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Author Topic: Article about why theatre attendance is down: Scott Jentsch Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1061 From: New Berlin, WI, USA Registered: Apr 2003 posted 04-18-2003 02:15 PM                        I think all of the above comments are accurate about what affects movie attendance. My biggest gripe is poor presentations. I have the largest theater in Wisconsin less than 5 miles from my home, but I've gone to many other theaters that have done better presentations. Home theater has become an even larger and more mainstream hobby than ever, and I know a lot of people that are more willing to wait to see a film on DVD than to go to the theater to see it. Maybe it's better in other markets, but sometimes it's better just to stay home and watch something on DVD. If the presentations and overall experience were excellent every time (or even most of the time), I think more people would see the value that can be had by "going to the movies." The potential is there for movie theaters to completely blow away the presentation that people get compared to what they can do at home. (How many people have 30+ foot screens in their homes?) I think people want the movie-going experience to be "special" and it's up to the theaters to treat them better than the average experience a going to a Wal-Mart. A question for everyone: What steps does your theater take to go the extra mile and give an excellent movie-going experience?  |  IP: Logged Randy Loy Expert Film Handler Posts: 156 Registered: Aug 1999 posted 04-18-2003 03:11 PM                     quote: I think people want the movie-going experience to be "special" and it's up to the theaters to treat them better than the average experience a going to a Wal-Mart. I agree with you on this Scott. I don't care how much money someone sinks into building a theatre, I believe that if other factors detract from making attending it a less than great experience, it loses that specialness that keeps people from simply waiting for the movies to come out on video. That's what I fear running commercials in theatres will help accomplish. They will start making going to the movies more like staying home and watching TV. When you start combining that with other factors, like inconsiderate customers not being dealt with for talking during the show, etc., going out to the movies no longer has the appeal it used to have. Of course by "commercials" I'm not talking about coming attractions trailers, I mean commercials for ordinary products and services, like you see on television. I understand that they are revenue generators, and of course extra revenue is always important to this industry since a significant part of the box office take goes for film rental, but still I think they detract from the ambiance of going to a theatre. I don't have a problem with watching them on monitors in the lobby while I'm waiting to buy my tickets or while in line at the concession stand, but I don't want to have to be subjected to them once I've settled in for the show. To me they make the moviegoing experience too "ordinary."  |  IP: Logged Paul G. Thompson The Weenie Man Posts: 4718 From: Mount Vernon WA USA Registered: Nov 2000 posted 04-18-2003 04:16 PM                     Scott asked: quote: A question for everyone: What steps does your theater take to go the extra mile and give an excellent movie-going experience? There are many answers to this question and here are just a few answers: "Treat your customers exactly the same way you would like to treated under the exact identical existing circumstances." (within reason, of course.) The entertainment of the customer starts when they come in the door. Community involvement, such as special showings for high school sponsored projects, church groups, special kiddy shows, hosting of birthday partys, contests, (as an axample bring a Santa Claus in for Christmas) and general film promotions for special types of shows. We once had a live radio broadcast from one of our theatres a long time ago when the "Rambo" movies came through. The DJ even dressed up like a Rambo (Jeeze, he was ugly) and we had contests of the best dressed Rambo, yada, yada, yada. It was extremely successful. We did very well on that one. Another was when "Lion King" came through. Our staff really went out of their way to dress the lobby up, and we had contests similar to the THX movie Brad took at Sho-West and put in his archives for us to download. We had a big cardboard Lion's head in the lobby, and it was part of the gag. We installed a sound system in the lobby so the person who ran the promotion could interview customers, kids, and alike. The results were just superb! We did very well