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Author Topic: Independent theater owners Josh Mitoska Film Handler Posts: 59 From: Brooklyn, MI, USA Registered: Dec 2001 posted 11-03-2011 07:54 PM                     Yes, I saw the give away stuff. I already have the 35mm stuff I need. Still need some more sound equipment, and some building stuff. I'm hoping I can open with 35MM and make enough in the next two years to pay for digital.  |  IP: Logged Justin Hamaker Film God Posts: 2253 From: Lakeport, CA USA Registered: Jan 2004 posted 11-03-2011 08:07 PM                        It's probably not realistic to think you could operate with 35mm for two years and bank enough to pay for digital. Even if you can put up a big enough gross to make your operation profitable, you are facing the very real possibility of not being able to get 35mm prints on the break in the very near future. I have not heard any real analysis of the industry which is up to date, but we know the majority of the big circuits will have their digital conversions completed within the next few months. We know the industry recently soared passed the 50% digital mark. The big unknown are what percent of the gross still comes from 35mm and how high the decreased demand will drive the cost of 35mm prints. Given the rate of digital conversions, I think it's reasonable to assume the major studios could announce the end of 35mm distribution at any time. Even if the studios still have a desire to distribute 35mm for some period of time, the decision could be forced by support industries which decided there is not enough market to stay in the 35mm film business. The situation you're going to be faced with is the same as what we're looking at with our drive-in: how much longer will be able to get 35mm prints close enough to the release to make them worth playing.  |  IP: Logged Robert E. Allen Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1078 From: Checotah, Oklahoma Registered: Jul 2002 posted 11-03-2011 08:13 PM                     Hi Justin: Getting prints "on the break" does not necessarily a profitable theatre make. I've owned and managed several theatre that got prints four weeks after the break and were very profitable. If Josh is in a no competition area it doesn't matter if he get the "on the break" or not.  |  IP: Logged Justin Hamaker Film God Posts: 2253 From: Lakeport, CA USA Registered: Jan 2004 posted 11-03-2011 08:43 PM                        Robert, that's a valid point. But with the ever shrinking DVD window, how far off the break can be profitable? We frequently play movies 3-5 weeks off the break at our drive-in AFTER they played on the break at our indoor on the same property. In most cases we still do well enough. But it remains to be seen if we will still be able to get prints 4-5 weeks off the break this coming summer since we won't be moving prints over from our indoor. If we can't get a print until 6-7 weeks, is that still going to be worthwhile? What if the discount theatre down the road goes digital and plays titles before we can get a film print? And even if he's in a fairly isolated market, will he run into a situation like Mike faced in Montana where there just are not any 35mm prints in close proximity? The questions are big enough for an established location. How much more complicated would it be for a new location?  |  IP: Logged Josh Mitoska Film Handler Posts: 59 From: Brooklyn, MI, USA Registered: Dec 2001 posted 11-03-2011 08:44 PM                     There are no other theatres here, the next biggest city with a theatre in 30 minutes away. It's a small lake community area. I used to do my own bookings for 6+ years and had pretty good relationships with most of the studios. I'm hoping to finish it all up and be open by late spring 2012, only 12 years later then I thought I'd be open there.  |  IP: Logged Brad Miller Administrator Posts: 17775 From: Plano, TX (36.2 miles NW of Rockwall) Registered: May 99 posted 11-03-2011 11:40 PM                     The issue is simple. With the majors quickly getting to a point where most of their screens are digital, there won't be many 35mm "leftover" prints to play off the break...so those that do exist will be significantly longer off the break, at which point they will already be on DVD and the theater won't be able to survive. This is why taking the attitude that a small town theater can continue to play 35mm for another couple of years absolutely is not true.  |  IP: Logged Mike Blakesley Film God Posts: 12767 From: Forsyth, Montana Registered: Jun 99 posted 11-04-2011 12:12 AM                        quote: Robert E. Allen If Josh is in a no competition area it doesn't matter if he get the "on the break" or not. This isn't true. There's not only the DVD window to consider, but there's also the fact that people in small towns and isolated areas are just like their city counterparts: They want to see new movies NOW, not 4 to 6 weeks from now. If we play a movie on the break, it will do way more business than it would if we played it a month later. The only time this isn't true is if a movie is an "unknown" that becomes an unexpected hit, such as "The Help" this past summer. That had such good word of mouth that it probably did better as a later booking. "The Blind Side" was another good example, as was "Gran Torino." But a lot of the hyped-up movies...you have to strike while the iron is hot.  |  IP: Logged Robert E. Allen Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1078 From: Checotah, Oklahoma Registered: Jul 2002 posted 11-04-2011 12:13 AM                     You assume that just because a film has gone to DVD that everyone will buy a copy. That is just not true. And in a small community (where most of my experience has been) many people will wait until the film comes to the local theatre for the social experience. Those who are engrossed in today's technology assume that most people have "home theatres" and prefer to stay at home to watch films. And that is not true. In a small community the local theatre is often the center of community entertainment (if you are booking for the entire community rather than just the 14-34 crowd.  |  IP: Logged Mike Blakesley Film God Posts: 12767 From: Forsyth, Montana Registered: Jun 99 posted 11-04-2011 10:40 AM                        quote: Robert E. Allen You assume that just because a film has gone to DVD that everyone will buy a copy. Where did I ever say that? YOU apparently assume that people in small towns don't have Internet connections or mailboxes. They can rent or stream movies just like their city counterparts do. I also never said that nobody will go to a movie if it arrives late. I said that a lot MORE people will go if it's there on release date. Our grosses bear that out. On top of all that, a lot of movies today are released on the "sliding aggregate" scale whereby you're paying the same rental in week 1 as in week 6, so you're pretty much screwed if you wait until only half your crowd is interested.  |  IP: Logged Robert E. Allen Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1078 From: Checotah, Oklahoma Registered: Jul 2002 posted 11-04-2011 11:59 AM                     Sorry Mike. It was a general "you" not you in particular. I have a lot of respect for what you are doing. I just get annoyed at those who believe the only way to operate a theatre is to get films "on the break" and that today's technology is so far superior to film it will kill it tomorrow and those of us who came up through all the changes in the industry are not worth listening to.  |  IP: Logged Mike Blakesley Film God Posts: 12767 From: Forsyth, Montana Registered: Jun 99 posted 11-04-2011 03:16 PM                        I guess it depends on what kind of theatre is being operated. If you are a mainstream theatre these days then you pretty much have to be operating on the break or very close to it. If you're running a specialty house not catering to the "current movies" crowd, or in a bigger town, then you can get away with more flexibility. I've tried bringing in a lot of more high-end movies over the years and they always flop spectacularly. I've heard that the audience just needs to be "trained" to go for those kinds of films but I think that would take a lot of time, and the bills don't really like waiting! ...plus, the "regular movies" crowd's feelings count too.  |  IP: Logged Victor Liorentas Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 800 From: london ontario canada Registered: May 2009 posted 11-04-2011 04:16 PM                     Well my theater is in a big movie town and we always have to train our audience to give the foreign,art and independent films a chance. We cannot play big Hollywood films until the big boys are done with them so we have no choice in that. Prints are plentiful when that time comes and we do great with stuff like The Help,Midnight In Paris,Hanna,Water For Elephants and even blockbusters like Inception. The only time we get to open on the so called break is when the big boys don't want the film. The Tree Of Life for example played for about 3 months and it was a gift! Surprise hits like March Of The Penguins we open on the break but within a couple of weeks it's playing everywhere right along with us. We have also built a nice following for our classic revivals which are always on good to great 35mm prints and our projection and sound has been noted in the press as being stunning!I am fanatical with sound and image perfection! I never give up when it comes to fixing any slight issue. Film-Tech has been very helpful here but if I didn't have this endless drive for perfection it would not happen. I shoot for the Moon and reach the sky whenever possible.  |  IP: Logged Robert E. Allen Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1078 From: Checotah, Oklahoma Registered: Jul 2002 posted 11-04-2011 04:22 PM                     Way to go Victor!!! There IS theatre life other than first-run, "on the break" theatres  |  IP: Logged

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