quote:

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CARMIKE CINEMAS CONTRACTS TO INSTALL 2,300 DIGITAL CINEMA PROJECTION SYSTEMS FROM CHRISTIE/AIX
MORRISTOWN, N.J. and COLUMBUS, GA. – December 19, 2005 – Access Integrated Technologies, Inc. (“AccessIT”) (AMEX: AIX) and Carmike Cinemas, Inc. (“Carmike”) (NasdaqNM: CKEC) jointly announced today that Carmike, the third largest national movie theatre circuit has executed a contract with AccessIT’s Christie/AIX subsidiary, for the installation of up to 2,300 Digital Cinema projection systems throughout the United States. With this agreement, Carmike and Christie/AIX will begin installing 2K DCI-compliant DLP Cinema® projectors. The rollout is scheduled to begin in January, 2006 and to be completed by October 31, 2007.
“We are proud to have the opportunity to work with Carmike, not only one of the nation’s largest theatre chains, but also one of the most forward-looking,” commented Bud Mayo, President and Chief Executive Officer of AccessIT. “It would be hard to exaggerate the significance of today’s development as a major milestone for the industry and for our respective companies, and we are privileged to be a partner in this important undertaking. Working together, Carmike, Christie and AccessIT are committed to elevating the movie going experience and to bringing the many benefits of digital to audiences in the months ahead.”
Michael W. Patrick, Chairman of the Board, President and CEO of Carmike Cinemas, Inc. added, “We are eagerly looking forward to launching this rollout with Christie/AIX. Digital Cinema is the future of exhibition, combining eye-popping image quality that will dazzle moviegoers with unmatched programming flexibility. This flexibility will enable our company to capitalize on new programming options such as 3-D, live sporting events, and other alternative content while continuing to present traditional movies with the best picture and sound possible for even the longest of runs.”
"The contract with Carmike is truly a tipping point for Digital Cinema. As a progressive company with clear vision, Carmike has identified Digital Cinema as the next growth and revenue opportunity for their business. We are very pleased that they have chosen DLP Cinema® from Christie, a proven technology, to bring the digital experience to the heartland of America," stated Jack Kline, President and COO, Christie USA. "The collaborative efforts of DCI, the studios and the exhibition community confirm that Digital Cinema is no longer just a dream--it's real, and it's here to stay."
AccessIT's Christie/AIX unit serves as the funding vehicle and administrator for the company's 4,000-screen digital cinema rollout plan expanded significantly from the total originally announced in June 2005. Christie/AIX will act as the financing intermediary between content-owners -- major studios and independent distributors, among others -- and exhibitors who will receive turnkey, DCI-compliant Digital Cinema systems including 2K projectors and related hardware and software. Bear, Stearns & Co. acts as the financial advisor to AccessIT.
A series of key developments preceded today’s announcement; notably, formal contracts with The Walt Disney Company, Twentieth Century Fox, Universal Pictures, Sony Pictures Entertainment and most recently DreamWorks SKG. Initial deployments in the plan began in late October in theatres in Detroit, Michigan, owned by Emagine Entertainment, Inc. and at
multiple locations in San Diego and Riverside County (CA) multiplexes owned by Ultrastar Theaters, Inc. Completion on these first 150 systems is anticipated before the close of the year.
In a related development, to provide equity funding for this large-scale deployment, AccessIT intends to move forward with the filing of a common stock shelf registration in the very near future.
Access Integrated Technologies, Inc. (AccessIT) is an industry leader in offering a fully managed storage and electronic delivery service for owners and distributors of digital content to movie theaters and other venues. Supported by its robust platform of fail-safe Internet data centers, AccessIT is able to leverage the market-leading role of its Theatrical Distribution System (TDS) with its innovative digital delivery capabilities and in-theatre software systems to provide the highest level of technology available to enable the emerging Digital Cinema industry to transition from film without changing workflows. For more information on AccessIT, visit www.accessitx.com.
Christie is a leader in visual solutions for world-class organizations, offering diverse applications for business, entertainment, and industry. A leading innovator in film projection since 1929 and a pioneer in projection systems since 1979, Christie has established a global reputation as a total service provider and the world's single source manufacturer of a variety of display technologies and solutions. Christie offers comprehensive solutions for cinema, large audience venues, control rooms, business presentations, training facilities, 3D and Virtual Reality, simulation and education as well as industrial and government environments. For more information on Christie's cinema solutions and to find a theatre with Christie DLP Cinema® projectors, visit www.christiedigital.com.
Carmike Cinemas, Inc. is a premiere motion picture exhibitor in the United States with 307 theatres and 2,469 screens in 37 states, as of September 30, 2005. Carmike's focus for its theatre locations is small to mid-sized communities with populations of fewer than 100,000. Carmike's common stock is traded on the NASDAQ National Market under the ticker symbol "CKEC." For more information visit Carmike's website, www.carmike.com.

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quote: Darryl Spicer

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A lot of Carmike locations are pure dumps some are good but some are not.

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quote:

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for the installation of up to 2,300 Digital Cinema projection systems throughout the United States

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quote: Bobby Henderson

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why do a circuit-wide install based on 2K when 4K systems are just on the horizon?

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quote: Lyle Romer

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Do you know something I don't know? TI doesn't seem to have shown any interest in developing 4k.

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quote: Lyle Romer

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I know about the sony's but they are only capable of lighting a screen up to 45 feet.

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quote: Lyle Romer

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DLP has much tighter pixel spacing than sxrd.

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quote: Lyle Romer

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DLP has much tighter pixel spacing than sxrd

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[Key Features]
1.1. High-quality pictures through resolution, brightness and contrast that are higher than the original Full HD.

[High resolution: 8.85 mega pixels (4K: 4096H X 2160V)]
Sony was able to achieve high-resolution by optimizing the driving circuit in each pixel. The total pixel area was reduced by 10 percent by reducing the size of each pixel from 9µm to 8.5µm, while maintaining the inter-pixel spacing of 0.35µm. As such, 8.85 mega pixels were integrated into the area of measuring 1.55 inches diagonally across. Furthermore, Sony has radically designed the Driving Circuit Technology and Sony's original write signal on technology, which enables the creation of smooth images by driving 8,850,000 pixels accurately onto a silicon circuit. These advances facilitated a high-grade, high-resolution picture quality previously unseen on fixed-pixel projection devices, with outstanding cinematic quality and image smoothness that can be enjoyed free from the grainy "mesh" effect noticeable on conventional projectors, even on over 300 inch size screen.

[Brightness: four times the original]
The brightness of projectors is directly proportional to the size of a panel when the luminance of the lamp is the same. The newly developed 1.55 inch panel (increased from 0.78 inch) directly aids in widening the illumination area by four times. Additionally, this succeeded in increasing the reflection rate from 65% to 72%.
As a result, Sony is able to provide projectors for cinema with enough brightness where high brightness level is required.

[High contrast: 4000 : 1]
By adopting vertically aligned liquid crystals material, thin liquid crystal cell gap and inorganic alignment layer to the liquid crystal cell, SXRD achieves its high contrast. Furthermore, by optimizing alignment layer fabrication process, it ensures the original alignment layer durability and still achieves the contrast of 4000 : 1.

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quote: Darryl Spicer

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A lot of Carmike locations are pure dumps some are good but some are not.

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quote: Bobby Henderson

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Is this to assume DLP-based video projectors can go any higher?

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quote: Lyle Romer

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DLP has much tighter pixel spacing than sxrd

quote: David Stambaugh

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That is incorrect. SXRD has very tight pixel spacing, tighter than DLP or LCD.

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quote:

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Also, if the consumer products are any indication, DLP has much tighter pixel spacing than sxrd. You can clearly see the grid on lcd based projection TVs.

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quote: Bobby Henderson

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One possible downside is the conversion to these new AIX DLP systems is job elimination.

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quote: Scott Norwood

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If they're really only installing the DLP equipment in the largest houses at each location, won't there still be a need for film prints of everything to allow movement of less-popular titles to smaller screens? (I'm assuming that all Carmike theatres are multiplexes; someone please correct me if I'm wrong.)

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quote: Scott Norwood

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If they're really only installing the DLP equipment in the largest houses at each location, won't there still be a need for film prints of everything to allow movement of less-popular titles to smaller screens?

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quote: Sam Graham

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I don't think 2k is a problem for Carmike because, in my experience, their company builds use really small screens.

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quote: Steve Scott

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Bobby, I'm glad there are some decent Carmike theatres out there.

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quote: Scott Norwood

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If they're really expecting this to work out in some sort of cost/labor-saving manner, they will need to install at least three machines per reasonably large multiplex--one each in a large, medium, and small house. This would allow the movement of a "print" to smaller houses as it becomes less popular.

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I agree.

In one respect, it would be easier to convert an entire multiplex to digital projection to save on technical labor costs and construction labor costs (modifications to the booth, installation of silver screens if 3D capability is desired, etc.). However, converting an entire multiplex over at once would be risky in several respects. It's going to be critical to maintain 35mm backward compatibility. Then there's the issue of getting the booth crew to transition from using 35mm film projection setups to these new things. That's not exactly something you want to do immediately overnight.

I think that Carmike should install 1 to 3 systems in many of their locations and then add others later. It will get more theaters on board with the ability to throw "digital projection" into their advertising. It will leave the capability of handling both film prints and video material. Overall it will provide a more graceful transition instead of giving the staff a "baptism in fire" of just being thrown into using completely different hardware.
 

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Posted by Greg Pauley (Member # 503) on 12-24-2005, 12:45 PM:
 
"This flexibility will enable our company to capitalize on new programming options such as 3-D, live sporting events, and other alternative content while continuing to present traditional movies with the best picture and sound possible for even the longest of runs.”

I just wonder if the shrinking video window and the comments of Disney has anything to do with their decision. Alternative content might be helpful if a war breaks out between Distributors and Exhibitors.
 

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Posted by Monte L Fullmer (Member # 2797) on 12-24-2005, 11:39 PM:
 
Looks like Carmike is one of those circuits is going to take the first step by hitting it upstream and full-bore with the digital thingey.

It looks like they have to do this to keep surviving, or will sink badly since the poor employee quality (training, company moral and attitude, wage factor, et.al. ..) is taking its toll on 35mm presentations - possibly throughout that circuit...which could also be starting to affect the other circuits as well...

..the coming of a new generation and era of exhibition.

-Monte
 

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Posted by Louis Bornwasser (Member # 3063) on 12-25-2005, 07:13 AM:
 
Carmike has never done anything completely, except bankruptcy. My guess is that a number from 1-2300 is involved; for example: 25.

While I enjoy the technical explanations, the board room (completely devoid of any knowledge or caring of technical matters) will dictate our common futures.

In fact they could get a (quick, free) education just by reading this web site. Regrettably, in Carmike's case, that won't be a problem. Louis
 

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Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 12-25-2005, 11:43 AM:
 
Louis,

You just hit on several of the reasons why many of my customers always say if there has to be competition let it be Carmike. They really are no competition at all.

Everyone else keep in mind that Christie claims they can produce 200 units a year.... It'll only take them 11.5 years to build that many......

Mark
 

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Posted by Jason Black (Member # 684) on 12-25-2005, 02:12 PM:
 
Louis,

Have you, or do you, do service work for Carmike or are you just spouting off random bits?

Just curious...
 

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Posted by Louis Bornwasser (Member # 3063) on 12-25-2005, 08:06 PM:
 
Have good friends who do work for Carmike. Also--a good story--when Cinema World was sold in Pittsburgh I was asked to guess who would buy a circuit in that bad of a shape. A little thought--Carmike? I was right. The logic is who would want the "world's worst?" The "second worst," of course.

In previous years, I did "a lot" of studio work during the 70mm era in Tennessee and points south...lots of Carmike there! Admittedly a long time ago, but "the cast of characters" and their ways have not changed. Louis
 

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Posted by Jason Black (Member # 684) on 12-26-2005, 01:20 PM:
 
Indeed, you are correct. What's really amazing is that the majority of, if not all of, the high level Exec's have never managed the day to day operations of anything larger than 6 screens...

quote: Louis Bornwasser

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Admittedly a long time ago, but "the cast of characters" and their ways have not changed.

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Posted by Sam Graham (Member # 2889) on 01-05-2006, 05:02 PM:
 
...And then the floodgates opened...

(PRESS RELEASE)

Technicolor Digital Cinema to Launch Beta Test of DCI-Compliant Digital Projection Systems
In Century Theatres' Network in Early 2006

Paris (France), Burbank(Calif.) — January 3, 2006 — Thomson (Euronext 18453; NYSE: TMS), through its Technicolor Digital Cinema business, today announced it has reached a strategic understanding with Century Theatres, Inc., one of America's largest national theatre circuits, to install DCI-compliant (Digital Cinema Initiatives) (*) digital projection systems in Century-owned and operated screens. Under the terms of the understanding, Technicolor Digital Cinema will install digital projection equipment beginning with a beta-test deployment of 90-120 screens in the first quarter of 2006. It is Thomson's intent to place systems in Century's entire network of 1000 + screens following the successful completion of the beta test.

Century Theatres' participation in Thomson's beta-test deployment is significant as Century Theatres' circuit comprises state-of-the-art facilities concentrated in high profile and fast-growing metropolitan areas throughout the western United States. With an expanding portfolio of predominantly stadium-seated theaters, and among the highest per screen revenues of any theater circuit in the nation, Century Theatres is an ideal partner in the development and deployment of next generation projection technology.

The Century Theatres deployment is part of a primary rollout of complete digital projection systems in up to 5,000 DCI-compliant screens over the next 3-4 years. Thomson intends to deploy at least 15,000 digitally-equipped screens in the United States and Canada, through the initial rollout and additional phases, over the next 10 years. Thomson is in late-stage negotiations with other major national and regional exhibitors.

"We are pleased to be working with Century Theatres in advancing the ongoing development of digital cinema in major markets throughout North America, an industry transition which is critically-important to Thomson, the exhibition community, and major film studios," said Joe Berchtold, president of Technicolor Electronic Distribution Services, and head of Technicolor Digital Cinema. "As this process continues, Technicolor Digital Cinema is committed to collaborating with Century Theatres and our studio partners to fully deliver all that digital cinema has to offer to its many stakeholders – particularly movie-goers, who will substantially benefit from a much higher-quality, in-theatre experience."

"Century Theatres is pleased to be involved with Technicolor Digital Cinema as it begins the process of transitioning its network of screens to a DCI-compliant digital projection platform," said David Shesgreen, president and chief executive officer of Century Theatres, Inc. "We were attracted to Technicolor's digital cinema services portfolio, its long-standing relationships with the studio and exhibition communities, and its proven industry leadership. Furthermore, we firmly believe that Technicolor's commitment to a beta test to demonstrate the viability of this technology, and its ability to deploy 4K projection systems from the outset, make it the ideal partner to assist us with this important technological transition."

(*) All hardware and software placed in each Century Theatre site will be compliant with industry-standard specifications recently published by the Digital Cinema Initiatives LLC (DCI). Furthermore, the Technicolor Digital Cinema plan is technology agnostic, allowing both exhibitors and studios to benefit from the best available technology, including both 2K and 4K projection.

The Thomson-driven initiative encompasses an industry-wide business model and operating infrastructure addressing all aspects of the much-anticipated digital cinema rollout: full-output, long-term content commitments by multiple Hollywood film studios; the widespread deployment of digital projection systems with exhibitors, including Century Theatres; and a broad industry commitment for the installation, operation, and financing of those systems through a proven, experienced service provider.

As previously announced by Thomson, the company recently signed digital cinema equipment usage agreements with DreamWorks SKG, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Twentieth Century Fox, Universal Pictures, and Warner Bros to accelerate its plans for the distribution of digital cinema content and systems throughout North America. Under the separate, long-term accords, each of these studios has agreed to distribute content digitally throughout the United States and Canada, and pay a virtual print fee to Thomson for screens equipped with Technicolor Digital Cinema systems, beginning as early as the first quarter of 2006. Thomson is currently in negotiations with other film studios to expand the range of its non-exclusive content agreements.
# # #

About Thomson — Partner To the Media & Entertainment Industries

Thomson (Euronext Paris: 18453; NYSE: TMS) provides services, systems and technology to help its Media & Entertainment clients – content creators, content distributors and users of its technology – realize their business goals and optimize their performance in a rapidly changing technology environment. The Group is the preferred partner to the Media & Entertainment Industries through its Technicolor, Grass Valley, RCA, and Thomson brands. For more information: http://www.thomson.net.

About Technicolor Digital Cinema

Since its inception in 1999, Technicolor Digital Cinema has been a pioneer in the enabling and advancement of digital cinema initiatives. By actively working side-by-side with key digital cinema stakeholders as a technology enabler and service provider, Technicolor Digital Cinema is utilizing its breadth and depth of valuable industry knowledge and expertise to develop solutions for technologies and standards that will ultimately facilitate the global commercialization of digital cinema. Headquartered in Burbank, California, Technicolor Digital Cinema offers the most comprehensive set of digital cinema services and solutions, including compression, encryption, key management, secure distribution, storage, scheduling and playback, and maintenance and support. Additionally, the division works closely with major film studios to support current digital cinema releases. Technicolor Digital Cinema is an operating unit of Technicolor Electronic Distribution Services, part of the Services division of Thomson. Since 2000, Technicolor Digital Cinema has managed and distributed well over 100 titles for eight studios, covering more than 300,000 digital presentations worldwide. For more information: http://www.technicolordigital.com.

About Century Theatres, Inc.

For over 64 years, Century Theatres, Inc. has been bringing the highest quality of entertainment to American movie audiences. In 1941, founder Raymond J. Syufy opened his first indoor movie theater in Vallejo, Calif. Combining first-run films with first-rate business skills, Syufy expanded throughout Northern California, where many theaters are now local architectural landmarks. He then went on to lay the foundation of one of the country's largest and most successful regional theatre circuits. Today, the second generation is in charge. Brothers Raymond W. Syufy and Joseph Syufy continue to champion the values their father instilled throughout the enterprise while building, maintaining, and exceeding the standards in state-of-the-art movie theatres. With over 1,000 screens in 12 states, Century is continuing this expansion mode with an additional 250 screens in development over the next three years. The company's dedication to presentation, service, innovation, and quality have earned it a loyal customer base and made its screens among the highest grossing in the nation. For more information: http://www.centurytheatres.com.
 

