Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: Grand Movie Experience

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Posted by Alex Shultz (Member # 5027) on 02-18-2010, 11:16 PM:

I bought my theatre about a year and a half ago. I've been remodeling since and have another six months or so to go. I have three-screens showing first-run films in a small town (pop. 3,500 with about 10,000 in the county). I'm the only show for 30 miles and one of the biggest for 60 miles.

I have a building that has been a local beloved theatre since the 1920s. I have amazing community support and am starting to draw back a lot of customers (especially older ones) that stopped coming here before I bought the place - it was getting pretty run down. I'm starting to draw people from the nearby towns that have theatres.

A big part of the remodeling is to make the place "classic". I've done some nice work with the decor and am opening up the lobby area to make it tall and very open. I'm lucky to have a lot of room to work with for the lobby.

I've also worked on making the seating more comfortable and improving the presentation. I'm replacing the seating, pushing the rows further apart, adding cry rooms in the two large auditoriums, and putting in a small balcony in one. I've upgraded the sound system and have digital projectors on the way (if they ever ship). I think that I have the physical part covered to make it a really nice place.

I'm having trouble getting a feel for how to treat the customers to a great "old-time" experience. What kind of things did theatres used to do? Coat-checks? Ushers? Intermissions? Double-features? Pre-show entertainment?

I've never had the opportunity to experience any of those things at a theatre. What would be the biggest thing I can do to give a good start to working towards the kind of experience I want to give?

What exactly did ushers do? Were they just there to get people in to the show? Did they patrol the aisles for trouble? Were they just there to give a snappy look to the place?

What kind of pre-show entertainment would work well? Old Porky Pig shorts? Modern versions of the newsreel featuring local news?

I'm hoping to make a place that someone growing up here will always remember coming to. I want someone to remember that he always sat in that one spot or that she loved getting here early to watch the cartoons. Or maybe the Saturday morning "classic" matinee shows were always so much fun.

Any ideas?

Posted by John Wilson (Member # 269) on 02-18-2010, 11:44 PM:

Try these...

Guests In Our House - Part One

Guests In Our House - Part Two

I would say for me it's incredibly meaningful to have someone at the door when you leave to say 'Goodbye' and have a chat if that's the patron's desire. I had a manager who would ALWAYS be there at the door to do this. Granted, it was only a single screen so multi's are much trickier, but if yo can't do it yourself, find some usher/usherette with a nice personality to do it on your behalf. The patron is leaving somewhere they've just spent a fair amount of time and money. It's nice to feel you appreciate them for choosing your theatre for doing that.

Posted by Martin McCaffery (Member # 37) on 02-19-2010, 08:35 AM:

What John said about being there to say goodbye. I do that almost every night, and if I'm not there someone else is.

Try everything and see how it flys. You can't really replicate the old experience because everything is different now. Cartoons and newsreels and double features may be a fun one-off now and then, but most people (in my experience) are there to see a particular movie, not spend the whole night at the theatre. I have even had people be offended by the fact we showed a cartoon.

Which brings us to the second part, no one likes everything, so take it in stride.

Basically, think of your theater as a good local restaurant vs the corporate multi-plex McDonald's. Your theatre will develop its own personality. Give them the best possible presentation, treat them like human beings who are guests in YOUR building and just stay aware of what works and doesn't.

That old timey feel you are looking for is respect, you get that with behavior, not replicating decorations (though that can be cool too).

Posted by Sam D. Chavez (Member # 1841) on 02-19-2010, 09:36 AM:

One of the local owners of a single screen goes up before each film and chats about the film, upcoming events, etc, but she has the flashy, outgoing personality to pull it off.

Posted by Richard P. May (Member # 3598) on 02-19-2010, 10:00 AM:

Take a look at the website for the Stanford Theater in Palo Alto, CA.
They have been running the type shows you are looking to have for over twenty years, quite successfully.
It's www.stanfordtheater.org

DM

Posted by Mike Blakesley (Member # 26) on 02-19-2010, 01:11 PM:

I agree about exit-greeting, it's important...it's just part of overall management/staff conduct. I would say the most important things, besides the presentation efforts you are already making, are the friendliness of your staff and the cleanliness of your building. Keep it looking new inside AND outside, including the sidewalks and gutters.