on that film, too. Better than many other theatres. I had an old Brenkert and a Peerless Magnarc, and we ran 6,000 foot reels filled with "Coming Attractions". (naturally, I modified the lamphouse with a 12 volt driving light bulb) and projected the picture on a mock-up screen made out of a 1-sheet complete with masking. People went nuts over that thing! Of course, take pride in your theatre, yourself, your customers, and make them feel at home. Make sure your theatres and restrooms are spotless, and the performance you put on the big screen is top-notched in all respects, right down to the elimination of fuzzy aperature plate cuts. Then Engulf & Devour bought us, and it all came to a sad end. The last thing I heard is the theatre now looks like dump. Anyway, be creative in what is done, and practice common sense. Some things will work, and some will not. It is up to you to figure that out if the corporate monkeys empower you with the authority to do so. As Kenny Rogers sang in a song: You got to know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em, Know when to walk away and know when to run.You never count your money when you're sittin' at the table. There'll be time enough for countin' when the dealin's done." He also said, "If you're gonna play the game, boy, ya gotta learn to play it right." He also sang in that same song: "Now Ev'ry gambler knows that the secret to survivin' Is knowin' what to throw away and knowing what to keep. 'Cause ev'ry hand's a winner and ev'ry hand's a loser, And the best that you can hope for is to die in your sleep." How true.....  |  IP: Logged Bobby Henderson "Ask me about Trajan." Posts: 10973 From: Lawton, OK, USA Registered: Apr 2001 posted 04-18-2003 05:50 PM                     One thing is certain, film distributors don't give a popcorn fart about the presentation quality (more often lack of) in showing their prints. They only care about the numbers. Anymore it seems like the theatrical release is just the advance teaser for the "real" release on home video. I think that is exactly how the distributors see it. I have a certain amount of contempt for members of the general public who visit dump-quality theaters out of habit, usually for shortest driving distance. I'm really annoyed at those who gripe openly about a theater's poor quality, but yet still continue to visit the place. Idiots! All of us are familiar with those big film seasons and the typical slow times (such as January-February, the April clearance dregs before the summer movie season, the August-early September slowdown before fall kicks into regular gear leading up to the holiday season). Still, It seems like attendance should be down overall. Look at the lousy product. Over the last year or two the quality of films has really been tanking to new lows. Sure, there's a few gems here and there. There's not much to look forward to this summer. There's sequels to "The Matrix" and "X-Men." Pixar's "Finding Nemo" might be cool. But outside of that there's not much I'm really excited about seeing at all. Usually in a summer movie season there is at least ten or so movies worth talking about.  |  IP: Logged Michael Gonzalez Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 790 From: Grand Island , NE USA Registered: Sep 2000 posted 04-18-2003 07:15 PM                     I don't know I think that there are some pretty decent summer movies coming out. I mean dollar wise not necessarly quality wise. 1. The Matrix Reloded 2. Finding Nemo 3. X-Men 2 4. The Hulk 5. 2 Fast 2 Furious 6. Dumb and Dummest 7. Charlies Angels 2 8. Legally Blond 2 9. American Wedding (American Pie 3) 10. Spy Kids 3 Also we cannot forget about Terminator 3 and Bad Boys 2 even though I really dont think that those two will necessarly do very well.  |  IP: Logged Ron Lacheur Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 650 From: British Columbia, Canada Registered: Feb 2002 posted 04-19-2003 03:59 AM                     The Summer of Sequels.  |  IP: Logged John Pytlak Film God Posts: 9987 From: Rochester, NY 14650-1922 Registered: Jan 2000 posted 04-19-2003 07:12 AM                        quote: The Summer of Sequels. What else is new? It seems that way every summer.  |  IP: Logged Darryl Spicer Film God Posts: 3250 From: Lexington, KY, USA Registered: Dec 2000 posted 04-19-2003 01:08 PM                    just remember the films that are not sequals coming out this summer will most likely have sequals over the next couple of years.  |  IP: Logged Paul G. Thompson The Weenie Man Posts: 4718 From: Mount Vernon WA USA Registered: Nov 2000 posted 04-19-2003 02:22 PM                     Don't you just love sequels? Nothing like "Jaws 22"  |  IP: Logged Jesse Skeen Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1517 From: Sacramento, CA Registered: Aug 2000 posted 04-19-2003 03:52 PM                     "A question for everyone: What steps does your theater take to go the extra mile and give an excellent movie-going experience?" Well here's a novel concept- I actually spent a lot of my free time WATCHING MOVIES at the theater. While we got to preview stuff Thursday nights, that still didn't give me enough time to see everything so when working day shifts I'd usually stay and see the first evening show after work. I'd listen to customers' comments about the theater (not knowing that someone who worked there was sitting in front of them) and of course had the chance to make sure presentation was perfect and everything was in working order. At some theaters it's obvious that nobody there actually sits down and watches the movies and make sure everything's good. I've known some managers who don't even set foot in the auditoriums for months at a time!  |  IP: Logged Michael Gonzalez Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 790 From: Grand Island , NE USA Registered: Sep 2000 posted 04-19-2003 05:09 PM                     I one of those managers who rarely step foot in the theaters after hours to watch movies (I am there enough as it is). However, I am constently checking theaters while they are playing so I can see exactly what the customers are seeing and correct any potential problems (noisy kids, booth light left on, etc.). When you are watching a movie by yourself at 2:00 in the morning, it is kind of hard to expect the customers to have the exact same experance when they are are at the movies at 7:30 on a Friday night.  |  IP: Logged Daniel Fuentz Expert Film Handler Posts: 230 From: Fresno, CA, USA Registered: Apr 2003 posted 04-19-2003 05:46 PM                     quote: I have a certain amount of contempt for members of the general public who visit dump-quality theaters out of habit, usually for shortest driving distance. I'm really annoyed at those who gripe openly about a theater's poor quality, but yet still continue to visit the place. Idiots! My mom is exactly like that. Majority of the movies I saw as a child were at the extremely dumpy UA second-run house that was here in town. I don't know what they did to their films, but EVERYTHING projected there was horribly scratched. It looked as if someone was holding a piece of sandpaper over the film as it was going through the projector. (Not just the movies themselves, but trailers, policy trailers, etc.) After a while, I just told my mom I'd rather see the movies on video than go to that pit. Since it was a second-run place, there usually wasn't much of a wait before the movies were on video anyway. Even today, I still hear "Why do you drive all the way across town [to the Edwards] just to see a movie?" I explained that the sound at the theater closer to the house is crap, and I don't like the middle-aisle theater design. She just says "Oh, that stuff doesn't bother me." I don't waste my breath pointing out she's not the one seeing the movie... (I shouldn't paint the closer theater as a *complete* dump -- the two larger auditorums do at least have digital sound and no middle aisle, but you're SOL if the film you want to see is showing on screens 1-6...) [ 04-20-2003, 03:54 AM: Message edited by: Daniel Fuentz ]  |  IP: Logged Paul Linfesty Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1383 From: Bakersfield, CA, USA Registered: Nov 1999 posted 04-19-2003 09:50 PM                     I agree with some that the biggest reason is the mainstream films from Hollywood are CRAP! CRAP! CRAP! Week after week. Crap! I have become an arthouse junkie who unfortunately has to wait till I can go out of town (on union business, lately) to San Jose or Sacramento to hit the arthouses (occasionally Pasadena). (Ian: PLEASE consider expanding your operation to Bakersfield. An old UA 6 still stands empty). The major studios dont even PRETEND to make good films anymore. Films used to be a balanced mix or art and produce. The art has been stripped. Oh, and did I mention the films are CRAP? Crap, I say, crap!  |  IP: Logged Charles Everett Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1470 From: New Jersey Registered: May 2001 posted 04-20-2003 12:50 PM                     Yesterday the AMC Hamilton didn't appear busy. The late matinee of Bend It Like Beckham looked as though it was the busiest show that afternoon (turnout ~60). At least I didn't get lost getting back to my car afterward. Reading Cinemas in Manville was doing worse -- I drove past around 7:15 PM and the parking lot was less than half full. Maybe it isn't just the economy after all.  |  IP: Logged

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