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Posted by Dustin Mitchell (Member # 372) on 04-08-2006, 03:56 AM:
 
There was a bit of side discussion in the 'latest theatre to open/close' thread about Carmike and digital projection, I figured I'd bring it back here.

It seems my previous info was off. By May 15 we will have 6 digital projectors. Three of them will replace the 35mm projector entirely while the other three will be on track systems so that they can be moved out of the way if the 35mm equipment has to be used.

As of this week we've had electrians in the buidling upgrading the service for the increased load. The rolling carts and tracks for the three dual systems also arrived on Wednesday. Its the real deal, so to speak.
 

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Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 04-08-2006, 07:56 AM:
 
I can guarantee you that D-Cinema will be the best thing that hit Carmmike. No more scratched prints and for the first time in Carmike history..... decent presentations......
 

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Posted by Louis Bornwasser (Member # 3063) on 04-08-2006, 02:08 PM:
 
Maybe...until they find a way to "economize" it. Louis
 

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Posted by Sam Graham (Member # 2889) on 04-16-2006, 10:49 AM:
 
Found this interesting. A little more insight into Carmike's future digital plans...

SOURCE: Columbus Ledger-Enquirer

quote:

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Carmike Cinemas rolling out its digital experience, including bingo, video games, concerts, sporting events, religious programs
BY TONY ADAMS
Staff Writer
(4/10/06)

Saturday morning video games for the kids and late-night gaming for adults. Church services on Sunday morning, followed by bingo in the afternoon. Live concerts and sports events, some with in-your-face 3-dimensional pizzazz. Those are the flashy ingredients that Carmike Cinemas is banking on to lure more people into theaters as the company rolls out its digital viewing experience over the next two to three years. The Columbus-based motion picture exhibitor signed a contract with Access Integrated Technologies in December to outfit 2,300 of its screens with digital technology. Access subsidiary Christie/AIX began installing computers and servers in North Carolina theaters in February. The Carmike 15 and Hollywood Connection Ritz 10 in Columbus could go digital as soon as mid-summer, said Tony Rhead, Carmike senior vice president of entertainment and digital cinema. The plan is to be totally digital by October 2007. "The clarity of the picture and the sound is much superior to 35mm," Rhead said of the traditional film used to show movies. "After a movie has been playing three or four or five weeks, you might see scratches and jumping in the film. That's just wear and tear of the film going through the projectors. There'll be none of that with digital."

A beautiful picture and crisp stereo sound are important. But one of the prime advantages of digital will be the flexibility it offers, Rhead said.

For instance, the company is exploring a contract with a company called TimePlay that offers "alternative content" to cinemas. Possibilities from TimePlay, which has offices in Universal City, Calif., and Toronto, Ontario, include:

• Video games in which players use wireless controllers to battle each other in bigger-than-life action on the big screen. Players could be in the same cinema, or different theaters could take on each other.

• Bingo games in which players pick up preloaded electronic cards in the lobby, then square off against each other in the comfort of a theater seat. Up to 150 people could play at one time, according to the TimePlay Web site.

• Kids' games might include SpongeBob's Summer Camp, according to TimePlay, with birthday parties and other events a draw for the 5- to 12-year-old crowd.

• Live concerts, comedy shows, sporting events and novelty attractions such as monster truck shows could be shown in larger communities. Programs could include a NASCAR race with cars careening around the track in 3-D.

Professional wrestling also would be a major draw, considering "WWE Raw" on USA was No. 2 in the Nielsen Media Research cable television rankings last week, attracting nearly 5.5 million viewers.

Religious offerings

Carmike management appears to be most excited about the possibility of showing religious-oriented programming. That might include gospel music and sermons from popular ministers and evangelists such as Houston-based Joel Osteen, who now spreads the Lord's word through sold-out shows in 15,000-seat arenas around the country.

"Before, if we wanted to show Joel Osteen, he'd have to film it and put it on 35mm," Rhead said. "Now all he has to do is send the signal to us and we can show it live or delayed or whatever."

Religion paid off handsomely for Carmike in 2004. The chain raked in more than $20 million from Mel Gibson's controversial film, "The Passion of the Christ." It was a record take for a movie shown by Carmike.

The sporting events are at least two to three years away, Rhead said. But the company already is in talks with promoters about concerts, which could start in digitally-enhanced theaters as soon as May. The games will begin when a contract is signed with a technology and programming supplier.

More and more movies, meanwhile, are to be shown in 3-D. "Monster House," scheduled for a July release, will take on a tri-level dimension, while you'll be able to "Meet the Robinsons" in 3-D this Christmas.

"It's nothing like the old 3-D where you have a little flimsy pair of glasses and... you had to hold your head still because if you moved your head it went out of focus," Rhead said of the improved technology and equipment.

Carmike is counting on the new and eclectic digital offerings to generate a buzz for an industry that has fizzled somewhat because of a dearth in quality movies. Home theater systems and quicker releases of DVDs to the retail market have impacted theater attendance as well.

Lower box-office sales

The chain has yet to release its annual report for 2005, saying audit firms are still examining the financial data to make certain it is accurate. No date has been set for the report's release, said Judy Russell, Carmike's director of investor relations.

The late filing prompted the Nasdaq stock exchange to notify the company March 28 that it would be delisted because of the late filing. Carmike plans to appeal the decision, and its stock will continue to trade until the company meets with Nasdaq officials.

"We feel very confident that Nasdaq will understand what's going on," Russell said.

Carmike also warned in March that it expects the 2005 earnings report to show significantly lower revenues, operating income and net income than in 2004. The decline is based on a drop in box-office sales, the company said.

The movie industry as a whole expects the transformation to digital to provide a major-league boost. The pace of digital film releases is beginning to pick up, with more than two dozen available this summer alone. They include "The Da Vinci Code," "Mission Impossible 3," "Cars," and "Pirates of the Caribbean 2."

Warner Bros., Universal Pictures, Sony Pictures, Paramount Pictures, Twentieth Century Fox, MGM and Disney all are ramping up production of digital product.

"The important thing is to embrace the future, respect the economics of DVD (sales), but move forward into digital delivery," said Ben Feingold, president of Worldwide Home Entertainment at Sony Pictures.

Rhead expects the theater industry to enter the digital realm at a steady clip, but doesn't anticipate lightning-fast growth.

"You're not going to see 36,000 screens go digital in the next five years," he said. "You'll be lucky if there's 10,000 in the next three to four years."

CARMIKE CINEMAS

Ticker: CKEC

Exchange: NASDAQ

Closing price: $24.36 Friday (up 16 cents)

Market value: $299.85 million

PE ratio: 34.95

52-week high: $36.40

52-week low: $21.11

Business: Carmike is a leading motion picture exhibitor in the United States with 301 theaters and 2,475 screens in 37 states, as of March 31, 2006. Carmike's focus for its theater locations is small- to mid-sized communities with populations of fewer than 100,000.

President, CEO and chairman of the board: Mike Patrick

Employees: Carmike Cinemas employed 7,821 people in 2004 at its 282 theaters nationwide and its approximately 48,500-square-foot headquarters at 13th Street and First Avenue in Columbus. Of those employees, 7,277 were part-time.

DIGITAL ROLLOUT

Carmike started installing digital equipment in its theaters in late February. The chain has digital capability in Tyler, Texas, and the North Carolina cities of Durham, Morrisville, Wilmington, Raleigh, Winston-Salem and Greensboro. Chattanooga, Tenn., should be ready by next weekend.

Columbus is expected to receive digital screens perhaps by the middle of this summer, with the Carmike 15 at Columbus Park Crossing and the Ritz 10 at Hollywood Connection receiving the technology. Theaters in Auburn and Dothan, Ala., and Albany, Ga., should be outfitted around the same time. The new theater in LaGrange, Ga., will receive digital equipment from the outset.

The company anticipates having digital technology on 2,300 of its screens by October 2007.

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 04-16-2006, 11:17 AM:
 
Geez. That's all we need in Lawton: more bingo.


In this area, if you throw a rock you'll hit a bingo operation or tribal gaming casino. If you manage to miss you'll hit a Dollar General store.

My hope is for Carmike to just keep showing movies much of the time. Offering big pay per view events and concerts may work some of the time. But I'm skeptical about all that other stuff.

I'm not sure how bingo and video gaming could even work in a movie theater. Bingo is partly a social gathering sort of thing and a darkened movie theater with all seats facing forward would interfere in that.

On the church service thing, that might be a decent idea for Sunday morning. But again, going to a real church is in part a social gathering. You have bible study class and meet others your age and then perhaps sit together during mass and have lunch afterward. Watching at home on TV or in a theater via satellite is going to interfere in that. We have lots of churches in Lawton so the market is already pretty saturated -even with that, new ones seem to be opening all the time.
 

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Posted by Brad Allen (Member # 470) on 04-16-2006, 01:03 PM:
 
Bingo will only fly if they start allowing the required smoking.
 

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Posted by Jack Ondracek (Member # 1466) on 04-16-2006, 02:58 PM:
 

quote:

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"The clarity of the picture and the sound is much superior to 35mm," Rhead said of the traditional film used to show movies. "After a movie has been playing three or four or five weeks, you might see scratches and jumping in the film. That's just wear and tear of the film going through the projectors. There'll be none of that with digital."

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quote: Jack Ondracek

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It starts getting hard to read stuff like this. Especially from exhibitors who stand to spend a whole lot of money for questionable returns. I'm all for the technological march of progress... but it would really be nice to filter out the BS.

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quote: Bobby Henderson

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A theater can show more movies and alternative content to help fill otherwise empty seats in down times.

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That's always been a tough one for me. After 20 years here, I still can't find the darn light switch!

Curiously, the lights seem to go off by themselves at night, though the dimmer is kinda slow.
 

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Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 04-23-2006, 12:55 PM:
 

quote: Bobby Henderson

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The spin and downright incorrect statements regarding film quality is par for the course. It's tough to find any sort of reporting anymore that doesn't involve all sorts of spin, exaggeration and outright lies.

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Right on!
 

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Posted by Steve Anderson (Member # 364) on 05-10-2006, 01:46 PM:
 
I went on opening day of Mission Impossible III to visit a Carmike that had just installed a Digital projector, which they heavily promoted in the local paper. Why they picked this particular theater is anybody’s guess because it is not one of their newer builds.
Well anyway as I entered the auditorium I could here a nice loud hum coming from the center speaker. No music or any per show was presented. The lights dimmed to their normal trailer pre-show settings. Digital quality for the most part I would say the overall edge-to-edge screen brightness was nice, but then I noticed the awful (stair step / banding) of any background that had a luminous gradation to it. I was nearly hypnotized by the end credits of the trailer for the DaVinci Code, which the background created a circular ring of stair step levels of video, this carried over during the entire movie presentation. The other thing that was happening during the trailer presentation was a gap of anywhere between 20 to 45 seconds of black during the trailers. Is this the lag time of the server trying to find the next file to run? And now the big opening of the movie…the lights never dim…they even went up in illumination and the nice loud hum in the center channel was still going strong. I went and asked someone to check on this but all I got was “sure whatever” If I had been by myself I would have gotten up and asked for a refund but I went back in and sat thru the movie. What makes this so sad is no one else seemed to be bothered with the presentation? If this is Digital Cinema today… it has a long way to go. And thanks Carmike for making raising the bar for the most F***ED UP theater presentation in the industry.
 

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Posted by John T. Hendrickson, Jr (Member # 849) on 05-10-2006, 05:13 PM:
 
If they can't present 35MM properly, what makes you think they can do any better with digital?
 

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Posted by Justin Gorka (Member # 3727) on 05-21-2006, 08:19 AM:
 
We've had our Christie 2k for 4 months now. Installed by sound associates. There has been no real problems except we've not had a film on it for two month! My laptop looks good on it though!
 

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Posted by Manny Knowles (Member # 1171) on 05-22-2006, 06:53 PM:
 

quote: John T. Hendrickson, Jr

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If they can't present 35MM properly, what makes you think they can do any better with digital?

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quote: Manny Knowles

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I believe that the major presentation issues -- the ones average viewers notice most easily -- become non-issues with DLP.

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quote:

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We've had our Christie 2k for 4 months now. Installed by sound associates. There has been no real problems except we've not had a film on it for two month! My laptop looks good on it though!

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quote: Bobby Henderson

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I couldn't find any Carmike locations in Georgia advertising digital projection.

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quote: David Stambaugh

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Whoa! Carmike 12 in Corvallis has, what, at least 5 DLP screens now (maybe more).

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I guess I've been wasting my time keeping up on this DLP stuff by creating these playdate listings and taking time to keep fellow film-techers in the loop by posting links.

quote:

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GEORGIA
Cartersville: Carmike 12
Fort Oglethorpe: Carmike Battlefield 10

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quote:

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OREGON
Corvallis: Carmike 12

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Posted by Ron Curran (Member # 3631) on 07-02-2006, 10:55 PM:
 
Could the rate of DC installs be governed by the fact (?) that film companies are paying for them?

If the major chains had to spend $40,000 on a new 35mm projector or be given a digital unit gratis, which would they chose?

Bobby’s comments about maintenance are spot on. Although, it is easier for a single screen where the owner watches films and wants them to look and sound as good as possible.
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 07-02-2006, 11:49 PM:
 
Well, I'll have to apologize for not taking time to scan through all of Carmike's locations in 21 different cities in Georgia to find those two D-Cinema locations.


The Cartersville location appears to be one of those theaters were 75% or more screens are digital-based. Of course, movies like Superman Returns and The Devil Wears Prada are playing on multiple screens and could be a mix of film prints and video.

Some might wonder why many of these locations are getting aroung half their screens converted over to D-Cinema when the hype was really about Carmike getting D-Cinema into all auditoriums. Right now there isn't enough content. Not all movies being released have digital versions. Many theaters don't have the space for both film projectors and these new DLP units. If one location had all its film projectors removed and replaced with video systems then that location would have instances were some screens would have no content to play.
 

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Posted by Michael Coate (Member # 757) on 07-02-2006, 11:57 PM:
 

quote: Bobby Henderson

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Well, I'll have to apologize for not taking time to scan through all of Carmike's locations in 21 different cities in Georgia to find those two D-Cinema locations.

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In other words, you're admitting you're not as thorough as I am.
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 07-03-2006, 12:01 AM:
 
Yeah, it's either that or that I just didn't care to be quite as thorough.


But to be a bit more thorough, I went back and looked closer at Carmike's Utah locations. All three locations in Utah (Provo, West Jordan and West Valley City) appear to have 50% of theaters converted to D-Cinema. That's more than the "couple" I noted earlier. Movies like Superman Returns are just taking up a bunch of those digital screens.
 

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Posted by Dustin Mitchell (Member # 372) on 07-03-2006, 12:17 AM:
 
As a note, of all the wide releases in June only one-A Prairie Home Companion-was not available digitally.
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 07-03-2006, 12:29 AM:
 
Wasn't A Prairie Home Companion shot on HD video? I seem to recall something about that while flipping past the HBO First Look thing that was on cable a couple weeks ago. If the movie was indeed shot on video then it would certainly seem beyond strange that a digital version of it was not made available.
 

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Posted by Paul Linfesty (Member # 214) on 07-03-2006, 12:53 AM:
 

quote: Bobby Henderson

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Wasn't A Prairie Home Companion shot on HD video?

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quote: Dustin Mitchell

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As a note, of all the wide releases in June only one-A Prairie Home Companion-was not available digitally.

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quote: Michael Coate

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I guess I've been wasting my time keeping up on this DLP stuff by creating these playdate listings and taking time to keep fellow film-techers in the loop by posting links.

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I plead "information overload". Keeping track of where Carmike is installing DLP has not been high on my priority list, since there are no Carmikes here in Eugene/Springfield.
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 07-03-2006, 08:52 AM:
 
Michael's list pegged most of Carmike's DLP-equipped locations, including the one in Oregon. There's a few that aren't playing Superman Returns, such as the Carmike 14 in Fort Smith, AR. It has 7 Christie DLP systems. The competing Malco 12-plex in Fort Smith is playing the movie. Carmike's location is probably too close to the Malco site to have a booking of the same movie.
 

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Posted by David Stambaugh (Member # 1102) on 07-03-2006, 09:09 AM:
 
The Carmike in Corvallis is fairly new, so it should have been designed and outfitted with D-Cinema in mind. It'll be interesting to see how it measures up.
 

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Posted by Michael Gonzalez (Member # 593) on 07-03-2006, 11:51 AM:
 
I thought I would chime in by saying that my location is due to get a full 10 Screen digital install sometime next month. I have no real specifics just yet other than being told "sometime" in August. I have yet to see a digital presentation so it will be interesting to to see just how well everything is going to work. I will try to keep you guys (and gals) updated on any further progress.
 

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Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 07-05-2006, 07:24 PM:
 
2 in Salt Lake City at the big carmike in West Valley with more to come.... Aside from the Carmike stuff and a few others it seems like Christie is going at this VERY slowly. Lets face it alot of press has been made about 4K stuff and how much better it is. Perhaps Christie themselves have gone into a slow mode to wait for T.I. to catch up to the 4K realm.... We have two 100+ screen customers that would like to convert but getting Christie to call them back is nothing short of a joke. Christie just doesn't seem interested.

Mark
 

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Posted by Dustin Mitchell (Member # 372) on 07-05-2006, 09:50 PM:
 
I have to wonder that perhaps due to the current rapid pace of installs with Carmike if Christie is not a bit stretched thin at the moment? Just speculation.
 