Ushers? Well we've never had them, but our place is pretty small so there's not really a need. If things are crowded, we'll help people find seats, or tell them where seats can be found. And, one of us is always in the office or the concession, so customers can easily find us if they need anything. It's important that people feel important.

One of the best things we do here is, we have no "minimum" for the number of people we'll run a movie for. Sometimes, especially in the winter, a late show will only have two or three people...we run it anyway. This makes them feel VERY special and they'll brag about their "private show" to their friends for days afterward. (One of our neighboring theatres has an eight-person minimum...I can't imagine how many customers they have pissed off with that policy!)

Posted by Alex Shultz (Member # 5027) on 02-19-2010, 02:07 PM:

I think I must be on the right track. Thank you all for your comments and suggestions. I really appreciated the links to the YouTube videos, John.

I like the idea of going in and chatting before the movie. I don't do this for every movie. I currently only make sure to go and let people know if there is something that comes on once the credits begin. Partially because I know people like to be privy to "secret info" like that but also because people start to get up and leave then stop and STAND IN PLACE to watch that stuff, guaranteeing that nobody behind them can see it. I remind them all that they will probably enjoy watching it but that if they would like to leave to please be considerate and move out of the way for the other people to see it. It seems to work well and I get a lot of "Thank-You"s from people as I walk back to start the projectors.

I do currently try to greet all the customers as they leave the auditoriums. I enjoy that, especially for the kid shows - the kids are always so excited about the movies. I try to make sure to ask everyone if they liked the movie - most people respond that they did and it reinforces that feeling even if they were just being polite - I'm hoping that when a friend asks if the person liked the show the customer will be more likely to respond positively and drive a bit more business this way.

I try to have great customer service and always have someone available in the lobby. I try to keep the snack lines short. I've started staggering my show times by about ten minutes so that we don't have everyone nervously waiting to get popcorn while missing trailers.

I do always give passes to people that have to leave early or that come out and are not enjoying the movie. I especially give passes to parents who came with a young child where one parent ends up spending most of the movie in the lobby with a fussy kid. I figure if they are going to take a chance on a movie and have enough courtesy to avoid spoiling the movie for everyone else I'll make sure they get a chance to come back and see a show again without feeling like the blew their admission price for this show. Plus, I get to sell snacks to all those people next time they come in, too.

I definitely have no minimum number of people that I'll play for. If it is ever just a single person or a couple (never happens for the early show but sometimes for the late show on a weeknight) then I'll chat with them a bit while we are waiting for show time and mention that they are here on just the right night to get a private showing. I figure that if I'm going to make a living doing this then I'd better be willing to do my job even if it is just for one person.

I am the only small-town theatre in the area with two showings of the features every evening - most of the others do two shows Fri & Sat evening, a Sunday matinee, and then cut to one show for Sun-Thu or even just close up on Mon-Thu. I can definitely tell that it is worth staying open for those extra shows. I see about 1/3 of my customers come in on Sun - Thu evenings. I especially see it working on those nights when the local schools are not in session the next day and all the teens decide to take in a late show - they just love to spend the money at the concessions stand.

I've started doing a Tuesday@5 show. I bring in a show to play on Tuesdays at 5pm for a month. I don't charge admission. I have played Joyeux Noel, The Station Agent, am finishing Doubt this month, and will play Coco Before Chanel in March. I'm trying to find movies that would not play well here as something I could devote a screen to for a week but that are good movies people should see. I've been getting a lot of older people coming in to see these movies - these are the people that haven't been here for years. The concessions sales pretty much offset the cost of the shows (not always). I also put these movies in my newly remodeled little 56-seat theatre to show it off. It used to be an absolute pit - mildew smell, dark, built like a shooting gallery, bad seating. I completely tore that apart and built it wider with a wonderful feel to the room (larger screen, DTS sound, comfy seats, modern look, bright). Now people are starting to get excited when a movie is in there because they like it so much - they used to decide to go home because the movie was in there.

I can tell that I am building up and recovering a customer base that will help me be successful. I definitely don't want to stop short of doing something that will keep me ahead of the other choices people have for movies.

