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Topic: Running a movie with no audience?!

Mike Blakesley
Film God

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

posted 08-21-2007 01:34 AM

quote: Monte L Fullmer
I've done this procedure with 20min on a ring many-a-times and not breaking any splices.

I wouldn't be able to do that here because we've got this dumbass gizmo on the platter that's supposed to be a "wrap detector" that you have to feed the film through. Can't slide it out from the side like a normal Christie roller, so breaking a splice is necessary. The thing doesn't work, from what I've been able to tell.

To try to steer back toward the topic...I think we only have maybe 1 or 2 instances a year where nobody shows up. Seems like even if the weather is absolutely terrible, one or two die-hards will come in out of the cold. I can see where in a multiplex with 10 or more movies, no-shows could be a very common thing.

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James Westbrook
Phenomenal Film Handler

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

posted 08-21-2007 01:58 AM

With 16 screens, we are entering that time of year where no-shows on weekdays are a common thing.

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Chris Slycord
Film God

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

posted 08-21-2007 02:37 AM

quote: Wyatt Copeland
Hmm I can recall a very few times where a customer has come late to a movie (usually only like 10 minutes though), gone in, saw that the actual movie was playing, and then come out to coplain that our trailers weren't long enough.

That's nothing.

When I first worked at my theater, I was box office one day. Woman came late and I told her she missed about 20 minutes of the actual movie; she told me "No; I've only missed 5" so I sold her a ticket. About 2 minutes later she came back out and said "You were right" and requested a refund.

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Stephen Furley
Film God

Posts: 3059
From: Coulsdon, Croydon, England
Registered: May 2002

posted 08-21-2007 07:54 AM

I'd never had it happen until recently, but then it happened twice within a few months. Left the film laced up on the machines for about 15-20 minutes after advertised start time, so we could start the show if anybody turned up late. After that time speak to the duty manager, get the ok to cancel the show, put the print away and laced up the film for the next show.

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Scott Norwood
Film God

Posts: 8146
From: Boston, MA. USA (1774.21 miles northeast of Dallas)
Registered: Jun 99

posted 08-21-2007 08:01 AM

This seems to be pretty much standard in multiplexes. It's just easier to run everything, as it avoids a mad rush to start the show for a latecomer (which would likely also throw off the rest of the day's schedule). No-shows are pretty rare, so it would seem that the extra wear on the equipment should be pretty minimal.

The only exceptions that I could see to this policy are for the last show of the night if (as mentioned above) a particular film ends long after the others or if a print needs to be picked up by a delivery company (or another theatre) that night.

In single-screen houses, no-shows are rather rare, but I normally just hold the show for a few minutes and only run it if someone shows up.

Agreed that requiring a minimum number of attendees to run a show is lame. If one person shows up for an advertised showtime, the film should run.

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Joshua Waaland
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 800
From: Cleveland, Ohio
Registered: Dec 1999

posted 08-21-2007 08:42 AM

When I used to work at a multiplex we would always run day shows. On the last showing of the night we would wait to see if anyone showed up then start the film if they did. Many times people would show up 10-15 minutes late which meant you were at work for another 10-15 minutes or you had to send away a pissed off customer and not show the film.

One night we were running Carlito's Way which was ungodly long and I decided to chance it and hope nobody showed up for it. One guy did show up and we started it almost a half hour late. I was there until 2 AM. Carlito's Way was already scheduled to end an hour after all of the other films did and that is why we took our chances and tried to not have to run it. After that I just started running every show dark and waiting for the box office to tell me if someone showed up. If somebody did show up I just ignited the bulb and never had to worry about being there too late. If nobody showed up to late running films like Carlito's Way we would run the film until the others ended then just shut down the projector and run the rest of the film through the next day when we came in. The only exceptions were on nights when we had to break down films. If someone showed up late we just told them we could not run it.

[ 08-21-2007, 01:16 PM: Message edited by: Joshua Waaland ]

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Scott D. Neff
Theatre Dork

Posts: 919
From: San Francisco, CA
Registered: Oct 1999

posted 08-21-2007 01:06 PM

Josh, that's why you ALWAYS start the last film 10-minutes early to let the previews run and therefore the movie starts at the advertised showtime. It's all the other shows that you don't start so that way, if nobody shows for them, you can go watch the end of the last movie when you're done with your paperwork. [Smile]

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Carl Martin
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1424
From: Oakland, CA, USA
Registered: Feb 2002

posted 08-21-2007 01:17 PM

quote: Monte L Fullmer
As I easily pull the film out the platter and projector and wind the film on the ring as I go along, with a paper clip holding the rest of the wind on the platter so it doesn't go unravelling everywhere, I, then just drop the partial wind on the ring back in the middle of the main wind - knowing that I can't completely put that partial wind back in the center, I just make sure that the partial wind has a good lean in the middle for the next payout.

but if your platter rollers have keepers then there's really no way to slide the film off them without scuffing it. even pulling the film out of the projector, where the pad rollers pull away from the sprockets, is very risky, imo. it's just too easy to scrape the film against a sprocket tooth.

in mike's situation, i'd break a splice. in any other situation, i'd just let it run through w/ no lamp or sound.

stopping the film mid-way and running the rest through the next day is something i'd never do, unless compelled by a power outage. that's an invitation to dust, and possibly scratching as the sound drum comes up to speed at startup.