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Posted by Michael Coate (Member # 757) on 07-05-2006, 10:26 PM:
 
Dustin...your speculation is probably correct. Don't pay any attention to the folks making outrageous remarks regarding the quality and pace at which Digital Cinema is proceeding. There's a lot of people out there making annoying, misleading and often false comments who want to see Digital Cinema fail.
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 07-05-2006, 11:00 PM:
 
One of the main things slowing down installations is electrical difficulties in some older theaters. You remove a 35mm setup with a 2000 watt lamp for a small-ish auditorium and replace it with a video unit carrying a 4000 watt lamp. Along with beefing up electrical wiring other things may have to be done to get things brought up to current NEC standards.

Basically the crews are not getting in and out of some theaters as fast as they wanted.

I don't know the plan Carmike has on which theaters are scheduled to receive CP2000 projectors. There's obviously more factors at work than just equipping the newest, best theaters ahead of all the other locations.

At this point it seems like Carmike has at least a few hundred systems installed. The pace is sure to speed up as they become more familiar with the various kinks they have to contend with.
 

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Posted by Dustin Mitchell (Member # 372) on 07-06-2006, 02:38 AM:
 
Things are coming together in that department Bobby. I think there were some problems with timing in early installs, but right now things are being coordinated better. Our install will begin next Monday and our electrical service/lamphouse venting/etc has all be upgraded. Everything is just waiting for the projectors/installers.
 

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Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 07-06-2006, 07:15 AM:
 

quote: Michael Coate

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There's a lot of people out there making annoying, misleading and often false comments who want to see Digital Cinema fail.

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quote: John Walsh

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Don't forget, though, there's a lot of people out there making annoying, misleading and often false comments about film, too.

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quote: John Walsh

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Don't forget, though, there's a lot of people out there making annoying, misleading and often false comments about film, too.

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quote: John Walsh

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I don't think anyone here actively dislikes digital, I just think most people want the system that replaces film to be at least as good, in terms of picture quality.

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quote: Steve Scott

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So far, the Carmike houses in MSP have only had Warner Bros. content.

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quote: Dustin Mitchell

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I can confirm that at least 'Cars' was also played digitally at Oakdale.

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quote: Michael Coate

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It's disappointing and frustrating to see these new D-Cinema discussions pop up where someone "discovers" information that's already been reported and exists in another thread.

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quote: Paul Linfesty

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Gee, Michael, are you saying you're the only one who should be allowed to ever post listings of where a digital print may be playing?

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quote: Paul Linfesty

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As far as I can tell, Bobby and others have done their own research and have not been copying from your list. So what is the problem exactly?

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quote: Bobby Henderson

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The difference is you're mainly keeping track of where a certain movie is playing in D-Cinema.

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quote: Michael Coate

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Ignoring this stuff comes off as a blatant snub.

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Perhaps you earn part of your living researching and tracking DLP installations and releases. That would make your intense interest in the issue somewhat understandable. But for most us, or at least myself, that's "information", not "knowledge". The fact that the Carmike in Corvallis now has DLP installed is just another piece of information, one which I wouldn't necessarily seek out, since I never make the trip to Corvallis. I'm aware of it now because it's been called to my attention.

I don't regularly visit any film or video forums except Film-Tech. I don't have time. I chose this forum because it does the best job of providing me with both information and knowledge that's of interest to me.

However:

Do I read every post in general? No.

Do I read every post by Michael Coate? No.

Do I read every emailed newsletter from Michael Coate? No (I do look at them if I have time though).

Do I regularly visit his web site? No.

Of the posts (or emails) I do read, do I retain all the information and/or knowledge they may contain? Hell No.

In Perfect World, everyone would refer to Michael Coate's site for the latest and undoubtedly the most accurate info on DLP installations and releases. In the Real World, maybe we remember to do that. Or maybe we don't. Certainly if we don't, no offense is intended nor should it be taken.

I also agree with Bobby that Carmike's plunge into D-Cinema is a bold move and I give them credit for moving swiftly. Whether they're making the RIGHT move remains to be seen. I have a feeling they are. But I still haven't seen DLP myself, so my opinion is probably worthless.
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 07-07-2006, 06:49 PM:
 

quote: Michael Coate

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Many of you, Bobby in particular, visit this site daily and have posted in some of the threads in question, so I have a difficult time believing you are unaware of my postings on this topic or lack any familiarity with my website, the function of which is to serve as an information resource. Ignoring this stuff comes off as a blatant snub.

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quote: John Walsh

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Don't forget, though, there's a lot of people out there making annoying, misleading and often false comments about film, too.

I don't think anyone here actively dislikes digital, I just think most people want the system that replaces film to be at least as good, in terms of picture quality.

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what i actively dislike is the notion of digital video replacing film. i don't think they are or should be interchangeable. i sure hope there is some future for works shot, (edited,) and shown on film, and continue to be venues to see old films (on film).

many of us are nostalgic for things like 70mm and ib technicolor. at least prints in these formats/processes are still out there and can be shown in existing venues. how long will that be the case? and the difference between film and video is, to my thinking, far greater than the difference between 2 gauges of film, or the method by which the analog image is affixed to it.
 

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Posted by Michael Gonzalez (Member # 593) on 07-08-2006, 08:38 PM:
 
Well I just reached the first stage as we had someone out to look at our booth to check on our power needs. We will have an electrician out in the next week or so to boost things upstairs. Looks like we are getting that install sooner rather than later.

The facts are that if properly presented, film is far superior to Digital (even 4K). However in the real world facts do not always seem to matter. The public perception is that Digital is better. I have talked to several of my customers and many of them have driven out of their way to check out D-Cinema at other locations and ALL of them have liked what they saw. Like it or not D-Cinema is better than film because our customers (and potential customers) believe that it is. Naturally since my location is on the verge of a full conversion, I have been giving this a lot more thought than I have in the past. I believe now that even if it is just for the marketing value, the smart money is going to Digital for any new screens. The public wants it and we have to give the publlic what they want if we want to stay in business.
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 07-08-2006, 10:08 PM:
 
I think the buzzword "digital" influences the customers' view on the actual product quality.

Remember in the early days of DTS how Universal Pictures was attaching DTS "The Digital Experience" sound format snipes on all Universal release prints? The theaters not equipped with DTS were supposed to remove those trailers. Many of them didn't do so. There were jokes how some customers, after hearing the movie in regular Dolby optical or even mono, came out of the theater talking about how the movie sounded better.


I don't think I really agree the customers are demanding D-Cinema. Most are simply indifferent about most technical stuff involving movies. There's lots of people out there who don't realize most theaters still show movies from 35mm film prints. A high percentage thinks they're seeing projection from some kind of video player that can simply be rewound if a technical issue like a brain wrap occurs.

It's clear the people demanding digital projection are the distributors. They do spend a pretty significant amount of money of film prints. If the distributors foot the entire bill for conversion to video projection an average projector on a first run screen will pay for itself in about 4-5 years. That's based on the cost of the distributor not having to make prints for that theater.

I'm not going to expect better image quality when the Carmike location in my town changes to digital projection. If anything, I'm hoping this move to digital will bring the lower quality theaters up a few notches and make a certain standard of presentation quality a lot more consistent.

But then again, that all depends on how these systems are maintained. If maintenance is left entirely up to the theaters then we're still going to see a lot of the same old problems -just in "digital" form.

Digital projection does indeed have one clear advantage: flexibility. I'm hoping the combination of satellite downloads and mass storage will allow the average 8-plex to show more than just 8 regular Hollywood produced "McMovies". I'm hoping for a greater variety of titles, particularly independent films. If one major release winds up sucking ass through the weekend, maybe it can be replaced with one or more indie flicks or even something else, like a HD-taped concert.

That flexibility is really where the money is to be made off this video-based animal. There's no prints to build up or tear down. I don't know how much space the average DCI-compliant "digital print" takes up on a server -or the maximum capacity of these servers. How many movies can the standard Christie/AIX system store on site?
 

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Posted by Martin Brooks (Member # 1269) on 07-08-2006, 10:46 PM:
 

quote: Bobby Henderson

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I don't think I really agree the customers are demanding D-Cinema.

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quote: Martin Brooks

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I've had occasion to view the same film in the same theater in both 35mm and Digital and there's always more people in the digital presentations. When the last Star Wars film was released, there were always long lines in front of the screens playing the digital presentation and shorter or no lines in front of the 35mm presentations.

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quote: Martin Brooks

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But on the other, I've had occasion to view the same film in the same theater in both 35mm and Digital and there's always more people in the digital presentations.

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I have had 6 of the Christie projectors for two weekends, and the demand for DLP is there. We had a lot of questions about what digital is etc., but even in week two customers are asking for it and waiting for digital screenings.

I agree with Gonzalez, it doesn't matter if digital is superior to film or not - if the customer feels it is better, then that is what we should supply.
 

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Posted by Matt Fields (Member # 3211) on 07-09-2006, 01:58 AM:
 
But isn't digital getting a boost because it's new? Some people want to check it out.

I think that a lot of presentation/technical minded film people fall victim to the "fallacy of composition": they think the part (themselves) applies to the whole (general customers).

Or put differently, a vast majority of customers don't care if they are watching or film.
 

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Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 07-09-2006, 08:55 AM:
 

quote: Shane Cooper

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I have had 6 of the Christie projectors for two weekends, and the demand for DLP is there. We had a lot of questions about what digital is etc., but even in week two customers are asking for it and waiting for digital screenings.

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Shane,

I have a legitimate question for you the operator....

I'm curious...what exactly do you tell your customers?

Hopefully you are not bull shitting your customers or leading them into believeing the wait is worth it, the printed hype is correct, and the dlp system is actually superior to film.... I would hope that for those that ask about it you might take the time and tell them the real facts... or are you reinforcing the lies and false rumors that seem to go along with all the present dlp locations? Indeed the word "Digital" is and always been a misleading buzz word thats easily picked up by the average consumer and leads him to believe that "digital" is better. He instantly associates that word with all the false hype he/she has read in the media. Since the average consumer is the one unknowingly getting screwed when attending a DLP showing and since most of the average consumers out there when educated about something can make the proper choice I wonder what they'd do if they knew it was really inferior to film...?

Personally I feel a disclaimer similar to the ones used on AMC and Turner that says "The Film Has Been Reformatted To Fit Your TV screen" might also apply to present DLP installs except that it would say "The Resolution OF This Feature Film Has Been Reduced To 50% Of Normal To Accomodate Your Theater's Digital Projector".

Thanks!

Mark
 

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Posted by David Stambaugh (Member # 1102) on 07-09-2006, 10:37 AM:
 
A 50% reduction compared to what though?

a) Camera negative
b) EK/Showprint (are these the same thing?)
c) Typical well-made release print

If it's a or b, then it probably doesn't matter since nobody in the general public will ever see that.

If it's c, that's a different story.

Hey, I'm just asking.
 

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Posted by Mark Lensenmayer (Member # 134) on 07-09-2006, 11:03 AM:
 
One of the local alternative newspapers sponsors "sneak previews" of many current films. They give away tickets at local vendors and show the film a day or two before the general opening.

This week, there was one specifically for a DLP screening of PIRATES at the local Rave. It mentioned DLP a number of times, and was partially sponsored by Texas Instruments DLP unit. This was about a 1/2-page ad.

Only 1 DLP locally, and it is getting new product about every week this summer.
 

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Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 07-09-2006, 12:11 PM:
 

quote: David Stambaugh

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A 50% reduction compared to what though?

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quote:

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Hopefully you are not bull shitting your customers or leading them into believing the wait is worth it, the printed hype is correct, and the dlp system is actually superior to film....

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I will repeat what I said earlier - the customer base already feels that DLP is better. Whether it is a placebo effect because the demand is greater for DLP or as someone said earlier it is simply because "digital" is in the title - it is what they want right now.

To answer the question, I have been telling everyone that they should see it for themselves. I am in the business of selling tickets, so you can't blame me!

Someone asked was this because it is new. Of course we are seeing a bump for that. It is my opinion that in the future people will seek out the "event films" like Pirates in the DLP.
 

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Posted by David Stambaugh (Member # 1102) on 07-09-2006, 08:48 PM:
 
I may be dense. In fact I know I am. But has anyone ever addressed the issue "How does the resolution of DLP at 2K compare to a typical 35mm release print?" Not contrast or color reproduction, but just the resolution. Like if you carefully produce a resolution chart on a 35mm negative, and run that negative through the normal procedure to create a 35mm release print and its 2K DLP counterpart, does DLP lose?

If this has been discussed elsewhere, I must have missed it.
 

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Posted by Michael Gonzalez (Member # 593) on 07-09-2006, 09:20 PM:
 
Obviously I do not know the backgrounds and current employment situation of everyone who posts here, but if you are currently working at a theater, it might be a interesting exercise to talk to a couple of your customers about this and see what they think about it. That way you can judge for yourself if there is a "demand" for it or not.
 

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Posted by Louis Bornwasser (Member # 3063) on 07-10-2006, 08:13 AM:
 
1. Watt for watt, my impression is that DLP is about 45% dimmer than 35mm film.

2. I would say that 70mm and scope are significantly sharper than DLP. DLP about equals a middle quality 35mm flat picture. (Mark: Super 16 is about like that so we agree,)

BTW: I am not currently pushing DLP; I am a film-guy. Louis
 

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Posted by Scott Jentsch (Member # 1681) on 07-10-2006, 03:53 PM:
 
Are there any materials from Christie and/or TI that talk about the differences between film and D-Cinema? Maybe some talking points that can be discussed with interested patrons?

Any time that a theater has the opportunity to talk with its customers, it should embrace that opportunity. This has come up before with THX and DTS/Dolby Digital. Customers may be ignorant about something that people in the industry know like the back of their hand, but many customers also like to know what it is they're paying for, and most are also willing to pay for things that they understand more than they are for things they don't understand.

Theaters need to quit treating customers like sheep/cattle and more like the sole revenue source that they are. I'm not saying that is true for anyone here, but any theater employee that takes the stance that customers are stupid and not worthy of a little face time should find another line of work.

One would hope that the theaters getting these digital projectors have some good answers for those customers who are interested.
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 07-10-2006, 06:03 PM:
 
The sad thing is if the film distributors, projector manufacturers and movie theater operators really gave the public factual details regarding film quality and video quality the customers would probably wind up even more confused in the end.

It's either that, or a suddenly better educated public wouldn't be nearly as impressed with the new "digital" toy.

Because of that situation, I think the hype and spin from various interested parties will continue. Perhaps in some areas these systems will be quietly installed without all that much notice.
 

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Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 07-10-2006, 07:34 PM:
 

quote: Bobby Henderson

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It's either that, or a suddenly better educated public wouldn't be nearly as impressed with the new "digital" toy.

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quote: Bobby Henderson

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Mike, when talk like you are the moderator of this forum (which you ARE NOT at all) and come off like you are the only one who has any right to post any thoughts or comments on this stuff, it makes me purposefully not want to ever visit your damned website!

Honestly, why should any of us be required to visit your website? Who made you God all of a sudden? And really who gives a fuck if some little tidbit of "news" happens to get repeated?

Get a grip and get over yourself.

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quote: David Stambaugh

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Did you notice they labelled the "Before" and "After" images backwards?

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Actually, those comparisons aren't for the most current redesign, but rather the one that took place awhile back. A quick glance might make the "before" image look like the current one, but it's actually two designs ago (page was blue, then yellow, now blue again). V'Roooom Technology hasn't updated their page in awhile.
 

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Posted by Michael Gonzalez (Member # 593) on 09-11-2006, 11:04 PM:
 
Well we still dont seem to be on the list yet but we are currently in the middle of our install. The plan did change yet again as we are once again having all 10 screens digital but three of those will be combos (film and digital).

After finally seeing a digital presentation, I have to admit that I was completely blown away. I knew that the picture was going to be brighter but I had no idea that the colors were so much more vivid and that the resolution was going to be so sharp (you can see some of the blemishes on Orlando Bloom's face in Pirates ). I think someone elso might have mentioned it but the field of depth is much improved from film. As an example, on the Disney logo segment (which is different then what they have on film), it almost looks like you can just walk right into the screen. So color me impressed.
 

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Posted by Adam Martin (Member # 641) on 09-12-2006, 01:18 AM:
 

quote: Michael Gonzalez

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I knew that the picture was going to be brighter but I had no idea that the colors were so much more vivid

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quote: Michael Gonzalez

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Well we still dont seem to be on the list yet but we are currently in the middle of our install. The plan did change yet again as we are once again having all 10 screens digital but three of those will be combos (film and digital).

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I've noticed the "all screens digital" trend happening lately. With as many units as Christie/AccessIT are putting together it may be quite a bit more efficient to simply get entire locations done in one trip rather than having to go back later and finish the other half of the job.
 

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Posted by Scott Norwood (Member # 30) on 09-12-2006, 08:49 PM:
 
So, they are actually _removing_ film projectors in the process of installing projectors? Why? What would be the benefit of removing something that is already installed and paid for?

Is Carmike getting better film rental terms in return for accepting digital "prints"? Aren't there still relatively few titles available for exhibition?
 

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Posted by David Stambaugh (Member # 1102) on 09-12-2006, 09:49 PM:
 
Cinemark removed the film projector when they installed DLP on one screen here (for Monster House 3D, which is still running there).

The way I understand it, the savings on "prints" goes toward paying for the new equipment, in the form of a credit (payment) on the loan.
 

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Posted by Dustin Mitchell (Member # 372) on 09-12-2006, 10:53 PM:
 
The digital picture really is amazing, I have to say I have been very impressed. Our six digital projectors (at a twelve plex) relaced Chritie heads/SLC lamphouses which had Schneider lenses. I, and everyone else who works here, have been blown away by the qaulity of the digital presentation.

As far as titles available digitaly just about everything except product from smaller studios is available digitally.
 

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Posted by Michael Gonzalez (Member # 593) on 09-12-2006, 11:10 PM:
 
I would have to get back with you on the exact model #s as I don't really remember what and what. I have worked at a small number of locations and here is the short version:

Ballantyne Pro-35 projector (not sure what lamphouse or lens)- Those projectors were built like tanks with a pretty decent picture providing the plastic coupler wasnt shreadded to bits.