Posted by Caleb Johnstone-Cowan (Member # 3710) on 02-19-2010, 02:10 PM:

That sucks, what if they bought food do they get a refund? I reckon you lose money in the long term doing business that way because customers wont come if they think the show might get cancelled at short notice.

I believe my company does old-style ushering in selected sites when they need it. The ushers do three things, they show people to seats who are lost, they stay in the screen and deal with disruptions, and they say goodbye at the end. A cinema I worked at before had spotlights above the usher seats so that customers could find them during the show which was a nice touch (we had no ushers though!). It's definitely the way to do things in peak periods if you can find staff who have the balls to tell people to shut up and wont see the task as a way to do nothing.

The way to recreate the cinema experience of previous generations is to staff properly. Most of the problems with the multiplex experience come not from their design but their lack of staff.

Posted by Alex Shultz (Member # 5027) on 02-19-2010, 02:21 PM:

Caleb,

I agree that it would suck to buy a bunch of concessions and then have the show cancelled. I can never understand that idea of not having a second show unless maybe the owner can't stay to run the late show (has another day job?) so has to hire someone to run the place and doesn't want to lose money night after night to pay for help. I think that hurts in the long run, though.

I do feel that I have been falling down on some of the staffing part. I staff heavily in the lobby for concessions so I can get people in to the shows in a timely manner. I think I'll start training the concessions people up to also go in to the auditoriums and watch for the cell phones and other disruptions. Right now they get to spend a lot of time waiting for the next group of customers to come in so they end up chatting, texting, and so on. Always irks me that I have to pay for people to stand around like that. There are only so many windows to wash (and things like that) before there's nothing left to do.

I've been thinking of getting a couple of youngsters to come in and sweep through the auditoriums real quick on Fri and Sat evening and between the Sun matinees (no Sat matinees while I'm remodeling - need the day to work). They can pick up all the trash and get the popcorn swept up for all three shows and then be done for the day. I try to schedule the shows so I have no less than ten minutes between the time the film runs out and the next start time so that I have time to get in there and clean then lace up the projectors. It's been working well except for the weekends when it is just too busy to spare a person from selling concessions to pick up trash. But if I want cleanliness I think I'm going to have to get some more help.

Posted by Caleb Johnstone-Cowan (Member # 3710) on 02-20-2010, 01:01 PM:

You should definitely give one person on concessions the responsibility for checking screens regularly outside of walk-ins, get them to sign off on a sheet for each time as well so you can show to customers, auditors, licensing bodies etc. that you do this if someone complains. It can be annoying when staff are standing around doing nothing, we always have things to be done or cleaned at work.

What you could do if you only need extra people to clean on Fridays and Saturdays is have them come in just as the screens need to be cleaned and then keep them to seat those shows if needed and/or clean concessions as extras.

We do the same thing with art/limited release films on a Tuesday but at around 9pm, being a 9-screener in a suburban market lots of films don't get shown by us, it's full price though.

Posted by Manny Montes (Member # 5639) on 02-20-2010, 05:46 PM:

quote: Alex Shultz
...I try to schedule the shows so I have no less than ten minutes between the time the film runs out and the next start time so that I have time to get in there and clean then lace up the projectors. It's been working well except for the weekends when it is just too busy to spare a person from selling concessions to pick up trash. But if I want cleanliness I think I'm going to have to get some more help.

Also a good tactic we use is to schedule a little bit more time in between shows, it helps out a lot. Also make sure your concessionaires are always doing something, we have ours do theater checks, clean the lobby, etc.

Remember A.B.C. Always Be Cleanin'

It sounds like you run a great operation, too few theaters now actually CARE about the customer, they want you to get in, buy food, and leave. As for hiring staff, look for CUSTOMER SERVICE oriented people first, hire the smile, train the skill.

Posted by Robert E. Allen (Member # 1351) on 02-20-2010, 10:07 PM:

There's no such thing as pre-show entertainment Alex. If it's a cartoon, an old newsreel (if you can get them) or an organist playing it is all part of the show. Ushers are extremely important. They help people find seats and they control the auditorium crowd. That's one of the biggest complaints about multiplexes. They do not assign ushers to an auditorium. If you hire ushers make sure they are more mature adults (not teenagers) as the punks who create disturbances do not respect someone their own age. Use intermissions for double features or for extremely long films (those will usually come with built-in intermissions.

