that the National Geographic here in DC has hosted the annual 'Global Glimpses' series which showcases all five foreign film Oscar nominated films - this was the first year that of the four films I saw (I didn't see last Friday's night screening of 'A Separation') all were digitally shown through the Nat Geo's Sony 4K projector - and they all looked top notch - even 'In Darkness' which as it title implies a lot of scenes were shot in very dark tunnels, the Red Camera photography of the above outdoor scenes looked ultra sharp and DI'd to almost monochromatic color schemes. This was D-Cinema at it's best and flawless presentations [thumbsup]

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Steve Guttag
We forgot the crackers Gromit!!!

Posts: 12814
From: Annapolis, MD
Registered: Dec 1999

posted 02-20-2012 06:28 AM

It was E-Cinema. the Nat Geo has an "AV" version of the Sony 4K and their content delivery methods, unless something has changed, does not include DCinema...they do have an HDCAM-SR deck though.

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Jonathan Goeldner
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1360
From: Washington, District of Columbia
Registered: Jun 2008

posted 02-20-2012 12:08 PM

^ well it could have fooled me, but the presentation was stunning to say the least. The pre-Nat Geo slides/video was projected through another projector in the booth below the main booth - the features though were projected from the main booth if that was 'A/V Sony', that was damn impressive - it looked the same as the features I've seen on AMC Mazza's Sony projectors.

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Steve Wilson
Expert Film Handler

Posts: 109
From: Paoli, IN, USA
Registered: May 2004

posted 02-20-2012 10:00 PM

Personally, I think the massive roll out is nearly over. They have already equiped the all the big boys and the left over little boys have no money or access to capital and if they did, they still cannot afford the much added overhead of digital. We will see what happeneds in the next 12 months.

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Jonathan Goeldner
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1360
From: Washington, District of Columbia
Registered: Jun 2008

posted 02-20-2012 11:21 PM

^ yeah I was surprised to hear that Regal Gallery Place's 14 screens (here in DC) were converted to all digital as of February 7th - wonder what that will mean for DC FilmFest since it's one of the venues and 35mm is no longer an option there.

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Jim Henk
Master Film Handler

Posts: 364
From: San Diego, CA
Registered: Feb 2006

posted 02-21-2012 02:46 AM

quote: Monte L Fullmer
Laser Projection would be a whole different animal - a completely new projection design using lasers as the direct source of light ..as mentioned in this previous post.

Then, the concept of projectorless OLED displays, et.al. - anything to eliminate the projector all together.

With this digital stuff, it looks like a whole new "can of stinky worms" has been opened up where the dollar bill will always be chased to keep up with the advancing technology where one technology will always outdo the other.

(remember I8088, 286,386,486,et.al.? looks like digital is heading in the same direction as with the computers: never ending advancements and just more to spend monies on..)

This will definitely do some serious separation or forced conversions for the cinema owners-a choice will have to be made: to buy, or to head to lease agreements.

..to where it looks like they should have left film alone...and I'm building four film prints today...

Lemme get this straight. I really want to understand. Are you really saying that even before the massive rollout is complete, that it's already becoming obsolete? Who's going to be able to afford yanking out all the existing digital stuff that they just bought, and buy and install the new? Wouldn't that be no one? Really?

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David Buckley
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 525
From: Oxford, N. Canterbury, New Zealand
Registered: Aug 2004

posted 02-21-2012 03:43 PM

quote: Jim Henk
Lemme get this straight. I really want to understand. Are you really saying that even before the massive rollout is complete, that it's already becoming obsolete?

Perhaps not "obselete", but certainly "last years model". There will come a time when something other than the current crop of DCI compliant projectors becomes more cost effective when looked at from a TCO perspective by the big chains, and when that happens the current technology will dissapear from the marketplace in less than six months.

Given that Series Two projectors are just starting to appear, you have to think there wont be a lot of them around if laser tech really is nibbling at the heels.

quote: Jim Henk
Who's going to be able to afford yanking out all the existing digital stuff that they just bought, and buy and install the new? Wouldn't that be no one? Really?

If ripping out the existing stuff and replaces it makes sense in dollars and cents, then ripped out and replaced it will be. Money never was a problem for the big chains.

But its looks more likely that the two technologies will co-exist for a while, as it doesn't look like there would be massive financial advantages to replacing existing kit.

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Mike Blakesley
Film God

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

posted 02-21-2012 03:57 PM

quote: David Buckley
Given that Series Two projectors are just starting to appear

Just starting? We've had one since June of 2010.

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Jim Henk
Master Film Handler

Posts: 364
From: San Diego, CA
Registered: Feb 2006

posted 02-21-2012 04:41 PM

quote: David Buckley
Money never was a problem for the big chains.

That's just so odd. Wasn't that their rallying cry? They couldn't go digital without VLMs, which paid for most of the cost, because they simply didn't have it.

???

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