Christie P-35GPS with Christie Lamphouse - Once again not sure what lens.

Simplex PR1014 (once again not sure what lamphouse of lens) - These are basically what the DLPs are replacing.

I guess I should clarify my eariler statement as I have seen similar colors on some film prints (Cars being a recent example) but if 20 percent of films have the vibrant colors (my estimate) so far most of what I have seen in Digital has it (Granted I didnt see Miami Vice). Keep in mind that I have not seen much in the way of product. So far a couple of trailers and part of Invincible so I dont want to make any definitive statements. But I know that I have been getting tired of seeing grainy films as I have complain about it often enough in some of my film reviews.

Once again the film prints of Cars looked gorgeous but some of the recient films like Da Vinci Code and parts of Pirates 2 have looked really bad on the exact same equipment. There are two parts required to have "film done right" one is our side as far as keeping the equipment in good condition and proper presentation. The other part is getting a near flawless print and too many prints I have receive have been less than steller. I have already talked about film grain but there is also the dirty prints (from processing) and everyone has seen the "color change" that happens at times from reel to reel. And of course there is the damage that poor film handling is responsibe for. Digital is here because BOTH sides of the industry have shot themselves in the foot.
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 09-13-2006, 11:39 AM:
 

quote:

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So, they are actually _removing_ film projectors in the process of installing [dlp] projectors? Why? What would be the benefit of removing something that is already installed and paid for?

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quote: Dustin Mitchell

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The digital picture really is amazing, I have to say I have been very impressed. Our six digital projectors (at a twelve plex) relaced Chritie heads/SLC lamphouses which had Schneider lenses.

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quote: Steve Guttag

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Personally, I'd like some digital keystone correction.

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quote:

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I need to see a movie there and check it out!

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quote:

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UNITED STATES (Released Sep. 29, 2006, except where noted)

ALABAMA
Auburn: Carmike Wynnsong 16 (D-Cinema)
Birmingham: Carmike Summit 16 (D-Cinema)
Birmingham: Carmike Wynnsong 12 (D-Cinema)
Daphne: Rave Jubilee Square 12 (D-Cinema)
Huntsville: Rave Valley Bend 18 (D-Cinema)
Mobile: Carmike Wynsong 16 (D-Cinema)
Montgomery: Carmike Eastdale 8 (D-Cinema)
Montgomery: Carmike Wynnsong 10 (D-Cinema)
Orange Beach: Rave Wharf 15 (D-Cinema)

ARIZONA
Phoenix: AMC Loews Deer Valley 30 (IMAX 3D)

ARKANSAS
Little Rock: Rave Colonel Glenn 18 (D-Cinema)

CALIFORNIA
Bonsall: UltraStar Galaxy 6 (D-Cinema)
Carlsbad: UltraStar La Costa 6 (D-Cinema)
Cathedral City: Desert IMAX (IMAX 3D)
Chula Vista: UltraStar Chula Vista 10 (D-Cinema)
Dublin: Regal Hacienda Crossings Stadium 20 (IMAX 3D)
El Centro: UltraStar Imperial Valley 14 (D-Cinema)
Fontana: UltraStar Fontana 8 (D-Cinema)
Fresno: Regal Edwards Fresno Stadium 22 (IMAX 3D)
Irvine: Regal Edwards Irvine Spectrum 21 (IMAX 3D)
Los Angeles (Hollywood): Pacific Cinerama Dome (D-Cinema)
Los Angeles (Universal City): AMC Loews Universal CityWalk (IMAX 3D)
Los Angeles (Westchester): The Bridge: Cinema de Lux (IMAX 3D)
Ontario: Regal Edwards Ontario Palace Stadium 22 (IMAX 3D)
Porterville: Galaxy Porterville 9 (D-Cinema)
Poway: UltraStar Poway Creekside Plaza 10 (D-Cinema)
Rancho Cucamonga: UltraStar Terra Vista 6 (D-Cinema)
Riverbank: Galaxy Riverbank 12 (D-Cinema)
San Diego (Del Mar): UltraStar Del Mar Highlands 8 (D-Cinema)
San Diego (Mission Valley): UltraStar Mission Valley Hazard Center (D-Cinema)
San Francisco: AMC Loews Metreon (IMAX 3D)
Tulare: Galaxy Tulare 10 (D-Cinema)

COLORADO
Colorado Springs: Carmike 10 (D-Cinema; Oct. 13)
Colorado Springs: Cinemark at Carefree Circle (IMAX 3D)
Denver: Regal UA Colorado Center 9 (IMAX 3D)
Fort Collins: Carmike 10 (D-Cinema)

CONNECTICUT
Manchester: Showcase Cinemas Buckland Hills (IMAX 3D)

FLORIDA
Bradenton: Carmike Royal Palm 20 (D-Cinema)
Destin: Rave Destin Commons 14 (D-Cinema)
Fort Lauderdale: Blockbuster Museum of Discovery & Science (IMAX 3D)
Melbourne (Viera): Rave Avenue 16 (D-Cinema)
Panama City: Carmike 10 (D-Cinema)
Pensacola: Rave Pensacola 18 (D-Cinema)
Port St. Lucie: Rave St. Lucie West 14 (D-Cinema)
St. Augustine: World Golf Hall of Fame (IMAX 3D)
Tampa: Regal Channelside (IMAX 3D)

GEORGIA
Albany: Carmike Wynnsong 16 (D-Cinema)
Buford: Regal Mall of Georgia Stadium 20 (IMAX 3D)
Canton: Carmike Riverstone 15 (D-Cinema; Oct. 13)
Cartersville: Carmike 12 (D-Cinema)
Columbus: Carmike Ritz Hollywood Connection 10 (D-Cinema)
Conyers: Carmike Crossroads 16 (D-Cinema)
Fort Benning: Carmike Wynnsong 10 (D-Cinema)
Fort Oglethorpe: Carmike Battlefield 10 (D-Cinema)
Savannah: Carmike Wynnsong 11 (D-Cinema)

IDAHO
Boise: Regal Edwards Boise Stadium 21 (IMAX 3D)

ILLINOIS
Chicago: Navy Pier IMAX (IMAX 3D)
Lincolnshire: Regal Lincolnshire Stadium 20 (IMAX 3D)
Peoria: Rave Grand Prairie 18 (D-Cinema)
Woodridge: Cinemark IMAX Theatre at Seven Bridges (IMAX 3D)

INDIANA
Evansville: Showplace Cinemas East 18 (IMAX 3D)
Fort Wayne: Carmike 20 (D-Cinema)

IOWA
Des Moines: Carmike Southridge 12 (D-Cinema)
Johnston: Carmike Wynnsong 16 (D-Cinema)
Urbandale: Carmike Cobblestone 9 (D-Cinema)

KANSAS
Manhattan: Carmike Seth Childs 12 (D-Cinema; Oct. 13)
Olathe: AMC Loews Studio 30 (IMAX 3D)

KENTUCKY
Louisville: Showcase Cinemas Stonybrook (IMAX 3D)

LOUISIANA
Baton Rouge: Rave Baton Rouge 16 (D-Cinema)
Baton Rouge: Rave Mall of Louisiana 15 (D-Cinema)
Covington: O'Neil Holiday Square Cinema 12 (IMAX 3D)
Lafayette: Carmike Lafayette 10 (D-Cinema)

MASSACHUSETTS
Natick: Comcast IMAX Theater at Jordan's Furniture (IMAX 3D)
Reading: Comcast IMAX Theater at Jordan's Furniture (IMAX 3D)

MICHIGAN
Battle Creek: Carmike Lakeview Square 10 (D-Cinema)
Birch Run: Cinema Hollywood (D-Cinema)
Canton: Emagine Canton 18 (D-Cinema)
Dearborn: Henry Ford Museum (IMAX 3D)
Grand Rapids: Loeks Celebration! Grand Rapids North (IMAX 3D)
Lansing: Loeks Celebration! Lansing (IMAX 3D)
Novi: Emagine Novi 18 (D-Cinema)
Sterling Heights: AMC Loews Forum 30 (IMAX 3D)
Ypsilanti: Showcase Cinemas Ann Arbor (IMAX 3D)

MINNESOTA
Apple Valley: Carmike 15 (D-Cinema)
Apple Valley: Great Clips IMAX Theatre at the Minnesota Zoo (IMAX 3D)
Mounds View: Carmike Wynnsong 15 (D-Cinema)
Oakdale: Carmike Oakdale Stadium 20 (D-Cinema)

MISSOURI
Sappington: Wehrenberg Ronnies 20 Cine (IMAX 3D)

MONTANA
Bozeman: Carmike Campus Square 8 (D-Cinema)

NEVADA
Las Vegas: Brendan Theatres and IMAX at the Palms (IMAX 3D)
North Las Vegas: Galaxy Cannery (D-Cinema)

NEW JERSEY
Atlantic City: IMAX Theatre at Tropicana (IMAX 3D)

NEW YORK
Gates: Cinemark Tinseltown USA (IMAX 3D)
New Rochelle: Regal New Roc City 18 (IMAX 3D)
New York (Brooklyn): Access IT Pavilion (D-Cinema)
New York (Manhattan): AMC Loews Lincoln Square (IMAX 3D)
West Nyack: IMAX Theatre at Palisades Center (IMAX 3D)
White Plains: City Center 15: Cinema de Lux (IMAX 3D)
Williamsville: Regal Transit Center Stadium 18 (IMAX 3D)

NORTH CAROLINA
Asheville: Carmike 10 (D-Cinema)
Durham: Carmike Wynnsong 15 (D-Cinema)
Fayetteville: Carmike Market Fair 15 (D-Cinema)
Fayetteville: Carmike Wynnsong 7 (D-Cinema)
Greensboro: Carmike 18 (D-Cinema)
Greenville: Carmike 12 (D-Cinema)
Hickory: Carmike 14 (D-Cinema; Oct. 13)
Jacksonville: Carmike 16 (D-Cinema)
Morrisville: Carmike Park Place 16 (D-Cinema)
Raleigh: Carmike 15 (D-Cinema)
Raleigh: IMAX Theatre at Exploris (IMAX 3D)
Wilmington: Carmike 16 (D-Cinema)
Wilson: Carmike 10 (D-Cinema)
Winston-Salem: Carmike 10 (D-Cinema)
Winston-Salem: Carmike Wynnsong 12 (D-Cinema)

NORTH DAKOTA
Bismarck: Carmike 8 (D-Cinema)

OHIO
Columbus: AMC Loews Easton Town Centre 30 (IMAX 3D)
Springdale: Showcase Cinemas Springdale (IMAX 3D)
West Chester: Rave West Chester 18 (D-Cinema)

OKLAHOMA
Lawton: Carmike 8 (D-Cinema; Oct. 13)
Shawnee: Carmike Cinema Center 8 (D-Cinema)
Tulsa: Cinemark at The Tulsa (IMAX 3D)

OREGON
Corvallis: Carmike 12 (-Cinema)

PENNSYLVANIA
Allentown: Carmike 16 (D-Cinema)
King of Prussia: Regal UA King of Prussia Stadium 16 (IMAX 3D)
Tarentum: Cinemark at the Galleria at Pittsburgh Mills (IMAX 3D)

SOUTH CAROLINA
Charleston: Charleston IMAX Theatre at Aquarium Wharf (IMAX 3D)
Greenville: Greenville Camelot (D-Cinema)
Myrtle Beach: Carmike Broadway 16 (D-Cinema)
Myrtle Beach: Carmike Colonial Mall 12 (D-Cinema)

TENNESSEE
Antioch: Carmike Bell Forge 10 (D-Cinema)
Chattanooga: Carmike Bijou 7 (D-Cinema)
Clarksville: Carmike Governor's Square 10 (D-Cinema)
Franklin: Carmike Thoroughbred 20 (D-Cinema)
Hixson: Carmike Northgate 14 (D-Cinema)
Knoxville: Carmike Wynnsong 16 (D-Cinema)
Madison: Carmike Wynnsong 10 (D-Cinema)
Maryville: Carmike Foothills 12 (D-Cinema)
Murfreesboro: Carmike Wynnsong 16 (D-Cinema)
Nashville: Carmike Bellevue 8 (D-Cinema)
Nashville: Regal Opry Mills Stadium 20 (IMAX 3D)

TEXAS
Austin: Galaxy Highland 10 (D-Cinema)
Colleyville: Metro Cinema and Indigo Grille (IMAX 3D)
Dallas: Cinemark 17 (IMAX 3D)
Edinburg: Carmike 20 (D-Cinema)
El Paso: Carmike 16 (D-Cinema)
Fort Worth: Rave Ridgmar 13 (D-Cinema)
Hickory Creek: Rave Hickory Creek 16 (D-Cinema)
Houston: Rave Yorktown 15 (D-Cinema)
Houston: Regal Edwards Marq*E Stadium 23 (IMAX 3D)
Hurst: Rave North East Mall 18 (D-Cinema)
Longview: Carmike 10 (D-Cinema)
Nacogdoches: Carmike 6 (D-Cinema)
Tyler: Carmike 14 (D-Cinema)

UTAH
Provo: Carmike Wynnsong 12 (D-Cinema)
Sandy: Megaplex 17 at Jordan Commons (IMAX 3D)
West Jordan: Carmike 12 (D-Cinema)
West Valley City: Carmike Ritz 15 (D-Cinema)

VIRGINIA
Hampton: Riverside IMAX Theater at the Virginia Air & Space Center (IMAX 3D)

WASHINGTON
Monroe: Galaxy Monroe 12 (D-Cinema)
Seattle: Boeing & Eames IMAX Theaters at Pacific Science Center (IMAX 3D)
Spokane: Riverfront Park (IMAX 3D)
Vancouver: Cinetopia (D-Cinema)

WEST VIRGINIA
Morgantown: Carmike Morgantown Mall 12 (D-Cinema)

WISCONSIN
Fitchburg: Star Cinemas IMAX (IMAX 3D)

WYOMING
Cheyenne: Carmike Frontier 9 (D-Cinema)

CANADA

ALBERTA
Calgary: Cineplex Famous Players Paramount Chinook (IMAX 3D)
Edmonton: Cineplex Famous Players SilverCity West Edmonton Mall (IMAX 3D)

BRITISH COLUMBIA
Langley: Cineplex Famous Players Colossus Langley (IMAX 3D)
Richmond: Cineplex Famous Players SilverCity Riverport (IMAX 3D)

NOVA SCOTIA
Halifax: Empire IMAX (IMAX 3D)

ONTARIO
Mississauga: Cineplex Famous Players Coliseum Mississauga (IMAX 3D)
Toronto: Cineplex Famous Players Paramount (IMAX 3D)
Vaughan: Cineplex Famous Players Colossus Woodbridge (IMAX 3D)

QUEBEC
Montreal: Cineplex Famous Players Paramount Montreal (IMAX 3D)
Quebec City: Le Theatre IMAX (IMAX 3D)

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quote: Bobby Henderson

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How many D-Cinemas locations are playing Open Season in 3D (Real 3D I presume)?

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quote: Bobby Henderson

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How many D-Cinemas locations are playing Open Season in 3D (Real 3D I presume)?

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quote: Bobby Henderson

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I think all the better quality theaters is getting equipped now.

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Here in State College, PA, both Carmikes (Cinema 5 and Cinema 6) are scheduled for Novemeber 10th. This will be a significant upgrade for both theatres. The 5-plex is currently operating two DTS houses and 3 mono. The 6-plex is currently operating 3 DTS houses, 1 stereo surround, and 2 monos. Each theatre with have all screens digital. The 5-plex will keep 1 35mm system in the mid-sized auditorium and the 6-plex will keep 2 35mm systems in a mid-sized and small auditorium.

United Entertainment Corp. (UEC) out of St. Cloud, MN opened a 12 screen theatre (Premiere Theatre 12) in town in early 2004. I'm sure Carmike is hoping to have an edge over the competition. UEC is currently building a 9 screen theatre in the area as well. They built the 12-plex less than a mile from Cinema 6 so both companies are in a booking war. I don't think UEC expected Carmike to keep Cinema 6 open. With Carmike going digital at that theatre, it seems Cinema 6 will only stay open for several years to come.
 

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Posted by Scott Norwood (Member # 30) on 10-25-2006, 05:57 AM:
 
Are they actually converting the mono houses to stereo, or are they just installing the DLP unit and leaving the mono sound system?
 

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Posted by David Stambaugh (Member # 1102) on 10-25-2006, 09:39 AM:
 
More than a decade after the industry-wide rollout of digital sound, theaters deemed not worthy by the corporate bean counters of getting even basic stereo sound are suddenly upgraded to very expensive digital video?
 

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Posted by Jesse Skeen (Member # 586) on 10-25-2006, 01:39 PM:
 
"Enter to win your own DLP TV so you won't have any reason to watch DLP at our crappy theaters anymore!"
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 10-25-2006, 01:48 PM:
 
It's a very simple equation. The movie studios will save money on going with digital cinema. That's why they're helping foot the bill for all that hardware.

When it came to digital surround sound, movie theater chains had to foot the whole bill on their own for the upgrade. Same thing goes for stadium seating, THX, etc.

As far as I can tell, Christie/AIX is not installing new sound system gear along with these D-Cinema packages. Quite a few Carmike locations already have digital surround sound on every screen, making the D-Cinema switch a bit easier. I don't know what Carmike is going to do with houses playing only stereo or mono. I would hope they would upgrade the cinema processor, amplifiers and add speakers where needed. But there's nothing absolutely requiring that. Many of those mono and stereo-only houses are operating in small towns with little or no opposition.

Carmike would probably be well-served by making the 6 screens at their Duncan, OK location 5.1 surround capable. Quite a few people in that town of 22,500 have been doing well with the current oil economy (the town is home to a major Halliburton plant, which also hosts major share holders meetings). Right now the six-plex just plays movies in stereo.
 