When you station someone at the door to say "goodnight" make sure they have a mixed bowl of mints and chocolates to give out with a "Thank you for coming".

Many (if not most) seniors are going to enjoy classic films. To run these on film you'll need a two-projector change-over capability in order to get the best prints. The classics distributors don't want their best prints spliced and put on platter. Run special matinees for the seniors and those from area rest homes (the activity directors can work with you on this.

Keep your prices as reasonable as possible. Probably the biggest complaint I received when working for CineMark or Regal was the cost of concessions and admissions.

Probably the most important thing is to have a first rate screen performance. The best picture, the best sound and a quiet crowd.

And finally, if you can, avoid pre-show advertising. It really ticks people off when they come to see a film and have to sit through a half-hour of commercials.

If you really want to give folks the "grand" theatre experience install a travel curtain over your screen. That's what older folks grew up with but the multiplexes have been too cheap to install them. It will also keep you screen cleaner.

Posted by Alex Shultz (Member # 5027) on 02-20-2010, 10:42 PM:

Thanks again to everyone for the ideas. It's good to have the reinforcement for the things I am already doing as well as the ideas for the new stuff.

We had a lot of fun today with my free "mystery movie." Since I'm switching over to digital projection soon (some time in March) I put together all the film pieces I had found lying around in the theatre when I bought the place: a little more than one reel of old trailers and announcements and then the first reel of 1982's Alone in the Dark followed by the last three reels of 1965's Uncle Tom's Cabin. Since I wasn't sure what I was going to have when I decided to show all of it I called it a mystery movie.

I made up a handout explaining what I was doing with all the film, why trailers are called trailers (from Wikipedia), and a list of what was going to be on the screen along with a short description of the trailer movies and the two partial movies.

About 30 people showed up for the show this afternoon and I did a short question and answer about theatre things. They all watched the show and then about half of them stuck around for a tour of the remodeling in the large auditorium and lobby. Everyone had a good time, I think.

During the show the editor of the local weekly paper stopped by to pick up some tickets for the local theatre group's fundraiser and decided to come back to see more of what was going on with the mystery movie and the remodeling. She brought her camera and we talked for about an hour after the show ended. I explained the mystery movie thing and then we looked over the film equipment before talking about the new digital equipment and how that would change things. Finally, we went in to the remodel area and she took many more pictures and asked many more questions. She is planning to do an article about the mystery movie and another about the remodel in this week's paper. She also talked me in to running the mystery movie again next Saturday afternoon so she could come. I figured that since she's always been a good customer she'll probably mention it to many of the people she sees daily and that having an article about it in the weekly paper should work together to get a nice crowd next Saturday for the show.

Posted by Sean McKinnon (Member # 612) on 02-22-2010, 08:32 AM:

Sounds like you are doing an awesome job of "Theatre's Done Right!" I will just repeat a few things other's have said...

Cleanliness is the #1 most important thing behind good projection and sound. People will not want to sit in dirty seats, with sticky floors, and a smelly auditorium. They will not buy food from a dirty stand, or eat popcorn that came out of a kettle crusted with years worth of crud on it. I am sure you know this though. In my opinion it is good to have outside cleaners come in at least once or twice a week. We as human beings get complacent when we see the same place, or things over and over again every day. What you think as a great complete cleaning job might be missing something that your brain overlooks because it is the norm. I like to bring in an outside crew with fresh eyes. You figure by the time you are ready to clean the last round of shows on a saturday night you might have been there for 15 hours. Someone fresh with a fresh perspective might notice things and do a more thorough job simply because they are not as fatigued. I feel the cleaning after the last set is the most important because that is really when you have the time to get in there and do a real thorough job. I would clean in between shows with yourself and an extra concession person and add nightime cleaners on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights. I have found husband and wife teams willing to work for ten or so dollars an hour (or less depending on the local economy) who will do an awesome reliable job.

