This is topic Accepted a Booth Lead Position & Transfer to Gaslamp 15 in forum Film Handlers' Forum at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.


To visit this topic, use this URL:
https://ft-forum.com/ft/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=009128

---

Posted by Chad M Calpito (Member # 3736) on 02-20-2008, 01:47 PM:
 
Well, I just put in a request to transfer to the Gaslamp Stadium 15 in Downtown San Diego and was approved. I should be transferring there beginning on February 22nd or the following Friday. Also, I accepted the Booth Lead (aka - Booth Manager) Position at the theatre.

During my shifts that I did down there, I've noticed a whole lot needs improving & concerns that I brought up with the theatre's management team. They all agree with me and have had trouble implementing these following areas of concern:

1) General Booth Maintenance
2) Continual Projector Cleaning after each show
3) Recent Film Scratches (minor, but, apparent)
4) Keeping the Booth Clean at all times
5) Rollers being out of Alignment (which is one of the culprits for print scratches due to Film Done Wrong)

Of course, the list could go on. So, I've got a lot of work ahead of me to make corrections and re-train the remaining booth staff. I find that the above is unacceptable. So, a Projectionist meeting will be called for to discuss those things in question. Then, properly train them in Film Done Right and let them know of new Booth Rules and Policies.

Now, I know there are a few good projectionists there as well. Another side note, due to problems in the past, only 1 projectionist is scheduled to run all 15 projectors during a shift.

So, when I officially transfer down to the theatre, I'm going to have to be tough in order to make positive changes.

Anyway, if any of you have any other ideas or suggestions, I look forward to reading those posts.

Oh yeah, before I forget, I tend to be a perfectionist. So, I tend to find things that are not right and I fix it right away.
 

---

Posted by Sean McKinnon (Member # 612) on 02-20-2008, 03:14 PM:
 
I would try to get down there and see some shows on different days/shifts before you start, and take notes. Then when you have your first meeting with your staff you can say "On this day at this show the house lights didnt go down, or the digital sound was switching back and forth to analog during reel 3"
 

---

Posted by Monte L Fullmer (Member # 2797) on 02-20-2008, 03:50 PM:
 
I did a 21plex all by myself for a weekend where there is normally 2 operators on duty...and that was tons of fun to get the shows on time..and that made the day/night go real fast..

Then, I went to a 14plex which was a snap to handle.

Trick is - To not pay attention to showtimes as much as you would do exit times so you can bunnyhop to that house that has just dropped and get it laced up and be done with that part of the operation.

I was also Booth Mgr as well (offical title "Mgr of Presentation/Engineer") and had 6 people (both genders) to be resonsible for.

Yes, there were days of tests and trials, but we did run a good show there.
 

---

Posted by Chad M Calpito (Member # 3736) on 02-20-2008, 11:13 PM:
 
Thanks for your kind tips, Sean and Monte. Most appreciated. The good thing is that every time I go and do a shift there, I always go in a with a game plan and stick with it in order to have a smooth shift. The booth is divided between two different levels. Six projectors have their own booths. So, planning out my stratigies is crucial with regards to the exit times of each movie. All in all, I am excited about this transfer and promotion at the same time.
 

---

Posted by Benjamin John Doman (Member # 4365) on 02-21-2008, 01:10 PM:
 
Hi Chad,
I was Chief at a 10 screen, with six boxes on six levels. When I started we had three on a shift, that went down to two and ended up being 50% single manned. I always insisted that preparation was everything. If you are confident that all joins were good and automation cues were in the right place, it takes a lot of you’re mind. When I took over, there was a couldn’t care less attitude. I made ever thing as simple and easy as possible, with easy checks so I could pick up if things weren’t being done. When I left after six years, I was happy that any of my team (some original, some new) could cope with most eventualities and that the presentation would be top notch. I was proud to have each of them on the team, and made sure that head office knew this. They all knew that I would back them 100% if they were in the right, as well as expecting a ‘kick up the back-side’ if they were in the wrong!

Best of luck in you’re new role, I hope it is rewarding and enjoyable for you.