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Posted by David Stambaugh (Member # 1102) on 10-25-2006, 02:00 PM:
 
Are these Carmike mono theaters otherwise decent and maintained? Or are they shitholes? Full-price, or discount? It's just hard to believe that a largish national chain like Carmike would go this long without upgrading the sound to semi-modern standards, unless maybe these are (were?) dollar theaters. And installing DLP with old mono sound systems seems really dumb.
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 10-25-2006, 06:04 PM:
 
The problem is a significant number of theaters in Carmike's chain are sites it aquired. Over the years they have bought out a lot of small chains, indie locations, etc. They just took over GKC theaters pretty recently. As such, many of those theaters are very inconsistent in design and equipped very differently.

In general, the best Carmike locations are those the chain built on its own within the past 15 years. I think those are primarily the locations Carmike is hitting first with the digital projection program.

It's going to cost more to retrofit many of those older theaters for upgrades in both digital projection and surround sound. Not only do you have extra issues with hardware installation, there's also the issue of beefing up sound proofing in walls originally designed for far less dynamic audio.

I would expect at least some of these older theaters to be closed and possibly be replaced with new builds. At some point the cost of improving an old theater to modern technical standards (and federal regulations) becomes too great to be worth it.
 

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Posted by Dustin Mitchell (Member # 372) on 10-26-2006, 01:16 AM:
 
There aren't going to be any 'mono digital' houses. All screens will have 5.1 sound capability by the time they are upgraded to digital projection.
 

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Posted by Paul Van Dusen (Member # 3640) on 10-26-2006, 06:05 AM:
 
Stangely enough, I was just talking to our tech about this the other day. Our theatre is a four screen that was built in 1976. Auditoriums 2 & 3 are DTS, so no problems for DLP there, however 1 & 4 are mono surround, and cannot be upgraded without moving the screens. They're both dog houses, as in the screen is only 2 inches from the wall. There's only one cubby hole in the center of the wall for the center channel, but that's it. There's no real feasable way to upgrade us. If you move the screen, you block the exit doors. Basically, we're screwed when they get around to us.
 

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Posted by Paul Konen (Member # 41) on 10-26-2006, 09:03 AM:
 
Paul, if you sound processor has a DB-25 for Analog Audio input, you could DLP there.
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 10-26-2006, 12:38 PM:
 
After seeing that odd "297" theaters equipped statistic on the Carmike Digital website, I did a little investigating and found quite different numbers. These stats are based off information at DCinemaToday.com and individual Carmike Cinemas theater listings.

A little over 1/3 of Carmike's 2400 screens are now equipped with the Christie/AIX system. Georgia and North Carolina have the most installations. The Beverly Cinema 18 in Champaign, IL currently has the most DLP screens of any Carmike location; all 18 theaters are equipped. All of Carmike's 20-screen sites have DLP on 10 screens. The install program has not yet hit Carmike locations in DE, ID, KY, MD, NY, NM and OH.

CARMIKE CINEMAS
Christie/AIX Installations
841 screens equipped as of 10/27/06

ALABAMA - 77 DLP screens
Auburn - Wynnsong 16 - 16 DLP screens
Birmingham - Summit 16 - 16 DLP screens, 3D
Birmingham - Wynnsong 12 - 6 DLP screens
Huntsville - Carmike 10 - 10 DLP screens
Mobile - Wynnsong 16 - 16 DLP screens
Montgomery - Eastdale 8 - 8 DLP screens
Montgomery - Wynnsong 10 - 5 DLP screens

ARKANSAS - 7 DLP screens
Fort Smith - Carmike 14 - 7 DLP screens

COLORADO - 35 DLP screens
Colorado Springs - Carmike 10 - 10 DLP screens
Colorado Springs - Chapel Hills 15 - 15 DLP screens
Fort Collins - Carmike 10 - 5 DLP screens
Greeley - Carmike 5 - 5 DLP screens (10/27)

FLORIDA - 20 DLP screens
Bradenton - Royal Palm 20 - 10 DLP screens
Panama City - Carmike 10 - 10 DLP screens

GEORGIA - 126 DLP screens
Albany - Wynnsong 16 - 16 DLP screens
Athens - Carmike 12 - 12 DLP screens
Canton - Riverstone 15 - 15 DLP screens
Cartersville - Carmike 12 - 12 DLP screens, 3D
Columbus - Hollywood Conn. Ritz 10 - 5 DLP screens
Columbus - Carmike 15 - 8 DLP screens
Conyers - Crossroads 16 - 8 DLP screens
Fort Benning - Wynnsong 10 - 6 DLP screens
Fort Oglethorpe - Battlefield 10 - 5 DLP screens
Newnan - Carmike 10 - 6 DLP screens
Savannah - Carmike 10 - 10 DLP screens
Savannah - Wynnsong 11 - 11 DLP screens
Snellville - Carmike 12 - 12 DLP screens

IOWA - 19 DLP Screens
Des Moines - Cobblestone 9 - 5 DLP screens
Des Moines - Southridge 12 - 6 DLP screens
Des Moines - Wynnsong 16 - 8 DLP screens

ILLINOIS - 28 DLP screens
Bloomington - Palace Cinema 10 - 10 DLP screens (10/27)
Champaign - Beverly Cinema 18 - 18 DLP screens

INDIANA - 10 DLP screens
Fort Wayne - Carmike 20 - 10 DLP screens, 3D

KANSAS - 12 DLP screens
Manhattan - Seth Childs 12 - 12 DLP screens

LOUISIANA - 5 DLP screens
Lafayette - Carmike 10 - 5 DLP screens

MICHIGAN - 39 DLP screens
Battle Creek - Lakeview Sq 10 - 10 DLP screens
Fort Gratiot - Birchwood Cinemas 10 - 10 DLP screens
Saginaw - Fashion Sq 10 - 10 DLP screens
Traverse City - Grand Traverse 9 - 9 DLP screens

MINNESOTA - 29 DLP screens
Apple Valley - Carmike 15 - 8 DLP screens
Mankato - Stadium Cinema 6 - 3 DLP screens
Moundsview - Wynnsong 15 - 8 DLP screens
Oakdale - Oakdale Stadium 20 - 10 DLP screen, 3D

MONTANA - 8 DLP screens
Bozeman - Campus Sq 8 - 8 DLP screens

NORTH CAROLINA - 125 DLP screens
Asheville - Carmike 10 - 10 DLP screens
Durham - Wynnsong 15 - 8 DLP screens
Fayetteville - Wynnsong 7 - 7 DLP screens
Fayetteville - Market Fair 15 - 15 DLP screens
Greensboro - Carmike 18 - 9 DLP screens
Greenville - Carmike 12 - 7 DLP screens
Hickory - Carmike 14 - 14 DLP screens
Jacksonville - Carmike 16 - 9 DLP screens
Morrisville - Park Place 16 - 8 DLP screens
Raleigh - Carmike 15 - 8 DLP screens
Wilmington - Carmike 16 - 9 DLP screens
Wilson - Carmike 10 - 10 DLP screens, 3D
Winston-Salem - Carmike 10 - 5 DLP screens
Winston-Salem - Wynnsong 12 - 6 DLP screens

NORTH DAKOTA - 4 DLP screens
Bismarck - Carmike 8 - 4 DLP screens

NEBRASKA - 6 DLP screens
North Platte - Carmike 6 - 6 DLP screens

OKLAHOMA - 22 DLP screens
Lawton - Carmike 8 - 8 DLP screens
Muskogee - Carmike 6 - 6 DLP screens (10/27)
Shawnee - Cinema Center 8 - 8 DLP screens

OREGON - 6 DLP screens
Corvallis - Carmike 12 - 6 DLP screens

PENNSYLVANIA - 28 DLP screens
Allentown - Carmike 16 - 16 DLP screens
Delmont - Wynnsong 12 - 12 DLP screens

SOUTH CAROLINA - 52 DLP screens
Columbia - Carmike 14 - 14 DLP screens
Columbia - Wynnsong 10 - 10 DLP screens
Myrtle Beach - Broadway 16 - 16 DLP screens
Myrtle Beach - Colonial 12 - 12 DLP screens, 3D

SOUTH DAKOTA - 7 DLP screens
Sioux Falls - Carmike 7 - 7 DLP screens (10/27)

TENNESSEE - 86 DLP screens
Antioch - Bell Forge 10 - 5 DLP screens
Chattanooga - Bijou 7 - 3 DLP screens
Chattanooga - Wynnsong 10 - 5 DLP screens
Clarksville - Governor's Sq. 10 - 5 DLP screens
Franklin - Thoroughbred 20 - 10 DLP screens, 3D
Goodlettsville - Rivergate 8 - 4 DLP screens
Hixon - Northgate 14 - 7 DLP screens
Johnson City - Carmike 14 - 8 DLP screens
Knoxville - Carmike 10 - 6 DLP screens
Knoxville - Wynnsong 16 - 9 DLP screens
Madison - Wynnsong 10 - 5 DLP screens
Maryville - Foothills 12 - 7 DLP screens
Murfreesboro - Wynnsong 16 - 8 DLP screens
Nashville - Bellevue 8 - 4 DLP screens

TEXAS - 44 screens
Edinburgh - Carmike 20 - 10 DLP screens
El Paso - Carmike 16 - 8 DLP screens, 3D
Longview - Carmike 10 - 8 DLP screens
Lufkin - Lufkin Mall Nine - 5 DLP screens
Nacogdoches - Carmike 6 - 6 DLP screens
Tyler - Carmike 14 - 7 DLP screens, 3D

UTAH - 20 DLP screens
Provo - Wynnsong 12 - 6 DLP screens, 3D
West Jordan - Carmike 12 - 6 DLP screens
West Valley City - Ritz 15 - 8 DLP screens

VIRGINIA - 5 DLP screens
Midlothian - Carmike 10 - 5 DLP screens

WASHINGTON - 6 DLP screens
Kennewick - Carmike 12 - 6 DLP screens

WISCONSIN - 6 DLP screens
Eau Claire - Oakwood Mall 12 - 6 DLP screens

WEST VIRGINIA - 6 DLP screens
Morgantown - Morgantown Mall 12 - 6 DLP screens

WYOMING - 9 DLP screens
Cheyenne - Frontier 9 - 9 DLP screens

Anyone can feel free to double check my math on the screen count. At the current pace, Carmike should surpass the 1000 DLP screens mark before year's end. I don't know if they'll be able to get all 2300 systems installed before this time in 2007. The older theaters are going to be more of a challenge to convert. Obviously, some of those theaters aren't going to be converted at all. There's a little over 100 screens that will be left out of this program.

[ 10-26-2006, 07:51 PM: Message edited by: Bobby Henderson ]
 

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Posted by Paul Van Dusen (Member # 3640) on 10-26-2006, 04:02 PM:
 

quote: Paul Konen

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Paul, if you sound processor has a DB-25 for Analog Audio input, you could DLP there.

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quote: Dustin Mitchell

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There aren't going to be any 'mono digital' houses. All screens will have 5.1 sound capability by the time they are upgraded to digital projection.

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Yes, both theatres will be 100% 5.1 sound systems on all screens. The NCS technician has already ordered speakers and racks for those mono theatres. I've heard (From NCS technican) that it's part of the agreement with Christie that there must be 5.1 sound systems in place at the time of install.

Also, both these theatres are first run. The 5-plex is downtown, a block away from the Penn State campus. Ninety-five percent of the business there is students. Both theatres were Cinema World theatres acquired by Carmike in 1994.
 

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Posted by Matt Fields (Member # 3211) on 10-26-2006, 11:01 PM:
 
Does anyone know if Carmikes business has gone up in these locations?

If doesn't sell more tickets, what the hell is the point?
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 10-27-2006, 10:59 AM:
 
The point? The real point with is saving movie distributors lots of cash over the cost of making and shipping film prints.

In places like my town it's too early to tell if digital projection is making a positive impact to the bottom line. For the past 3 months Hollywood's output of movies hasn't exactly been great. The Departed is one of only a few current releases I would recommend watching. Things are going to pick up quite a bit in November and December. With higher profile releases like Casino Royale, Happy Feet and a few others it will be easier to gauge what kind of difference digital projection can make.
 

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Posted by Darryl Spicer (Member # 711) on 10-27-2006, 11:52 AM:
 
To be honest I don't think it is going to be that much of a factor once it spreads everywhere. The average movie goer is not going to change his or her movie going routine just to see a DLP presentation. Now granted you will have people out there who think along the lines of Bobby who appreciate good presentations but everything is still going to be flat and reactive just like it has been. If a theatre is sloped and you have a stadium down the road people are going to pick the stadium to go to. If the employees suck and are rude and the theatre is dirty but the one down the street is clean and the employees are friendly people will go to the friendly site. You can't sugar coat a shitty location by changing what you use behind the scenes. Remember there are a lot of people that still think that we use DVD's to play the movie. I think the 3-D gimmick is a good return but do we really need the extra charge on top of the ticket to see it. My concern is that ticket prices will go up even more to cover these installs over the course of time and somebody out there is really going to get screwed in the process.

I have been told that the content is being shipped on hard drives in a padded shipping can. You must then download it off the portable drive to the server or the system in use hard drive. I have been told this download process takes about as long as the movie is. Almost real time. I think right now the smart and most secure way is using the hard drives and shipping them to theatres. The last I read on Satellite use was that they still needed to figure out how to get the files compressed enough to be able to send them in a minimum amount of time and stay within the standards. I don't know how the Carmikes are getting their content but I would assume it is on hard drives and shipped to them. Hence no savings on shipping. You still have the costs of putting the content on hard drives. The future will be interesting to say the least.
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 10-27-2006, 01:21 PM:
 
Carmike is getting their movies on large capacity hard disc drives, with the data locked and encrypted. An unlock program mailed separately on a USB thumb drive is used to validate and activate the movie. If that unlock key doesn't arrive in time, outfits like Technicolor are supposed to e-mail the unlock code. The theater just has to have a spare thumb drive available to use.

The movie files are transferred via a USB 2.0 connection. The movie's bitrate makes a big difference on transfer time. A 2 hour movie running at the 250Mb/s top end rate of the DCI spec comes out to around 225GB in size. Some movies may run at 150Mb/s or even as low as 80Mb/s -the lowest rate of the DCI certified spec.

A 2 hour movie taking 2 hours of time to transfer from portable hard drive to server is not surprising. For a 250Mb/s JPEG2000 movie, for "real time" transfer speed you're having to sustain 31.25MB per second. It would take something like a 9-pin Firewire 800 or U320SCSI connection to go much faster.

That transfer time is not really all that big a problem either, provided you get the movie at least a few hours before the show! You can have multiple movies loading into different projector servers while you get other tasks done, like filling out all kinds of paperwork!

Overall, the process seems quite a bit easier and more convenient than building up film prints by hand. But you're not necessarily getting a better quality product in the end. Customer reactions here in Lawton have been pretty positive. Our local paper ran an article about the installation.
 

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Posted by Allison Parsons (Member # 2728) on 10-27-2006, 01:29 PM:
 
I work at a GKC/Carmike theater and we're 'suppose' to be getting a few either by the end of the year, or the begining of the next.

I'm not holding my breath on that.

We're a 10 screen theater, but we're not located smack in the middle of Peoria, we're on the outskirts (only about 8 miles away), in a shitty shopping center that is now a ghost town excluding us, a Dollar General and one other tiny shop. If ANYTHING can get more butts in the seats at my theater, I think DLP would help. There is one more theater in town that had digital, but they are located 20 miles away on the opposite end of Peoria (a Rave theater).
 

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Posted by Dustin Mitchell (Member # 372) on 10-27-2006, 08:43 PM:
 
Bobby has it right. I'll add that typically the content arrives on either Tuesday or Wednesday. Keys are delivered either by thumb drive or via our DSL connection depending on who is handling the digital 'prints'. It can take a lot of time to ingest the content from the hard drive into the server, however, if it is ingested into the LMS (central server) it can then be transfered to any screen via fiber optic connections. The transfer over fiber still takes more time than physically moving a film print would but it is faster than the USB 2.0 ingestion.
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 10-27-2006, 09:05 PM:
 
Well, yeah, I'm pretty sure I have the details right on how things work in the Christie/AIX program. A lot of this information is available from websites like D Cinema Today as well as the websites for Christie and AccessIT. Just felt like I needed to clarify that to keep certain friends of mine from getting into any trouble.

 

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Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 11-01-2006, 03:50 AM:
 

quote: Bobby Henderson

---

An unlock program mailed separately on a USB thumb drive is used to validate and activate the movie.

---

Actually ALL code keys are e-mailed since they change frequently...generally weekly. Previews are not code keyed at this point in time. Sony is the only one so far that issues code keys one time for the entire contracted run of a show. All others are weekly. All are e-mailed and can then be saved on the USB stick and loaded into the server.

Bobby, Got any idea how many symbols and numbers are in a code key?

Mark
 

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Posted by Paul Konen (Member # 41) on 11-01-2006, 09:00 AM:
 
Mark, my KDM is usually about 14K.

It is an XML file so you can read it and confirm the playdates.
 

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Posted by Dustin Mitchell (Member # 372) on 11-01-2006, 11:30 AM:
 
Mark, that is not correct. Technicolor and Deluxe send the keys via USB drive weekly. AccessIT ingests the drives over our DSL line. We only get ours emailed in an emergency (drive doesn't arrive by Thursday afternoon, etc).
 

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Posted by Paul Konen (Member # 41) on 11-01-2006, 12:23 PM:
 
Yes, while it is much easier to send the KDMs through email. Some circuits don't / won't allow it.

They have disabled the USB ports on office computers.
They are concerned that a thumb drive might have a virus / trojan and don't want the network infected. (That is why you have an AV program running with up-to-date signatures)
Firewalls blocking ZIP files
Office computers not being able to unzip.

Then the distributors have the issue with getting ALL the thumb drives back. I have noticed that they are making / finding the smallest (in terms of memory) drives they can as to reduce cost.