I like exit greeting. It puts you in a position to get feedback on the type of films your customers like so you can make better informed booking decisions. It also puts you in a position to get immediate feedback about thier experience while it is fresh in thier mind. I have often taken a couple passes or free soft drink coupons to offer to people who would be willing to chat with me for a few minutes about thier experience at the theatre. This type of honest feedback is worth its weight in gold to you.

You should have a friendly well trained staff. It seems like you are doing everything right here. the shorter the lines the more people will stop and buy something which means a bigger percap for you. Efficency is as important as adding staff. Every stand is different and you should figure out what is the most efficient way to fill orders... Soft Drinks First? Popcorn Last? Do you have automatic soda fountains? If so make sure your staff always puts the drinks on while they are filling the popcorn? Do you use bags or tubs? Bags are cheaper to buy and dispose of but tubs are quicker and customers like them.

And last but certainly not least the most important part of your operation the reason people are coming in the first place is projection and sound. It sound slike you are willing to spend the money to do things right here. I would make sure you read this site especially the "tips" section. Use film-guard on your prints, and use a competent service tech to come in at least 3 times a year to go over each screen and align your sound, light, platters, check for mechanical wear, etc... This will pay for itself with one show that you might of lost but didn't because a problem was caught early.

It sounds like you are really doing a great job! Welcome to Film-Tech and please keep up the good work! The industry needs more operators like you!

Posted by Manny Montes (Member # 5639) on 02-22-2010, 04:47 PM:

Glad to hear that the mystery movie went over well, Like i said its all about experience., remember that loyal guests outspend other guests on average 12 to 1, and that statistically only 5% of people with an issue will ever complain, the others with an issue will simply stop coming. Talking to guests after the movie helps make them feel welcome, also it gives them an avenue if they decide to complain. I always make sure to tell my staff that complaints should be WELCOMED, just as compliments, it means the customer is the time out to let us know how to improve our service and keep them as a customer!

However It sounds as if you are doing everything right!

Posted by Martin Brooks (Member # 1269) on 03-01-2010, 12:43 AM:

quote: Alex Shultz
(no Sat matinees while I'm remodeling - need the day to work).

Huh? Why don't you remodel on a Monday instead of losing the money from a Saturday matinee?

Posted by John Wilson (Member # 269) on 03-01-2010, 02:21 PM:

quote: Mike Blakesley
One of our neighboring theatres has an eight-person minimum...

That's just wrong. [Mad]

If someone's taken the time to get off their sofa, get in their car, spend money on gas to move the car, park, walk to the theatre AND hand over hard earned cash...then the very least the cinema can do is do exactly as they have advertised they would do and show the movie to the patron...even if they are the only one in the show.

One patron and the show goes on.

Posted by Kenneth Wuepper (Member # 1174) on 03-01-2010, 02:31 PM:

John is correct.

If you advertise a 7:00 PM showing then you are falsely advertising if someone comes and you do not show the film.

You are in the business of showing films. The audience may be one or one thousand but you show it as you advertised.

The small number of attendees may be bad for your bottom line but not showing it for a paying customer is totally wrong.

KEN

Posted by Robert E. Allen (Member # 1351) on 03-01-2010, 02:59 PM:

When I was working as an assistant at a Regal 10-screener in Washington state I called down from the booth to see if any tickets had been sold for the final performance of a film. The BO replied "No". Since it was 15 minutes past start time the GM came up and began tearing down the print. He had three of the five reels off when the BO called up and said they had sold a ticket. It happened to be one of our regular customers who came to see that particular film. The GM spliced the thing back together and the show went on for an audience of one.

Posted by Frank Angel (Member # 248) on 03-01-2010, 03:10 PM:

In a theatre I worked in Bryan/College Station, quite a few times we would open the first show with no one in the house. The policy was to run the film (change-over) on time -- sound, but no picture, i.e., not strike the arc so as to save money on electric. As soon as the first ticket was sold, sometimes half way thru the film, the BO would call up and I'd put the picture on the screen.

I've run a show of YENTEL with 2 people in the house. Every patron is a future customer and turning them away for your convenience, regardless of how unfair, is just bad business. Besides, in the way most work schedules are structured, you won't save money by sending staff home early because in most cases they work a call, so you have to pay them for the full call anyway.