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Robert E. Allen
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1078
From: Checotah, Oklahoma
Registered: Jul 2002

posted 08-21-2007 02:16 PM

It was the policy of the GM at the theatre I just left to run the film "dark" (with the lamp off) when no tickets had been sold by start time and then just switch the lamp on if anyone showed up late. It was common practice to start films at 10:00 in the morning and run them for as few as one person. It seemed like a money losing effort to me in the 15 screener. We never had packed auditoriums on weekdays for these early morning shows.

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Wyatt Copeland
Film Handler

Posts: 74
From: Gettysburg, PA, USA
Registered: Aug 2007

posted 08-21-2007 02:55 PM

quote: Scott D. Neff
Josh, that's why you ALWAYS start the last film 10-minutes early to let the previews run

I've done that with some of the really long movies. Specially at end of week when we play musical platters with the prints. [uhoh]

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Mike Blakesley
Film God

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

posted 08-21-2007 03:11 PM

quote: Scott D. Neff
Josh, that's why you ALWAYS start the last film 10-minutes early to let the previews run and therefore the movie starts at the advertised showtime.

I hope you're not serious about this. If I was a regular patron of that theatre and was used to 10 or 15 minutes of trailers, and for some reason I was late to a show, and walked in 10 minutes past the advertised showtime only to find that the feature had started exactly at the showtime, I'd be seriously pissed. You have to be consistent. Going home 10 minutes earlier is not that big a deal.

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Thomas Pitt
Master Film Handler

Posts: 266
From: Leeds, West Yorkshire, UK
Registered: May 2007

posted 08-21-2007 03:35 PM

The front ticket collector at the two Vue cinemas I go to often has a projection schedule for all the screens. Interestingly, they have two start times - one for 'advert start' and one for 'feature start' some 15-20 minutes later. The start time of the movie that's shown on the display boards and the website is the 'advert start' time, not the actual start time of the movie.

With an all-digital system, I think it would be dead easy to push the 'restart' button if someone comes in late. It would also be easy to skip the adverts and trailers, much like skipping scenes on a DVD, if the attendance was poor. But you can't do that very easily with 35mm film!

I've been wondering about this for a while now; if movies would run at all with no audience. Leeds Light uses one giant porthole for the projector, preshow slide projector and viewing port so you can see the projector being threaded - I noticed he only started threading the projector at 9:49!
For all I know, they could have suddenly called up the projection room and said "We got one person for the movie, get it threaded!" [Big Grin]

I also remembered in the Bradford IMAX - at the show start time, the projectionist looks through the viewing porthole and sees how many people are there. If there are a lot of people, the 35mm advert reel is run before the IMAX presentation. If there are few people, they just launch straight into the IMAX film.

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Scott D. Neff
Theatre Dork

Posts: 919
From: San Francisco, CA
Registered: Oct 1999

posted 08-21-2007 04:29 PM

quote: Mike Blakesley
You have to be consistent.

But every feature doesn't always have 10 minutes of trailers. It really depends on what type of theatre you're going to, but I don't think people should count on there being tons of trailers, especially if they're going to an independently owned theatre. I don't show up 10-minutes after a store closes and expect them to let me in, people shouldn't show up 10-minutes after a movie starts and expect to see the entire thing.

While I agree that to maximize your dollars and cater to customer service, this should be avoided, but I don't think business or theatre owners should have to apologize or cater to customers that can't show up on time.

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Mike Blakesley
Film God

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

posted 08-21-2007 06:18 PM

quote: Scott D. Neff
But every feature doesn't always have 10 minutes of trailers.

No, but if the first four shows of the day have the feature starting 10 minutes past show time, then the very last showing should be no different.

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Andy Muirhead
Master Film Handler

Posts: 323
From: Galashiels, Scotland
Registered: Dec 2000

posted 08-21-2007 06:46 PM

quote: Thomas Pitt
The front ticket collector at the two Vue cinemas I go to often has a projection schedule for all the screens. Interestingly, they have two start times - one for 'advert start' and one for 'feature start' some 15-20 minutes later. The start time of the movie that's shown on the display boards and the website is the 'advert start' time, not the actual start time of the movie.

That's what we do. The time given in our adverts are programme start times. The earlier shows can have 10mins of ads, the later ones up to 25mins, although if more than 20mins we start before the advertised time. We have disclaimers that the advertised times are programme start times, and that the feature may start 10-15mins after. It works well.

On a very busy set, usually the projectionist will be instructed to hold the feature until we are sure everyone is in.

As far as running empty goes, the film starts on time. After about 10-15 mins the bulb will be powered off. Box office staff have to phone for permission to admit any latecomers as SOP, so they wouldn't walk into an unlit hall.

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