One of the points of this is to reduce costs, right?
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 11-01-2006, 03:07 PM:
 
Thumb drives are pretty cheap. If purchased in volume those things cost more to express mail than the drives are worth. Even throw in the factor of ruining one of those 300GB portable hard discs. That's still under the $300 mark, several hundred dollars less than the bottom price for a 35mm film print.

quote: Mark Gulbrandsen

---

Bobby, Got any idea how many symbols and numbers are in a code key?

---

quote: Louis Bornwasser

---

Question of time before it is "cracked."

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quote: Richard Fowler

---

This company is aready making $$$$ per screen, paid monthly, for advertising which they thought was a much better deal.....

---

quote:

---

REAL D Adds Significant New Dimension to Carmike Cinemas

LOS ANGELES-(Business Wire)-December 14, 2006 - REAL D, the leader in the delivery of premier digital 3-D experiences, today announced an agreement with Carmike Cinemas, Inc. (NASDAQ:CKEC) to license 500 screens with REAL D Cinema technology. The agreement is being implemented immediately and will run through 2007, with 200 of the screens being deployed before the release of Disney's Meet the Robinsons in March 2007.

This deployment brings the total number of committed REAL D Cinema screens to 850 worldwide, continuing the rapid growth of a platform that started in November 2005 and giving REAL D the world's largest 3-D cinematic footprint. Films that have screened in REAL D cinemas around the world include Columbia Pictures' Monster House, Walt Disney Pictures' Chicken Little and the re-release of Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas, as well as Disney's upcoming animated feature Meet the Robinsons and Paramount's Beowulf.

"We are enthusiastic about expanding our current relationship with Real D," stated Michael W. Patrick, Carmike's Chairman, President and CEO. "The ability to bring moviegoers this revolutionary 3-D format is an exciting advance and gives us the ability to provide differentiated content. REAL D is delivering what moviegoers want and demand: quality films in unique and immersive formats."

"We are excited to finalize this agreement with Carmike and appreciate their vision regarding the future of exhibition," stated Michael V. Lewis, chairman of REAL D. "With this agreement, we are guaranteed to reach our thousandth screen in 2007."

About Carmike Cinemas

Carmike Cinemas, Inc. is a premier motion picture exhibitor in the United States with 291 theatres and 2,450 screens in 37 states. Carmike's focus for its theatre locations is small to mid-sized communities across the United States. For more information visit the website: www.carmike.com.

About REAL D

REAL D is the worldwide inventor and provider of key stereoscopic technologies used in entertainment, marketing, science and other industries. REAL D's mission-critical 3-D visualization technologies are used by organizations such as NASA, Pfizer, BMW, General Motors, Mercedes-Benz, SEGA, Boeing and more. For more information, or to locate a REAL D Cinema, visit www.REALD.com.

---

 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 12-19-2006, 09:04 PM:
 
I'm not too surprised to hear about this.

Carmike has been having their managers do survey work to measure out the size of the screens in all their given locations to have a more accurate idea what needs to be installed for Real-D use. There's quite a mix of original Carmike-built locations as well as others that have been merely acquired.

Given the controversy and potential drawbacks of using silver screens, I can't say I am looking forward to this with 100% enthusiasm. What happened to that whole 3D D-Cinema effort Dolby was attempting to develop?
 

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Posted by Steve Guttag (Member # 268) on 12-19-2006, 09:30 PM:
 
Note, the projectionists (John and Mark) have migrated from the Carmike theatre to THE STATE THEATRE in State College, PA. I posted some info on the theatre in the "Theatres Opened/Closed" thread.

Steve
 

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Posted by Dustin Mitchell (Member # 372) on 12-19-2006, 09:32 PM:
 
And let me say measuring those screens was a giant PITA. I think I still have bruises from hauling that damn Little Giant ladder around....
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 12-19-2006, 10:31 PM:
 
Hey now! The Little Giant ladder rocks the shit!

I haul around one of those things for doing impromptu surveys on a lot of existing sign structures. They are heavy, I'll say that as a negative. But they take up a lot less space in a pickup truck bed than some huge A-frame ladder.

On the Real-D front, I suspect our own little market in Oklahoma will likely get a couple installations at the Lawton Carmike theater fairly soon. Don't know that for sure, but it is just a guess based on the fact that theater tends to lead its district on hardware installs.

Incidentally, the Wichita Falls market had some TV and radio news coverage regarding the Carmike Cinemas Sikes 10 converting over to digital projection this week. The community seemed to welcome it pretty well.

Here in Lawton, our lame ass TV station and radio stations didn't say anything about the Carmike 8 gaining digital projection well ahead of any place in Oklahoma City or Tulsa. Even at this point no theater in OKC or Tulsa has any D-Cinema equipped screens yet. That's not really so much a thing to say D-Cinema is great as much as it is a big to all the people who think anything good in Oklahoma must happen in Oklahoma City or Tulsa first.

[ 12-20-2006, 09:03 AM: Message edited by: Bobby Henderson ]
 

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Posted by Dustin Mitchell (Member # 372) on 12-20-2006, 12:59 AM:
 
Which little giant do you have? The one they show on TV or the huge commercial version?

I'll admit that if we didn't have it the only other way to go would have been scaffolding. Its much better than all the alternatives. Doesn't mean I can't bitch about it .
 

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Posted by Adam Martin (Member # 641) on 12-20-2006, 02:51 AM:
 

quote: Dustin Mitchell

---

And let me say measuring those screens was a giant PITA.

---

quote: Dustin Mitchell

---

Which little giant do you have? The one they show on TV or the huge commercial version?

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quote: Steve Guttag

---

We have two handy tools for such things...a laser range meter (accurate to +/- 1.5mm) and a fibrglass collapsable pole.

---

quote:

---

WYOMING - 9 DLP screens
Cheyenne - Cole Square 3
Cheyenne - Frontier 9, 9 DLP screens, **

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quote: Evans A Criswell

---

That list must be a little out of date, becasue the Carmike 10 in Huntsville, AL has been advertising all DLP projection for a while.

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quote: Cory Isemann

---

I have heard the Carmike 10 here in Richmond's South Side has gone digital. Did not see it on the list above, but a visit to Carmike's website lists almost all movies as digital.

---

quote: Bobby Henderson

---

Usually it takes jumping between the DCinemaToday website and looking closely at the sound/projection info on individual show listings for each screen to come up with an accurate number.

---

quote: Bobby Henderson

---

Who made you God all of a sudden?

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quote: Bobby Henderson

---

get over yourself.

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 01-26-2007, 03:57 PM:
 
Is that response supposed to function as some kind of trump card? One to trump something posted months ago? JFC!

quote: Michael Coate

---

Or you could ask me for help in sorting out the numbers.

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quote: Michael Coate

---

To clarify, my point was: if you would simply acknowledge my work then your postings might be more comprehensive.

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quote: Michael Coate

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Trivia? Seems more like "spin" on your part.

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quote: Michael Coate

---

But for the last few years it sure seems like there's this insane "competitiveness" between us...and it's annoying.

---

That's your own perception. I couldn't care less about who is the "king geek of all movie tech trivia." I, and most others, simply don't enjoy being talked down to like an idiot for writing something that is incorrect or just not worded in the correct manner.

Amassing lists of movie tech trivia might be fun, but it doesn't accomplish anything significant. The people who invent movie making technology and further refine and perfect it are actually doing something significant. So are the folks who use that technology to make great movies or show them in high standards of quality.
 

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Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 01-30-2007, 08:58 AM:
 
Michael... Bobby... both you guys need to unbunch your panties.

Indeed I have confirmed that the Cheyenne Cole Square 3 is not running digital and is barely running 35mm. So I would take at least some of that list with a grain of salt.

Mark
 

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Posted by Dustin Mitchell (Member # 372) on 01-30-2007, 09:57 AM:
 
It looks like Bobby listed every Carmike location and the ones that are DLP equiped have that noted after their listing, reads fine for me.

I think everyone just needs to cool down.

Micheal, I enjoy reading your posts and appreciate the effort you put in to researching trends in the industry. You provide very interesting and useful information.

Bobby, I also enjoy reading your opinions and appreciate the work you put into this list. I've always said that people not directly involved in the film industry-past or present-should be allowed here because their views and opinions are an important consideration. For many of us watching a movie means a Thursday night/Friday morning private screening with possibly a few friends. Having a prespective from actual customers is an important 'reality check'.
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 01-30-2007, 12:57 PM:
 
Yes, I listed ALL Carmike locations in that update, whether they were DLP or not.

The locations actually equipped with DLP have the number of DLP equipped screens listed to the right of the location name. It is easy enough to understand the syntax of that list if it is read closely. There's nothing wrong with it. No grain of salt needed.

Also, to repeat, all locations were listed this time so readers could see how many of Carmike's locations have DLP systems installed versus others that do not. I thought that would be more interesting to people reading this thread.

Finally, this thread is supposed to be about Carmike's digital cinema conversion project. It is NOT about me. Please discuss Carmike's project instead.

"No good deed goes unpunished." If the topic cannot get away from flaming me or hair-splitting those lists I'll consider doing everyone a favor and just removing them from my previous posts. Again, the subject is about Carmike. Not me. Leave me out of it.
 

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Posted by Allison Parsons (Member # 2728) on 02-01-2007, 01:26 AM:
 
April 19th we're supposedly getting good ol' DLP's in. Not sure if they will be starting to install them that day, or if thats the first day they will have movies running on them. Either way I can probably kiss my job goodbye. I'll keep you updated on any more info.
 

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Posted by Dustin Mitchell (Member # 372) on 02-01-2007, 01:18 PM:
 
Allison, that's likely the date they'll start installing. They'll put in the servers and racks first, start 'going dark' a few days later, and a few days after that be done.

You also do not need to worry about your job. While it is likely that as digital installs continue the position of staff leader (I'm assuming that's what you are) will be diminished traditionaly Carmike has merely not replaced people as they left when they cut back on a certain managerial level job classes.

Likely you will be working more floor shifts though.
 

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Posted by Allison Parsons (Member # 2728) on 02-01-2007, 03:33 PM:
 
Well, the thing is, I only work thursdays nights or when film work is needed. No regular booth shifts, let alone CCA or CSH hours. I think we might be keeping a couple of our Simplexes. Either way they said they'd find some way to have me keep working there, even if it is only once a month
 

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Posted by Dustin Mitchell (Member # 372) on 02-01-2007, 03:44 PM:
 
Every theatre is keeping some 'tandem' screens. How often the film projectors will get used is anyone's guess.

Though not requiring as many people/hours as Thursday film changes the digital systems do still require some weekly 'maintenancce', mostly keeping up with deleting content, redoing showlists with new trailers, etc.
 

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Posted by Jarryd Beard (Member # 2543) on 02-01-2007, 06:54 PM:
 
... and sorting out keys!

Has anybody else noticed the Deluxe keys expiring on Thursdays at 11:59PM? What a pain in the ass if the movie being finaled is runs past that time. Deluxe has to then email the key so the show doesn't just stop at 11:59PM.
 

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Posted by Paul Konen (Member # 41) on 02-02-2007, 03:01 PM:
 
Jared, Really? Mine are always early morning like 5:59am Friday.

Dustin, when do you start moving content from your Library system to the individual servers for the next release weekend? Are you more careful about doing auditorium moves because of the time to move prints.
 

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Posted by Dustin Mitchell (Member # 372) on 02-03-2007, 01:15 AM:
 
Paul, it depends. Usually our new content arrives on Tuesday, so then we ingest into the LMS during the day and do all of our transfers Tuesday night/Wednesday morning. For proper playback Christie recomends the Doremi not be more than 70% full. Its only happened once but we did have to wait until Thursday night to do a transfer due to lack of drive space.

I've also noticed the '11:59 am' expiration on some Deluxe movies, 'Pursuit of Happyness' being a current example. I am pretty sure than once a file begins playing it doesn't matter if a key expires, though I haven't had a chance to test this yet.
 

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Posted by Darryl Spicer (Member # 711) on 02-03-2007, 01:21 AM:
 
How many movies will these systems let you play in one auditorium in one day. Are you limited to just one movie per screen or can you double or triple a screen. What are the limitations.
 

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Posted by Tristan Lane (Member # 1169) on 02-03-2007, 04:09 AM:
 
The only real limitation to how many movies you can play in one auditorium is disk space.

The Doremi has a total of 1.2 TB of hard disk space. Some of this space is used for system files, OS, and the interface software. I've seen some theaters where they have had 4-5 features stored on one player, and some that don't keep more than one or two stored at a time. It really depends on the amount of space a feature will occupy on the hard drives. A 2K feature will take up less space than a 4K, the longer the movie the more space, and so on...

Also, some hard drive space needs to be left in order to keep the player from having playback issues. A player that is at full capacity with features MAY have skipping video or system crashes.
 

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Posted by Allison Parsons (Member # 2728) on 02-03-2007, 10:11 AM:
 

quote: Tristan Lane

---

A player that is at full capacity with features MAY have skipping video or system crashes

---

Wow, I'm SO looking forward to these damn things. Why am I picturing them giving us more problems than a standard projector?
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 02-03-2007, 12:13 PM:
 
There's definitely a learning curve involved. But as long as the equipment is used responsibly the technical issues should be kept at a minimum.

IMHO, filling a hard drive at 70% of capacity or more is an example of irresponsible use. Doesn't the average 2-hour JPEG2000 movie run in the neighborhood of 200GB-250GB? Just going by that, I wouldn't put more than 2 or 3 movies on a projector's local Doremi machine.

Most Carmike locations already upgraded to the Christie/AIX package have the big SAN server linked to all the other projectors, don't they? It would seem that would be the best place to store movies that are several weeks into their run and in need of being doubled up with other shows.
 

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Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 02-03-2007, 12:55 PM:
 

quote: Bobby Henderson

---

There's definitely a learning curve involved.

---

quote: Bobby Henderson

---

Most Carmike locations already upgraded to the Christie/AIX package have the big SAN server linked to all the other projectors, don't they? It would seem that would be the best place to store movies that are several weeks into their run and in need of being doubled up with other shows.

---

quote: Bobby Henderson

---

Even with just one gigabit ethernet cable, a 6 to 8 hour estimate on moving 250GB of data would amount to pretty poor performance. Even a garden variety USB 2.0 connection can do better than that.

---

quote: Mark Gulbrandsen

---

Download time from a hot swappable drive of a typical 2 hour file in the Dolby Server is just 20 minuites...

---

quote: Gordon McLeod

---

Not everyone is using JPEG

---

quote: Gordon McLeod

---

and remeber that the business model still doesn't actually work

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quote: Dustin Mitchell

---

I am pretty sure than once a file begins playing it doesn't matter if a key expires, though I haven't had a chance to test this yet.

---

Can anyone confirm this? It would be great to know for sure. We wouldn't be so concerned about the keys that expire at 11:59.
 

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Posted by Dustin Mitchell (Member # 372) on 02-05-2007, 01:27 PM:
 
The only way to know for sure wouold be to test it. I'll see if I have the opportunity this Thursday.
 

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Posted by Allison Parsons (Member # 2728) on 03-14-2007, 06:59 PM:
 
Well, they are hauling in the projectors as of friday. Rumor has it we will be up and running for at least two screens by monday. I have two questions for those who work at Carmike:

1)The managers were told that they had to download the keys from home. The GM does not have internet acess at home, and neither does the assistant. Will Carmike bite the bullet and install it on the computers at work? I'd be up for doing if I get a big enough pay raise....(which won't happen)

2) can you screen movies? Or once you ingest the movie, is it set to play only at the first show on the opening day?

Thanks! I'm sure I will have a trillion more Q's in the upcoming weeks.
 

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Posted by Paul Konen (Member # 41) on 03-14-2007, 08:07 PM:
 
Allison, you can screen them. My keys have typically opened up at 6am Thursday morning. Drives don't arrive until Wed of opening.

I get the initial keys on a thumb drive shipped separately from the drive. Any holdover keys are sent via email to the theatre address and then unzipped onto a thumb drive.

Are you also getting the storage / distribution system?
 

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Posted by Allison Parsons (Member # 2728) on 03-14-2007, 08:32 PM:
 
Hi Paul!

The problem is, is that we DO NOT have internet connection on the computer at the theater. GKC did, but Carmike uninstalled it when they took over. We have a DSL but no internet access. We've already gotten two movies in (hard drives). But like I said, the projectors themselves are coming in on Friday/Saturday. They have the sound cabinets, exhaust systems and most of the wires hooked up already.
As for the storage/distro drive: If thats the big tall cabinet that can injest all the movies and you can tell which movie goes to what theater in just one counsel, then yes. But that won't be hooked up for a while. I have NO idea on what does what, where goes where, so your going to have to excuse my lack of knowledge and terms for a month or so
 

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Posted by Jason Black (Member # 684) on 03-14-2007, 10:37 PM:
 
Allison:

I take it that your location is not running the famous OS IQ-2000. If it were, you would be on a DSL connection and would have access to get the keys emailed to you.

I know MY opinion on it.. it is NOT the manager's, or ANY staff members responsibility to pay for a service AT HOME for any WORK RELATED item/duties. Carmike should bone up and pay the damn money for the DSL line and a PC. Of course, with the DEEP FREEZE they are in right now, that's not likely to happen...

I am still amazed, two years after leaving, that they are still so penny wise and dollar foolish.
 

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Posted by Mike Blakesley (Member # 26) on 03-14-2007, 11:03 PM:
 
Are the "keys" that big of a file that they'd require a high-speed connection?
 

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Posted by Darryl Spicer (Member # 711) on 03-14-2007, 11:10 PM:
 
no, you can use a 56k modem if you have to.
 

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Posted by Allison Parsons (Member # 2728) on 03-14-2007, 11:49 PM:
 
Jason,
Yes, we have the IQ2000. I guess I should say we do not have a way to get on the 'world wide web'. Our computer does not have an option to surf the internet. Does downloading a key require web access?
My opinion on certain, um.... issues ...during this whole process will probably not be said since I still work for the company
 

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Posted by Dustin Mitchell (Member # 372) on 03-15-2007, 01:07 AM:
 
Allison, keys only 'need' to be retrieved by a manager in an emergency. AccessIT/Deluxe/Technicolor are perfectly capable of having Christie send the keys into the LMS or even directly into the servers. This week all my keys (except for the Technicolor holdover keys) were dropped directly into the LMS/servers, no running home necessary.