Posted by Alex Shultz (Member # 5027) on 03-01-2010, 11:11 PM:

Martin,

I like the idea of getting the Saturday crowd but that is working out to be the best work day. My father is doing all the remodel work. He runs his own business (Valley Vet Supply) during the weekdays (Monday being his very busiest day) but comes in mornings and evenings and then all day Saturday and most Sunday afternoons. He puts in about 50 hours a week here on top of his own business. I'm getting free labor (cutting the remodel cost to about 1/3) and he does excellent quality work. I have been willing to give up the Saturdays until the project is finished - about six more months to go, I think. I do fit in a special matinee from time to time, like the mystery movie these last two weeks and the Sons of the American Legion-sponsored Easter movie at the end of March.

Dad doing all of this provides great stories for the local weekly paper. They love the theatre, that we are bringing it back from close-to-ruin, and that it is a family thing that is taken over from another family who ran it for almost 40 years. I get a good mention with pictures in the paper about once every two months. This week they featured a story about switching to digital projection, the current remodel stuff, and the mystery movie. I ended up with 83 people coming in to see a hodge-podge of old film bits followed by a walk around the remodel area. The story is at http://marysvilleonline.net/articles/2010/03/01/news/doc4b8593f79e0de341896377.txt

Speaking of doing shows on Saturdays, what kind of shows do people run on Saturdays? When I was a kid the local businesses sponsored matinees on Saturdays - one of my best memories of this movie theatre is coming to movies with only my brother (no parents!) and sitting through both shows, the first show in the very front row and the second show in the very back row. The movies that I remember were shows like Krull, The Dark Crystal, and the Sinbad movies (I must have been 12 or 13). However, I've noticed that a free matinee really cuts down attendance on any for-pay kid movie that weekend. It's almost like people only want to see one show a week - even if they could see a second one for free.

Posted by John Wilson (Member # 269) on 03-05-2010, 12:19 AM:

We had great success in the late 80's running a bargain matinee of classic matinee stuff.

For $3.50 you got:
Admission ticket
Drink
Packet of Jaffas (Candy)

There was an intermission in each show. We always opened with a cartoon and then the current episode of a serial like Buck Rogers and then intermission. After the interval, a trailer for next week's show and then we went straight into the feature.

Our biggest films were:
Pee Wee's Big Adventure
The Princess Bride
Raiders of the Lost Ark (in 70mm)
The Blues Brothers (in 4-track mag)

It was nothing to have 500 people in there. Ahhh...the good old days... [thumbsup]

Posted by Martin Brooks (Member # 1269) on 03-05-2010, 11:41 AM:

quote: Alex Shultz
The story is at http://marysvilleonline.net/articles/2010/03/01/news/doc4b8593f79e0de341896377.txt

Nice article. Renovation looks great. Good luck with it all.

Posted by Tony Bandiera Jr (Member # 2365) on 03-05-2010, 11:55 AM:

quote: Manny Montes
However It sounds as if you are doing everything right!

Alex:

After reading the article provided by the link (great article BTW except for the line "Each film reel weighs 70 lbs."), I have to disagree with Manny's statement in one regard:

DO NOT Ditch ALL of your film equipment for D-Crapema!!

First off, the expense in equipment is better spent elsewhere.

Second, How do you propose to run films that aren't yet available on digital? Don't cut yourself out of potential sales!! And you can forget your idea of the Saturday matinees as little if any of the typical content is (or ever will be) available on digital.

Third, since your theatre has a rich history, how do you propose to run any of the older films for special shows that might appeal to some of the older folks in your area? Or re-run your "Mystery Movie" which was a great idea BTW.

Fourth, what are you gonna do when (NOT IF) your D-Cinema crashes? Give out a full house of refunds? That'll lose you some customers really fast. There was a post in another thread about that nightmare with "Shutter Island."

Try (or as Yoda would say, "Try not! Do, or do not, There is no try") to keep AT LEAST one screen equipped with film!! Even if it makes the booth cramped for space (but since you don't need an operator for D-Crapema who cares how much space is in the booth, right?)

I'm not saying this simply because I despise digital, but I am looking at the bigger picture in the sense of business and being able to keep SOMETHING on the screens at all times.

I wish you the best of luck in your venture!! [thumbsup]