Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: Announcing to the audience

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Posted by Thomas Pitt (Member # 4322) on 03-10-2009, 04:48 PM:

Imagine something goes wrong just as you're about to start a film going, and it'll take a while to fix. On these (hopefully rare) occasions, do you actually announce to the audience that it'll be a bit late or cancelled?
If so, how does your theater handle this? Do you have a microphone hooked into the main speaker system? Do you just have an employee come into the auditorium and shout at the top of their voice?

When I went to see Pan's Labyrinth, they were obviously having some technical problems in the booth - I could hear people walking and talking in there - and eventually an employee came into the auditorium to say that it was going to be a bit late. He also said that because of the late start, it would go straight into the movie with no adverts or trailers beforehand. However, he was having to yell over the rather loud non-sync music and we could barely hear him. Couldn't he have got a megaphone, or at least waited for a gap between songs before shouting?

Posted by Jeremy Weigel (Member # 4208) on 03-10-2009, 05:20 PM:

Typically if its going to take more than 5 minutes but less than 30 minutes to correct, a manager and possibly one employee will go into the auditorium with a megaphone and announce (with the non-sync muted or turned off) from down in front towards the audience that we're experiencing technical difficulties and that we will start it as soon as possible. If its something that is going to take longer than 30 minutes we usually cancel the show and again make the announcement. We also make an announcement in our lobby a minute or 2 before we start it to give any body who left the auditorium a chance to get back in there seat. The above also applies if the show goes down for any reason once it has started (film break, equipment malfunction,ect...).

The most important thing is to make sure that you're communicating to the audience what is happening instead of letting them sit there in confusion and getting upset; not that someone will not get upset, but I find that it minimizes it.

Posted by Justin Hamaker (Member # 2165) on 03-10-2009, 05:24 PM:

I've had this happen before. If it's something that I can fix quickly and the schedule allows time, I will tell the audience it will be a 10-15 minute delay and give them the opportunity to wait, or switch to another movie/ask for a refund. I did this one time for a diode change. I will also announce to the audience before I start the show if I will need to stop momentarily to add a cue or do some other quick type of maintenance.

When I do this, I will go to the front of the auditorium and ask for everyone's attention - just like I would when dealing with a sellout or doing an audience greeting. We don't have any kind of public address system so this is my only choice.

Posted by Catalin Balaceanu (Member # 3712) on 03-10-2009, 05:27 PM:

I don't think it hurts to be able to make announcements through the sound system.
Personally, I set up the non sync in such a way, that the music will go through a small audio mixer first.
On that mixer I've also hooked up a microphone. So, when in non sync mode, I can fade from music to mic and vice versa, pretty easy.
The down side of this would be that you might forget the microphone on and let your personal conversations you might have in the booth, leak into the auditorium.

Catalin

Posted by Mike Blakesley (Member # 26) on 03-10-2009, 07:15 PM:

If it's a problem that delays the start of a show and is going to take longer than 10 minutes, we announce it and offer free popcorn and soda refills. If it's a mid-show problem, we do the same if we're going to be off screen for more than a few minutes. We just walk to the bottom and announce directly to the crowd, although we have a sound-system microphone.

Posted by Jim Cassedy (Member # 4115) on 03-10-2009, 07:24 PM:

If the technical delay is going to be more than a few minutes, I think it's proper to give the audience how long it may take to get things on screen.

It's not good to leave them in the dark. (No pun intended!)

Sometimes, if it's a problem that can be corrected fairly quickly, I use a booth microphone, (we call it a "voice of god" annoucement) since that's faster than me going all the way downstairs to the front of the auditorium or trying to explain the problem to a staff member over the booth phone who is more than likely going get the info wrong anyway when they go in and try to explain whatever I said to the audience.

But if if it's problem that might take awhile (Like more than 5 or 10 min to correct) I will go downstairs and get up onstage and personally inform the audience and give them my best estimate of how long it will take to fix the problem and give them the option of waiting or getting their money back or a pass to another show.

It doesn't hurt to have a screwdriver or pair of pliers in your hand as a stage prop to give the impression that your're actually working on fixing something. A smudge of grease on your elbow or forehead is a plus.

I also try & throw in a little joke- - something like "and if you mention my name at the concession stand, they'll throw an extra ice cube in your drink FOR FREE while you're waiting for the show to resume" and it usually helps break the tension a bit. Heck, I've even gotten applause.
(Probably just to get me off the stage! [Big Grin]

)

Posted by Martin McCaffery (Member # 37) on 03-10-2009, 08:06 PM:

If the problem is going to be long enough that I have to turn the house lights on, I usually go up front and announce it. Audiences are usually very forgiving if you just politely inform them.

Posted by Caleb Johnstone-Cowan (Member # 3710) on 03-10-2009, 10:51 PM:

Always thank the audience for their patience whilst you are fixing the problem. Would never use a megaphone even if there was the option, can make my voice loud enough to be heard in a 4-500 seat auditorium without resorting to shouting.