Regards,
Ben
 

---

Posted by Chad M Calpito (Member # 3736) on 02-21-2008, 09:34 PM:
 
Thanks for your kind words of Encouragement Benjamin. Since doing about ten shifts down there, at least I know the layout and am comfortable with that. Of course, there will be work ahead of me in order to get things right and to re-train some people. I have confidence in some of the projectionists there.

Anyway, thanks again.
 

---

Posted by Paul Linfesty (Member # 214) on 02-22-2008, 01:01 AM:
 
Just an observation when I visited the theatre last spring. See that the projection windows are kept clean. The auditorium I was in had a lot of milky film build-up, causing a diffused image on screen. Also, the film was not threaded through the digital reader. This location seemed to have the same problems that Pacific in Bakersfield has. (I was amazed that on a Saturday night during what should be the "peak" period), I was the only one in my auditorium. Also, there was only one ticket seller, and one person who did double duty as ticket taker and snack bar seller. It was like a ghosttown throughout the complex. (I notice the Pacific website now directs you to Reading Cinemas for both San Diego and Northern/Central California).
 

---

Posted by Benjamin John Doman (Member # 4365) on 02-22-2008, 01:36 PM:
 
Hi Chad,
You are wellcome - Have fun!!!
 

---

Posted by Chad M Calpito (Member # 3736) on 02-22-2008, 03:56 PM:
 
Hi Paul. Yeah, business is slow at that theatre, unfortunately. Some of the Digital Equipment in certain auditoriums don't work for some reason and some (mainly the SDDS units) aren't being used for some other reasons, all of which I will be getting answers as soon as I can. From what I hear, rumors mostly, is that Reading Cinemas may put in a Cafe/Bar at the location. I hope they will invest in either repairing the Digital units or upgrading them. Yesterday, a few of the Reading Corporate people were interviewing for a Marketing position. So, I hope they will really Market the Gaslamp 15 to bring in more Patrons.
 

---

Posted by Monte L Fullmer (Member # 2797) on 02-23-2008, 12:39 AM:
 

quote: Chad M Calpito

---

and some (mainly the SDDS units) aren't being used for some other reasons

---

quote: Monte L Fullmer

---

..mainly why the SDDS units aren't probably being used is that they, being as good as they are with new prints, bypass the other processor, thus when the tracks begins to fail on each side of the film, the unit goes right into mono playback from the digital tracks since it had no optical connectiveness to speak of.

---

Huh?

The SDDS readers probably need to have the LED Arrays replaced and the reader re-aligned. Your tech should be able to check them out and get them working properly again.
 

---

Posted by Chad M Calpito (Member # 3736) on 02-23-2008, 10:41 AM:
 
I'll be having the Technician check out all of the digital units not being used, including the DTS Units. I'm only guessing at this point, but, I guess that the SDDS Units are most likely out of synch and will need adjustment and other likely repairs. I know that one Dolby Digital Unit isn't working at this point as well. So, the technician will be rather busy once I make a list of actual repairs that need to be done. On Monday night, I'll be looking things over to see what needs to be done, etc.
 

---

Posted by Sean McKinnon (Member # 612) on 02-23-2008, 11:35 AM:
 
Chad,

Again, with the DTS and SR-D (dolby digital) readers I would guess that they are simple L.E.D. intensity and alignment issues. Very simple to calibrate or replace with the right tools. See, each of the digital readers uses L.E.D.'s to illuminate a track on the film that is captured by a "Charged Coupled Device" or C.C.D. which is like a simple video camera. The C.C.D. takes a "picture" of the digital track which is transmitted to the processor for decoding. If this "picture" of the digital information is too dim or not bieng captured properly the processor will not have the information to decode. Commonly out of spec. L.E.D. assemblies will cause the picture to be too dim, for basement readers improper lateral alignment or focus will also cause problems. Each system has its own procedure for calibration from simply using a multimeter to adjust the L.E.D. current to using a scope, and computer software to analyze the video waveform and make adjustments. Your technician should be very familiar with all of these procedures and should be able to re-calibrate, and re-align all of your readers so that your digital units are functioning properly. If you are making a list of "Repairs needed" I would write "Digital sound non-op please check digital A-Chain" This will point your tech in the right direction as opposed to the common complaint "Sound doesnt work" or "Somethings Wrong"
 

---

Posted by Chad M Calpito (Member # 3736) on 02-23-2008, 12:06 PM:
 
Thanks for the input, Sean. I'm glad to be receiving the necessary advice as this will help me improve myself so I can properly get things done correctly.
 