And you do HAVE an internet conection, your just locked out of it. DSL is a requirement for the digital system as it allows Christie to monitors the systems remotely and do a good bit of troubleshooting/maintenance.

And your LMS-the 'big tall counsel' you were refering too-should be fully functional before the install crew leaves, there's no reason it shouldn't be and you need the it to be operational to ingest content that comes on DVD's-the occasional trailer and all coke ads.
 

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Posted by Paul Konen (Member # 41) on 03-15-2007, 09:08 AM:
 
The keys are only about 14K in size. If you get email at the theatre, then you can get keys delivered.
 

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Posted by Dustin Mitchell (Member # 372) on 03-15-2007, 12:37 PM:
 
Paul, for security/virus protection reasons Carmike theatres can't recieve attachment through their email system.
 

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Posted by Allison Parsons (Member # 2728) on 03-15-2007, 01:27 PM:
 
Dustin,

So thats part of my question, how/where do you guys download your keys at???? Work or at home.
 

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Posted by Dustin Mitchell (Member # 372) on 03-15-2007, 03:03 PM:
 
Keys come three ways:

1) They can be sent to an email account. This is not typical practice and is only done when a key is needed on short notice
2) Delivered on USB 'thumb drives'. As Paul said, inital keys-which usually last 2 weeks to a month-come this way. They are normally delivered on Wednesday via FedEx (Deluxe) or DHL (Techniclolor)
3) Downloaded directly into the individual servers, the LMS, or both. After the initial opening keys Deluxe has been dropping the new keys in directly as of late, though not long ago all Deluxe keys came on thumb drives. Technicolor still sends out all keys on thumb drives. AccessIT always downloads the keys directly into the servers-none of their keys ever come on thumb drives.

As of last night I had all of my holdover keys except for Terabithia and the initial keys for Dead Silence, both of which are handled by AccessIT. I would be very surprised if the keys weren't there this morning, and if they weren't its the booking departments responsibility to take care of getting them delivered.
 

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Posted by Mike Blakesley (Member # 26) on 03-16-2007, 12:05 PM:
 
The Billings, Montana Carmikes have made the switch as of today. 10 DLPs at the Wynnsong, and 7 at the Carmike 7. The "Cine 7" dollar house is still showing film.
 

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Posted by Justin West (Member # 920) on 03-16-2007, 12:29 PM:
 

quote: Mike Blakesley

---

The "Cine 7" dollar house is still showing film.

---

And from what I hear, Mike, their dollar houses will probably show film until film is no longer...and then, close...permanently.
 

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Posted by Mike Blakesley (Member # 26) on 03-16-2007, 02:29 PM:
 
Probably right. They actually did close that Billings dollar house a few years ago, and then couldn't get out of their lease, so they opened it up again.
 

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Posted by Jarryd Beard (Member # 2543) on 03-17-2007, 01:31 PM:
 
If the manager has no personal email address, that could be a problem. I say this only because most installs I've heard of don't activate the LMS right away. If that is the case, email would be needed for AccessIT keys and maybe some Deluxe keys.

I would think the manager could arue to be compensated by Carmike for some cheap dial-up internet access account. However, these days, email is almost as necessary as a telephone. Managers must have a personal telephone at their own expense. Maybe the same could be argued for email as well.
 

---

Posted by Mike Blakesley (Member # 26) on 03-20-2007, 10:07 PM:
 
There was a piece on the local news tonight about Carmike switching to digital. For a change, the city manager was actually interviewed. He said, "We played the movie 'Titanic' for seven months. If you saw 'Titanic' in May, you didn't see it the way James Cameron intended it, because it came out in December, and the film gets scratched, it gets dirty, it gets worn out."

Translated: We mangle film! We don't clean our equipment!

(To be fair, if all Carmike managers were as caring of their presentation as Dustin here obviously is, the company would get a lot more respect.)
 

---

Posted by Dustin Mitchell (Member # 372) on 03-20-2007, 10:21 PM:
 
Jarryd, the only reason that Deluxe/Technicolor email keys to the manager as a last minute solution is because it is too much trouble (apparantly) for them to send the key to Christie and have the NOC (Network Operations Center) drop it into the servers directly. They are perfectly capable of doing this and if pushed to they will, they're just lazy.
 

---

Posted by Brad Miller (Member # 2) on 03-20-2007, 10:21 PM:
 

quote: Mike Blakesley

---

If you saw 'Titanic' in May, you didn't see it the way James Cameron intended it, because it came out in December, and the film gets scratched, it gets dirty, it gets worn out."

---

Oh how pathetic! I ran my print for just under 6 months and it left in absolute flawless condition, as I screened the last performance. It's really not that hard.

Funny all this talk about keys. So far none of my film keys have ever expired or failed to arrive in time.
 

---

Posted by Dustin Mitchell (Member # 372) on 03-20-2007, 10:24 PM:
 
Brad, never lost a show due to a key failing to arrive. It can be a pain chasing after them but its gotten a lot better. Lately its been merely a matter of form to check to make sure they're there.

Mike, forgot to thank you for the kind words in my last post. I will say my film presentation before our switch to digital was far from perfect, but given the tools I had to work with I did my best.
 

---

Posted by Jarryd Beard (Member # 2543) on 03-20-2007, 10:56 PM:
 
Dustin, I was speaking of a scenario in which the LMS may not be up and running at the time of initial install. Altoona, a city just about an hour away from State College (where my theatre is), is being converted this week. I spoke with the manager at one of the two Altoona theatres. He said his LMS probably won't be ready to go by the time all projectors are running. When we had our projectors installed back in November, it took a good two weeks until the LMS was active. However, as long as the individual Doremis have connectivity, Deluxe and AccessIT could drop them directly unto the servers. Either way, you're right, key management has improved greatly over the past months.
 

---

Posted by Dustin Mitchell (Member # 372) on 03-20-2007, 10:59 PM:
 
The LMS does not need to be working for keys to be dropped into the servers, at least from what I understand. By the time the install crew leaves the DSL line will be connected and the NOC can monitor all the projectors, LMS running or not. So long as that is true the keys can be dropped in remotely.
 

---

Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 03-20-2007, 11:06 PM:
 
The Carmike theater in my town had two prints of Titanic. Both screens were selling out all their weekend shows for months on end, from opening day in December right up until the prints finally left the theater in mid April. Most of the weekday shows were selling out as well during the first few weeks. I just think that's worth pointing out considering the very short shelf life of movies these days. Anyway, both prints were in great shape when they left. I know 'cuz I found humor in watching "propeller man" repeatedly hit that giant screw and do a 6 1/2 gainer before hitting the water.


I think bad managers and projectionists who harm prints can be found in almost any movie theater chain. It's pretty nice when you can find a theater where the manager and/or various crew members actually give a hoot about presentation quality.
 

---

Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 03-22-2007, 12:05 AM:
 

quote: Mike Blakesley

---

The "Cine 7" dollar house is still showing film.

---

Mike,

I think you meant to ay that the "Cine 7" dollar house is barely showing film. Oh what a dump!

Mark
 

---

Posted by Allison Parsons (Member # 2728) on 03-22-2007, 12:12 AM:
 
Our DLP's are installed. Tomorrow is my first day making a play list start to finish. Of course, this is the week that we get in 4 movies... Wish me luck, cause I'll need it I did one tonight, and it was that bad. Our LSM (or whatever the initials are) is up and running as of 2 hours ago. However, I have no freaking clue how to use the thing haha. Oh god, this will be interesting... I want my damn Century's back!!!

[ 03-22-2007, 01:57 AM: Message edited by: Allison Parsons ]
 

---

Posted by Monte L Fullmer (Member # 2797) on 03-28-2007, 01:52 PM:
 

quote: Allison Parsons

---

Tomorrow is my first day making a play list start to finish

---

quote: Bobby Henderson

---

KENTUCKY - 5 DLP screens (5 new)
DLP equipped locations:
Hopkinsville - Martin 5 - 5 DLP screens (5 new), 3D
No DLP Yet:
Harlan - Cinema 4
Lexington - Carmike 10
Madisonville - Martin 4
Maysville - Cinema 4
Middlesboro - Cinema 4

---

quote: Bobby Henderson

---

I'm still surprised to see those expensive Christie systems going into some theaters that are clearly aging

---

quote: Mark Gulbrandsen

---

If you HAVE to have a competitor then Carmike is the best one of all to have in the same town.... they are no competition at all.

---

quote:

---

80% of [Carmike's] screens are now equipped for digital projection. That's something no other theater circuit can claim.

---

quote: Bobby Henderson

---

Hopefully Christie's techs figured out how to letterbox a 'scope image on those screens rather than have things setup like they were in the past

---

quote:

---

UNITED STATES

ALABAMA
Auburn: Carmike Wynnsong 16
Birmingham: Carmike Summit 16
Birmingham: Rave Lee Branch 15
Cullman: Carmike 10
Daphne: Rave Jubilee Square 12
Decatur: Carmike 8
Florence: Carmike Regency Square 12
Homewood: Carmike Wynnsong 12
Hoover: Rave Patton Creek 15
Huntsville: Rave Valley Bend 18
Mobile: Carmike 14
Mobile: Carmike Wynnsong 16
Montgomery: Carmike Eastdale 8
Montgomery: Carmike Wynnsong 10
Montgomery: Rave Festival Plaza 16
Orange Beach: Rave Wharf 15
Vestavia Hills: Rave Vestavia Hills 10

ARKANSAS
Batesville: Carmike Oaks 7
Bella Vista: Carmike Sugar Creek
Conway: Carmike Cinema Faulkner
Fort Smith: Carmike 14
Fort Smith: Malco Cinema 12
Harrison: Carmike Harrison 8
Little Rock: Rave Colonel Glenn 18
Mountain Home: Carmike Village 5
Pine Bluff: Carmike Pines Mall 8
Rogers: Malco Pinnacle Hills 12

CALIFORNIA
Bonsall: UltraStar River Village
Carlsbad: UltraStar La Costa 6
Chula Vista: UltraStar Chula Vista 10
El Centro: UltraStar Imperial Valley 14
Emeryville: AMC Bay Street 16
Fairfax: Cinema West Fairfax 5
Fontana: UltraStar Fontana 8
Livermore: Cinema West Livermore
Los Angeles (Hollywood): Pacific Cinerama Dome at ArcLight Hollywood
Los Angeles (Westchester): National Amusements The Bridge: Cinema de Lux
Martinez: Cinema West Contra Costa
Mountain View: Cinemark Century 16
Orange: AMC 30 at the Block
Petaluma: Cinema West Boulevard Cinemas 12
Porterville: Galaxy Porterville 9
Poway: UltraStar Poway Creekside Plaza 10
Rancho Cucamonga: UltraStar Terra Vista 6
Riverbank: Galaxy Riverbank 12
San Diego: UltraStar Del Mar Highlands 8
San Diego: UltraStar Mission Valley at Hazard Center
San Jose: Cinemark Century 20 Oakridge
Santa Monica: Mann Criterion 6
Sebastopol: Cinema West Sebastopol 9
Tulare: Galaxy Tulare 10

COLORADO
Colorado Springs: Carmike 10
Colorado Springs: Carmike Chapel Hills 15
Fort Collins: Carmike 10
Highlands Ranch: AMC Highlands Ranch 24
Westminster: AMC Westminster Promenade 24

CONNECTICUT
Milford: National Amusements Connecticut Post 14: Cinema de Lux
Plainville: AMC Loews Plainville 20

DELAWARE
Dover: Carmike 14

FLORIDA
Bradenton: Carmike Royal Palm 20
Destin: Rave Destin Commons 14
Fernandina Beach: Carmike Amelia Island 7
Jacksonville: AMC Regency Square 24
Melbourne: CinemaWorld 16
Melbourne: Premiere Oaks 10
Melbourne: Rave Avenue 16
Orlando: Premiere Orlando Fashion Square 14
Panama City: Carmike 10
Pensacola: Carmike 10
Pensacola: Rave Bayou 15
Pensacola: Rave Pensacola 18
Port St. Lucie: Rave St. Lucie West 14
South Miami: AMC Sunset Place 24
Winter Park: Carmike University 8

GEORGIA
Albany: Carmike Wynnsong 16
Athens: Carmike 12
Calhoun: Carmike Martin 3
Canton: Carmike Riverstone 15
Cartersville: Carmike 12
Columbus: Carmike Hollywood Connection Ritz 10
Conyers: Carmike Crossroads 16
Dalton: Carmike 9
Fort Benning: Carmike Wynnsong 10
Fort Oglethorpe: Carmike Battlefield 10
LaGrange: Carmike LaGrange 10
Milledgeville: Carmike 6
Morrow: AMC Southlake Pavilion 24
Savannah: Carmike 10
Snellville: Carmike 12
Statesboro: Carmike 12
Tifton: Carmike Cinema 6

IDAHO
Chubbuck: Carmike Pine Ridge 10

ILLINOIS
Bloomington: Carmike Palace 10
Bloomington: Carmike Parkway 8
Champaign: Carmike Beverly 18
Decatur: Carmike Strand 10
Dekalb: Carmike Market Square 10
Forsyth: Carmike Hickory Point 12
O’Fallon: Wehrenberg O’Fallon 15
Peoria: Rave Grand Prairie 18
Schaumburg: AMC Loews Streets of Woodfield 20
South Barrington: AMC South Barrington 30
Warrenville: AMC Cantera 30
Washington: Carmike Sunnyland 10

INDIANA
Elkhart: Carmike Encore Park 14
Fort Wayne: Carmike 20
Fort Wayne: Rave Jefferson Pointe 18
Plainfield: Rave Metropolis 18

IOWA
Cedar Rapids: Carmike Wynnsong 12
Cedar Rapids: Wehrenberg Galaxy 16
Des Moines: Carmike Southridge 12
Johnston: Carmike Wynnsong 16
Sioux City: Carmike Southern Hills 12
Urbandale: Carmike Cobblestone 9

KANSAS
Manhattan: Carmike Seth Childs 12

KENTUCKY
Hopkinsville: Carmike Martin 5
Louisville: National Amusements Cinema de Lux 20: Stonybrook
Newport: AMC Newport on the Levee 20

LOUISIANA
Baton Rouge: Rave Baton Rouge 16
Baton Rouge: Rave Mall of Louisiana 15

MARYLAND
Baltimore: AMC Loews White Marsh 16

MASSACHUSETTS
Boston: AMC Loews Boston Common 19
Methuen: AMC Loews Methuen 20
Milbury: National Amusements Blackstone Valley 14: Cinema de Lux

MICHIGAN
Battle Creek: Carmike Lakeview Square 10
Benton Harbor: Celebration! Cinema Benton Harbor
Birch Run: Emagine Cinema Hollywood
Canton: Emagine Canton 18
Clinton: AMC Star Gratiot 21
Grand Rapids: Celebration! Cinema Grand Rapids North
Jackson: Carmike Plaza 8
Kalamazoo: Goodrich Kalamazoo 10
Kalamazoo: Rave Cityplace 14
Kentwood: Celebration! Cinema Grand Rapids South
Lansing: Celebration! Cinema Lansing
Livonia: AMC Livonia 20
Mt. Pleasant: Celebration! Cinema Mt. Pleasant
Muskegon: Celebration! Cinema Carousel
Novi: Emagine Novi 18
Portage: Celebration! Cinema Crossroads
Sault Ste. Marie: Carmike Varsity 10
Traverse City: Carmike Grand Traverse 9
Traverse City: Carmike Horizon 10
Wyoming: Celebration! Cinema Studio 28
Ypsilanti: National Amusements Showcase Cinemas Ann Arbor

MINNESOTA
Apple Valley: Carmike 15
Mankato: Carmike Stadium 6
Mounds View: Carmike Wynnsong 15
Oakdale: Carmike Oakdale Stadium 20
Roseville: AMC Rosedale 14
Wilmar: Carmike Kandi 6

MISSISSIPPI
Madison: Malco Grandview

MISSOURI
Chesterfield: AMC Chesterfield 14
Chesterfield: Wehrenberg Galaxy 14
Sappington: Wehrenberg Ronnies 20
St. Charles: Wehrenberg St. Charles 18

MONTANA
Billings: Carmike 7
Billings: Carmike Wynssong 10
Bozeman: Carmike Campus Square 8
Great Falls: Carmike 10
Missoula: Carmike 10
Missoula: Carmike Village 6

NEBRASKA
North Platte: Carmike 6

NEVADA
Las Vegas: Regal Colonnade Stadium 14
North Las Vegas: Galaxy Cannery

NEW JERSEY
Elizabeth: AMC Loews Jersey Gardens 20
Freehold: AMC Loews Freehold Metroplex 14

NEW YORK
Gates: Cinemark Tinseltown USA
New York (Brooklyn): AccessIT Pavilion
New York (Manhattan): AMC Empire 25
New York (Manhattan): Regal UA Union Square Stadium 14
Port Chester: AMC Loews Port Chester 14
Stony Brook: AMC Loews Stony Brook 17

NORTH CAROLINA
Asheville: Carmike 10
Durham: Carmike Wynnsong 15
Fayetteville: Carmike 12
Fayetteville: Carmike Wynnsong 7
Greensboro: Carmike 18
Greenville: Carmike 12
Hickory: Carmike 14
Jacksonville: Carmike 16
Morrisville: Carmike Park Place 16
Raleigh: Carmike 15
Shelby: Carmike 10
Wilmington: Carmike 16
Wilson: Carmike 10
Winston-Salem: Carmike 10
Winston-Salem: Carmike Wynnsong 12

NORTH DAKOTA
Grand Forks: Carmike 10
Grand Forks: Carmike Columbia 4
Minot: Carmike Stadium 9

