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Author Topic: Electronic Device Policy Mark Gulbrandsen Resident Trollmaster Posts: 16657 From: Music City Registered: Jun 99 posted 07-05-2014 10:21 PM                     You have to be very careful here in the States. You can not ask any doctor or emergency personnel to shut off their phones. These people may have to be reached movie running or not. Tis is why signal jammers are illegal. Mark  |  IP: Logged Edward Havens Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 614 From: Los Angeles, CA Registered: Mar 2008 posted 07-06-2014 02:43 AM                     It's not illegal to ask a doctor or emergency personnel to shut off their phones at a movie theatre, Mark. Well, it might be illegal in a handful of local backwater townships in rural areas, but not on any widespread level. Cell phone jammers are illegal because they can interfere with emergency services, but let's be honest here... less than 1/10th of 1% of moviegoers at any given time are off-duty doctors or emergency personnel "on call" in case of emergency.  |  IP: Logged Monte L Fullmer Film God Posts: 8367 From: Nampa, Idaho, USA Registered: Nov 2004 posted 07-06-2014 03:12 AM                     The location I work at must be full of metal or fancy gridwork, for within some houses and some other rooms, you simply have no service. Other areas, the signal is weak where you walk a few feet and dropped calls is the results. I have to go outside to get a good signal to make important calls. Knew one cinema owner who would just simply shut off the movie if a lot of blue screens pop up and tell the kids, "either it's me or you".  |  IP: Logged Martin McCaffery Film God Posts: 2481 From: Montgomery, AL Registered: Jun 99 posted 07-06-2014 09:06 AM                        In the days before cellphones, the doctors coming to our low attendance single screen theatre would just tell me where they were sitting if they were on call. That system always worked. In the early days of cells, our building would block them pretty effectively. Alas, now, everyone has one and every call is a life or death situation.  |  IP: Logged Leo Enticknap Film God Posts: 7474 From: Loma Linda, CA Registered: Jul 2000 posted 07-06-2014 11:02 AM                        I agree with Frank. The technological solution (i.e. allowing cellphone jammers in theaters, as long as the operator can prove that the jammer is not affecting the signal in the areas surrounding it) would remove the need for theater staff to have to police a no cellphones rule, with all the stress, and potentially even risk, that this would involve. The only problem is that jamming the signal probably wouldn't stop a few morons from trying to use them offline. Being an arthouse, we have a strict no cellphones policy, which is announced by a volunteer or duty manager from the stage at the start of each and every show. They also walk up and down the side aisles regularly during the show, and will and have kicked out people for using them. As a general rule the problem is not a big one for us, but it can surface when we're showing cult or more mainstream movies that attract an audience which isn't really our regular customers. Believe it or not, film festival audiences are also a bigger problem than the usual crowd. I've looked down from the booth into the balcony and seen glowing cellphone screens, even during obscure 1930s German subtitled pics. I even once nearly mistook one that suddenly lit up in the corner of my right eye for a motor start cue.  |  IP: Logged Frank Cox Film God Posts: 2234 From: Melville Saskatchewan Canada Registered: Apr 2011 posted 07-06-2014 12:04 PM                        I used to have to throw someone out for cell phone use about once every six months or so, but this episode last night was the first one in a few years. I had (foolishly) hoped that everyone was educated and it might no longer be necessary to do that. I wonder if I'll see that guy from last night again. Since this is the only theatre in town, I have had it happen in the past that someone who gets thrown out for whatever violation will come back in a few days to apologize for their actions and ask if they will be allowed to come back to the theatre again. It'll be interesting to see if this guy does that, since he had no shortage of attitude on display last night.  |  IP: Logged Randy Stankey Film God Posts: 6539 From: Erie, Pennsylvania Registered: Jun 99 posted 07-06-2014 12:22 PM                     How about installing a remote controlled video camera in the auditorium, facing the audience and connecting it to the video switcher on the projector. Before the movie starts use the camera to pinpoint people using cell phones and put hem up on the screen. Put a flashing caption under the image that says, "Turn off your cell phone." Heck! You probably don't even have to do this in real time. You could probably just shoot a video in the theater, edit it, make it into a DCP and run it as a part of your trailer program. I think social pressure is more effective than any rules.  |  IP: Logged Mike Blakesley Film God Posts: 12767 From: Forsyth, Montana Registered: Jun 99 posted 07-06-2014 09:12 PM                        If the culprit is a teenage girl, just shine a flashlight on her and politely ask her to shut the phone off. She'll be so embarrassed that she'll want to crawl under her seat, and her friends will not want to risk being embarrassed. Teenage girls would rather be drawn and quartered than be embarrassed.  |  IP: Logged Justin Hamaker Film God Posts: 2253 From: Lakeport, CA USA Registered: Jan 2004 posted 07-07-2014 04:23 AM                        Overall I think this is just a "me" centric attitude that has become ubiquitous in our society. A theatre just happens to be the "ideal" environment to witness this. We see it with people who won't turn off their phones, people who won't be quite, people who simply think they can do what they want just because they paid their admission. Or in some cases just because they showed up. Last season we started a policy in our drive-in of no trucks, vans, or SUVs in the first few rows. This was in response to numerous customer complaints that they had trouble seeing past the giant trucks that had to park in the very front. Unfortunately, we have had some very negative responses to this policy. People who insist that since they got there first they should be able to park where they want, or who act like it's going to completely ruin their whole experience. We even have people say that if smaller cars can't see over the trucks, they should just get there earlier. Another example is the free kids shows we run during the summer. We have people who refuse to sit in a seat that isn't at the back of the auditorium. We also will get people showing up late - sometimes by as much as 30 minutes, and getting all bent out of shape because they can't get the seats they want. Some days I am disgusted by how self centered people can be.  |  IP: Logged Louis Bornwasser Film God Posts: 4441 From: prospect ky usa Registered: Mar 2005 posted 07-07-2014 06:02 AM                        "It is OK to jeer cellphone users and to pelt hem with your unwanted concession items. Have fun."  |  IP: Logged Manny Knowles "What are these things and WHY are they BLUE???" Posts: 4247 From: Bloomington, IN, USA Registered: Feb 2002 posted 07-07-2014 09:35 AM                     We created an on-screen text that says: "Please be courteous and turn off all electronic devices at this time. Thank you!" The light cue (from trailers to feature) occurs at the start of this little snipe. The dimming of the lights signals cell phone users that it's time to look up at the screen. At first, I tried putting it earlier in the program, but I noticed two problems. If you place the snipe too soon, some of the audience will be absent, and miss the memo. Additionally, if they are using their cell phones, they won't be reading the memo. When I moved the snipe to the end of the trailers, and inserted the light cue, I noticed people looking up, seeing the message, and turning off their phones. So that's how we do it.  |  IP: Logged Lyle Romer Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1400 From: Davie, FL, USA Registered: May 2002 posted 07-07-2014 10:25 AM                     quote: Mark Gulbrandsen You have to be very careful here in the States. You can not ask any doctor or emergency personnel to shut off their phones. These people may have to be reached movie running or not. Tis is why signal jammers are illegal. Do you have a link to official laws about not asking Doctors or Emergency Personnel to shut off their phones? I can't imagine that this is true because it would imply that you have to ensure coverage is available in general. I'm pretty sure that jammers are illegal simply because, by default, they cause interference and by FCC rules, no device can interfere with any band that they are not licensed to operate in. If you want to spend the money, there is nothing preventing a theatre from putting a faraday cage around the auditoriums which would prevent anybody from getting signal.  |  IP: Logged Sam Graham AKA: "The Evil Sam Graham". Wackiness ensues. Posts: 1431 From: Waukee, IA Registered: Dec 2004 posted 07-07-2014 01:55 PM                        YOU ARE HERE TO WATCH THE MOVIE NOT TO ANNOY EVERYBODY ELSE SIT DOWN SHUT UP KEEP YOUR ELECTRONIC DEVICES OFF AND IN YOUR POCKET YOUR PECKER TOO PERVERT  |  IP: Logged

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