---

Posted by Sean McKinnon (Member # 612) on 02-24-2008, 09:58 AM:
 
Youre very very welcome, Chad. We all have to start somewhere and if it wasnt for this site and the people who took the time and effort to help me I would'nt have any of the skills or knowledge that I have.

I just wanted to clarify that unlike SR-D, and SDDS, DTS does not carry the digital soundtrack information on the film. The soundtrack information is on the DTS CD. The DTS reader captures a time code and transmits that to the DTS unit so that it will play the corresponding soundtrack from the disc. If you have problems with DTS it could be that the LED in the reader needs to be recalibrated with a multimeter or replaced, also excessive film "bounce" can cause DTS problems.
 

---

Posted by Andres Briano (Member # 4621) on 02-25-2008, 11:51 AM:
 
Running a 15-plex on my own doesn´t scare me. Been there, done that. One thing that proved to work in the past for me are incentives. Get the average of show interruptions and/or film scratches you had these past 3 months and set a clear goal for the operators: i.e. If the number of interruptions and/or scratches goes down to (let´s say) 75% of previous month´s average, each one´ll get a music CD, or a cap or a gift cert or whatever.
If that works you can always repeat it, but this time use 50% as the goal, and so on.
I recommend doing this as a team. Collective interruptions or collective scratches. The staff needs to feel part of a team. You could do it on a one to one basis, but that will turn into a competition between them, and you don´t want that.
Also, make sure all of them know which ones are the "trouble rollers" or "film scratchers". If they know what to look for, it is likely that they´ll check for it. You´ll be surprised how many of my staff had no idea what to check for.

My two cents.
Andres
 

---

Posted by Chad M Calpito (Member # 3736) on 02-25-2008, 12:32 PM:
 
Thanks for your kind insights, Andres. I do agree that team work is essential, which is very important as well as offering some sort of incentive. Also, if re-training is necessary, I'll do that as well utilizing a dialog conversation and hands-on.

By making the booth team feel comfortable working with me, it'll be a positive transition. Plus, setting realistic goals is important. So, thanks for your kind advice, Andres.
 

---

Posted by Chad M Calpito (Member # 3736) on 02-28-2008, 03:10 AM:
 
Well, it's now official. I am now at the Gaslamp Stadium 15 and now am the Booth Lead.
 

---

Posted by Monte L Fullmer (Member # 2797) on 02-28-2008, 03:34 AM:
 
Congrats to you Chad! Make it the best and be successful at it as well!
 

---

Posted by Andres Briano (Member # 4621) on 02-28-2008, 07:31 AM:
 
Congrats, Chad! Make us proud
 

---

Posted by Chad M Calpito (Member # 3736) on 02-28-2008, 10:46 AM:
 
Thanks Monte and Andres. I couldn't have made it this far without the awesome people here at Film-Tech. I have learned so much from this website and have put a lot of suggestions and advice to practical use. Also, thanks to you, Brad for coming up with such an informative webstie.
 

---

Posted by Chad M Calpito (Member # 3736) on 03-31-2008, 12:04 PM:
 
Well, here is an update. I've been slowly gettings things organized and figured out. The booth really needed a lot of cleaning and is improving. Today, I'm going in to put in some good hours in doing booth maintenance. Still quite a bit to do. Basically, I'm getting the booth up to Par and striving towards pure perfection.

Anyway, I'm also going to be having things look great for various movie Rentals, Film Festivals and the San Diego Comic-Con Film Festival.

The projectionists and managers are really happy with my dedication. They are glad that I am there. I am very obsessed with the Gaslamp 15 Booth.

I had to replace Diodes in #3 a few weeks ago since the Circuit Breaker at the Projector kept on tripping and is now working like normal.

In short, things are getting better. In about a few weeks, after I iron out some more stuff, I'll be having a booth meeting. Basically, I'm starting from the ground up.
 

---