OHIO
Beavercreek: National Amusements Cinema de Lux 14: The Greene
Columbus: Rave Polaris 18
Findlay: Carmike 12
Sandusky: Carmike Plaza 8
Springdale: National Amusements Springdale 18: Cinema de Lux
St. Clairsville: Carmike Ohio Valley Mall 11
Steubenville: Carmike 6
West Chester: Rave West Chester 18

OKLAHOMA
Duncan: Carmike 6
Lawton: Carmike 8
Shawnee: Carmike Cinema Centre 8
Stillwater: Carmike 10

OREGON
Corvallis: Carmike 12

PENNSYLVANIA
Allentown: Carmike 16
Altoona: Carmike 8
Bensalem: AMC Neshaminy 24
Center Valley: Rave Promenade 16
Cranberry: Carmike Cranberry Mall 8
Delmont: Carmike Wynnsong 12
Greensburg: Carmike 15
Mt. Lebanon: Carmike Galleria 6
Pleasant Hills: Carmike Southland 9
Pottstown: Carmike Coventry 8
State College: Carmike Cinema 5
Wyomissing: Carmike Wyomissing 8

RHODE ISLAND
Warwick: National Amusements Showcase Cinemas Warwick

SOUTH CAROLINA
Charleston: Carmike James Island 8
Columbia: Carmike 14
Myrtle Beach: Carmike Broadway 16
Myrtle Beach: Carmike Colonial 12

SOUTH DAKOTA
Rapid City: Carmike Rushmore 7
Sioux Falls: Carmike 7

TENNESSEE
Antioch: Carmike Bell Forge 10
Chattanooga: Carmike Bijou 7
Chattanooga: Carmike Wynnsong 10
Clarksville: Carmike Governor’s Square 10
Cookville: Carmike Highland 10
Dyersburg: Carmike 9
East Ridge: Rave East Ridge 18
Franklin: Carmike Thoroughbred 20
Gallatin: NCG Gallatin
Hixson: Carmike Northgate 14
Johnson City: Carmike 14
Knoxville: Carmike 10
Knoxville: Regal Pinnacle Stadium 18
Madison: Carmike Wynnsong 10
Maryville: Carmike Foothills 12
Memphis: Malco Paradiso
Morristown: Carmike College Square 9
Murfreesboro: Carmike Wynnsong 16
Nashville: Regal Opry Mills Stadium 20
Oneida: Carmike Cinema 3

TEXAS
Austin: Galaxy Highland 10
Edinburg: Carmike 20
El Paso: Carmike 16
Fort Worth: Rave Ridgmar 13
Grapevine: AMC Grapevine Mills 30
Hickory Creek: Rave Hickory Creek 16
Houston: AMC Studio 30
Houston: Rave Yorktown 15
Hurst: Rave North East Mall 18
Katy: Cinemark 19
Longview: Carmike 10
Mesquite: AMC Mesquite 30
Nacogdoches: Carmike 6
Plano: Cinemark Legacy 24
San Antonio: AMC Huebner Oaks 24
Tyler: Carmike 14
Wichita Falls: Carmike Sikes 10

UTAH
Provo: Carmike Wynnsong 12
Salt Lake City: Larry H. Miller Megaplex 12 at The Gateway
Sandy: Larry H. Miller Megaplex 17 at Jordan Commons
South Jordan: Larry H. Miller Megaplex 20 at The District
West Jordan: Carmike 12
West Valley City: Carmike Ritz 15

VIRGINIA
Alexandria: AMC Hoffman 22
Fairfax: National Amusements Fairfax Corner 14: Cinema de Lux
McLean: AMC Tysons Corner 16
Midlothian: Carmike 10
Roanoke: Carmike 10
Salem: Carmike Salem Valley 8
Virginia Beach: AMC Lynnhaven 18
Winchester: Carmike 6

WASHINGTON
Kennewick: Carmike 12
Monroe: Galaxy Monroe 12
Vancouver: Cinetopia

WEST VIRGINIA
Morgantown: Carmike Morgantown Mall 12

WISCONSIN
La Crosse: Carmike Valley Square 6

WYOMING
Cheyenne: Carmike Frontier 9

CANADA

ONTARIO
Waterloo: Cineplex Conestoga Mall 10

---

quote: Paul Konen

---

Cinemark just opened it first 100% digital theatre on June 29th 2007. Not a retrofit.

804 Stratford Square
Bloomingdale, IL 60108

---

The Stratford Square Mall theater used to be a Cineplex years ago. I grew up not far from there. When it opened it was a Henry Plitt version though... kinda so-so. I saw both Ghandi and Tron there in 70mm and Spacehinter in 3-D... er it was supposed to be 3-D. There goes the neighborhood .

Mark
 

---

Posted by Dustin Mitchell (Member # 372) on 07-07-2007, 01:00 AM:
 
Paul, the AccessIT software that is running on Allison's Doremi isn't set up like that. The only way to check for keys is under the 'KDM by station' tab in the Content Manager.

Allison, no offense but I think you had a blonde moment. Surf's up being Sony it would be Deluxe handling the keys. What might have screwed you up is that the Deluxe keys are always good from the opening date. That is, the first Technicolor key for 'Pirates' would have been valid May 23
through say June 14th (can't remember exactly). The next key would then be valid June 14 through June 21st, etc. With deluxe the second key would have been good May 23 to June 21 (one week after the original key expired).

I've never heard of a multi-week holdover key, except in the case of a holiday (I know, July 4th was Wednesday, but none of our holdover keys were multi-week). I'm not playing Surf's Up so I can't tell you for sure.

Honestly, they should be checking keys Wednesday night. All keys should be delivered by then-with the exception of AccessIT keys which seem to come in between close on Wednesday and opening on Thursday sometimes.
 

---

Posted by Allison Parsons (Member # 2728) on 07-07-2007, 01:20 AM:
 
Dustin,

Yeah, I'm leaning toward the blonde moment as well. The more I think about it, I remember the assitant manager tell me that one of the 3 movies that needed keys was a Deluxe. I thought it was Evan Allmighty, but I guess I was wrong. We got the key for Shrek via mail, and no Delux keys came thru the mail period.

Whoops. Live and learn I guess. This is what happens when I only work one day a week and I'm not in the loop anymore.
 

---

Posted by Tristan Lane (Member # 1169) on 07-07-2007, 01:34 AM:
 

quote: Allison Parsons

---

or do some correctly ingested and transfered keys just go 'bad', even when they are suppose to be good to go?

---

quote: Dustin Mitchell

---

Honestly, they should be checking keys Wednesday night. All keys should be delivered by then-with the exception of AccessIT keys which seem to come in between close on Wednesday and opening on Thursday sometimes.

---

quote: Mark Gulbrandsen

---

The Dolby process does not require a silver screen.

---

quote:

---

NORTH CAROLINA - 235 DLP screens
DLP equipped:
Durham - Wynnsong 15 - 15 DLP screens, 3D
Greenville - Carmike 12 - 12 DLP screens, 3D
Morrisville - Park Place 16 - 16 DLP screens, 3D
Raleigh - Carmike 15 - 15 DLP screens, 3D X 2
Wilson - Carmike 10 - 10 DLP screens, 3D
Washington - Cinema 7
Goldsboro - Berkeley 4 (2nd run)
Raleigh - Blue Ridge 14 (2nd run)

---

Ok, so I've trimmed the list down to my district, since that's all I really know about. The Berkeley 4 (my theater) won't be getting digital anytime soon. In fact I think 2010 is the year that was thrown at us. I had heard Blue Ridge was going to get it being that it's a virtual legend of a discount theater, i think their attendance is close to 700,000 a year, is prepped for the install, but were pushed back to god knows when. The Washington Cinema 7 is supposed to be 100% digital by the end of fall, and well, hell, the rest of the NC part of our district is full digital already.
 

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Posted by Steven J Hart (Member # 2340) on 09-24-2007, 08:55 AM:
 
Are these all true D-cinema machines or are they just installing a big LCD projector connected to a server on some of the smaller screens?
Steve
 

---

Posted by David Zylstra (Member # 4230) on 09-24-2007, 09:02 AM:
 
In order to get digital content from the studios you must have one of the DCI pursuant 2K or 4K projectors - besides, most off the shelf LCD/DLP projectors don't have the needed dual HD-SDI inputs.
 

---

Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 09-24-2007, 11:02 AM:
 
Every Carmike "digital" equipped screen features a Christie CP2000 digital projector and Doremi server running the AccessIT software. That includes some pretty small theaters in some pretty small towns. I'm pretty sure every theater location has at least one big SAN server as well.

Some of this equipment may be installed temporarily and then moved to new theater sites as they open. The rest of Carmike's first run screens in Oklahoma are supposed to have d-cinema equipment installed pretty soon, including a 5-plex in Ardmore. Carmike is reportedly building a new 8 or 10 screen theater there and then close down the old 5-plex.

Certain theater chains (like Cinemark) are using more "pro-sumer" quality video projectors for pre-show advertisements. I don't like those projectors because the images they throw are very dim compared to proper 35mm film projection and full sized d-cinema systems. Those smaller projectors are obviously only meant for use on smaller screens (like in someone's home or an office board room). But they're getting used on big movie theater screens anyway. My guess is the decision makers probably felt if the video image was anywhere near as bright as that of a worn out slide projector then it would be fine.
 

---

Posted by Mike Blakesley (Member # 26) on 09-24-2007, 02:42 PM:
 
Or they wanted the impact of the real digital cinema picture to be that much more effective.
 

---

Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 09-24-2007, 07:19 PM:
 
I don't have a single customer still running slides for Pre-Show.... All of them have gone to some sort of LCD projector or another. Most of the owners were smart though and looked into replacement lamp cost before buying their projectors. Many of them have settled on a Dell projector that sells for about a grand. Lamps are less expensive fopr these machines than most and the projectors look pretty good considering their cost and small size. I have other customers with Panasonic and other makes of projectors that get either poor lamp life or poor lamp life combined with lamps that cost close to $500.00 each. No point in lamp cost eating into pre-show profits at an indie location.

Mark
 

---

Posted by Matt Fields (Member # 3211) on 09-24-2007, 09:12 PM:
 
I still have slides at my theatre. Cheaper to operate, and I have yet to see a "Digital Preshow" that is not very annoying.

My wife sells the ads and I make them. Its a good little side biz.
 

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Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 09-25-2007, 12:28 PM:
 
Nothing more boring on earth than slides... 2nd most boring is any other form of pre-show material... 3rd most boring thing is about 80% of all the films made today...

Mark
 

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Posted by Louis Bornwasser (Member # 3063) on 09-25-2007, 02:44 PM:
 
Matt: stay with the slides. They are "just under the radar" of being annoying. At least you can converse with others while they run. Good show! Louis
 

---

Posted by Monte L Fullmer (Member # 2797) on 09-26-2007, 12:19 AM:
 
True, stay with slides.

Rolling over to digital preshow devices only adds added expense since the price per each machine is a lot more than those Kodak Ektagraph units, bulbs for the digital units are 300 plus bucks compared to pennies for those simple 300w halogen units - let alone, if having multiple screens, having a server feed the picture to the projector and sound through a MDS system that feeds to the consoles prior to showing.

Thus, your charge to customers would have to increase to compensate for the conversion...and do you want to drive away your customerbase with increased pricing?

good luck..-Monte
 

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Posted by James Westbrook (Member # 3690) on 09-26-2007, 12:47 AM:
 
I think we were paying $8 for the EXY lamps. (7.90 through Regency Lighting). We were until Moviead Media started supplying them for us running their slides...then they cost us nothing.
That was over 2 years ago...

 

---

Posted by Scott Norwood (Member # 30) on 09-26-2007, 05:26 AM:
 

quote: James Westbrook

---

I think we were paying $8 for the EXY lamps.

---

quote: Monte L Fullmer

---

Rolling over to digital preshow devices only adds added expense since the price per each machine is a lot more than those Kodak Ektagraph units, bulbs for the digital units are 300 plus bucks compared to pennies for those simple 300w halogen units - let alone, if having multiple screens, having a server feed the picture to the projector and sound through a MDS system that feeds to the consoles prior to showing.

---

quote: Scott Norwood

---

As for the video advertisements--I can't stand those and will never, ever, under any circumstances work for any theatre that uses them.

---

quote: Scott Norwood

---

I do film stuff as a hobby and can pick and choose.

---

quote: Mark Gulbrandsen

---

An excellent plex simply does not exist.

---

quote: Ky Boyd

---

Does Carmike not size the lenses for DLP to the screens? Or do they have to build new front ends?

---

quote: Ky Boyd

---

Oh, and what is with the no ice-cream products at the concessions stand?

---

quote: Richard Fowler

---

Many of the guys I know in the front end of thew business are very busy making adjustments to digital installs.......

---

quote: David Zylstra

---

I wonder if on some the wrong format was selected - i.e. if you run a scope movie in the flat format

---

quote: Bobby Henderson

---

My first thought about that is the cleaning nightmare.

---

I've heard that nacho's cheese is way worse to get out. Nachos... the food substitute , a close relative to Soilent Green I presume.

Mark
 

---

Posted by David Zylstra (Member # 4230) on 11-08-2007, 11:31 AM:
 
I wouldn't cut them much slack even though I do understand they are overworked - if a 35mm install was left with similar picture issues would we be saying the same thing? Of all the comments on this forum about picture quality and properly sized flat/scope screens why are potentially bad digital setups now OK because someone is overworked? Christie is getting paid very well to do these installs - I know what we paid up front to Christie and it was significantly more than what I would pay for a 35mm install that included sound system setup.
Anyone here who has done installs knows how hard it is to get back to a remote site where you left some items unfinished, especially if you are busy with lots of installs.

FYI - the install crew is not doing the RealD stuff for locations that already have digital projectors, that is being left to the local techs (and in our area I understand the local techs did some of the full installs as well).

quote: Mike Blakesley

---

Why is that even possible? In a digital setup, can't that kind of mistake be automated out of happening?

---

quote: Bobby Henderson

---

On top of that it appears Carmike will be adding a video-based pre-show program and doing away with the slide projectors. So that's even more stuff to install and set up.

---

quote: Bobby Henderson

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the theater's manager is one of those types who doesn't really care about show quality and just does the minimum to collect his paycheck

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That's apparently all Carmike has in Montana. Until DC was installed in Billings, scratched/spliced prints and misfocused, misframed pictures were common. I used to dread getting the occasional circuit from the Plaza 6 in Butte...film that came out of that place was invariably damaged.

Carmike had 6 screens in Helena (a rapidly growing area) but folded their tent and left town shortly after Cinemark built a nice 8-plex there. (They are going to add 6 more screens to it next year.) The same thing is happening in Bozeman -- probably the most upscale town in Montana. Wallace built a beautiful 8-plex there, while Carmike keeps going with their run-down 30 year old properties.
 

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Posted by David Stambaugh (Member # 1102) on 11-08-2007, 01:56 PM:
 
How the heck can a brand-new or almost new DLP install be that messed up? Is the install crew so rushed that they throw stuff in and don't take care of all the details and say "We'll come back later to make it all right"? That's crazy talk.

Does Carmike not send out "secret shoppers" to evaluate their theaters? WTF! I mean how hard is it to tell a GM "Your presentation falls far below our our standards; fix it or you're out of there!" Jesus H Christ!
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 11-08-2007, 03:01 PM:
 

quote: David Zylstra

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I wouldn't cut them much slack even though I do understand they are overworked

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quote: David Zylstra

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If a 35mm install was left with similar picture issues would we be saying the same thing?

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quote: David Zylstra

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FYI - the install crew is not doing the RealD stuff for locations that already have digital projectors, that is being left to the local techs (and in our area I understand the local techs did some of the full installs as well).

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quote: David Zylstra

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There are "macro cues" available to the DoReMi that will directly control the projector format, but depending on how they were set up the DCA21 automation may be overriding the format choice. Of course there is also the distinct possibility of user error - i.e. wrong format show chosen on the automation and/or wrong cue placed on the showlist (but the macro cues only control the projected format, not the masking - at least on my install)

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quote: Bobby Henderson

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You might want to walk a mile in their shoes before saying that.

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quote: Bobby Henderson

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No. That's because you're making an overly simplistic apples to oranges comparison.

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quote: Bobby Henderson

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Christie's tech people installed and setup the first RealD system here in Lawton and installed the hardware in October for the 2nd and 3rd systems. I don't know who installed the silver screens. Management was coached through doing the final setup on those systems since available techs were spread elsewhere, such as New Mexico for the Allen Theaters conversion project now getting underway.

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quote: Bobby Henderson

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You should be able to control the screen masking from the DCA21

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quote: Bobby Henderson

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The Real D system can be a little finicky with cues.

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quote: Dustin Mitchell

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there is a cue named 'start 1.85 show' and one named 'start 2.35 show' but in reality there is no difference-

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quote: Steve Guttag

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What is the big difference (beside color scheme) between the CA21 and the DCA21? Is there any special serial or Ethernet connections it has? Or are the buttons just labeled a bit different to correspond to the needs of DCinema?

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quote: David Zylstra

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I have a good raport with several of the Christie TSIs and I know the pressure they are under, and I have been on my share of 35mm installs as well as watched closely what is involved in setting the digitals up - in comparison a 35mm job includes enough items that make it equal or more work than a digital conversion.

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quote: David Zylstra

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Christie has 3 groups of techs I know of - TSIs who do the installs, CSEs that do service and another group doing 35mm service - In my area the CSEs have done the RealD installs for existing screens so there was no labor taken away from install to do these.

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quote: Steve Guttag

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So you are telling me...if you had crappy staff ruining film presentations before, the crappy staff will ruin digital presentations? I guess they still can't scratch the digital movies at least. This does sorta debunk that digital=pefect shows for the masses.

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quote: David Zylstra

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The macro cues and the latest upgrade cures this - basically the entire show is run in the 3D format (a 48fps cue puts the DoReMi in 48fps mode as well as converts the colorspace to the one used by 3D, then the 3Dflatorscope cue changes the projector to the 3D input).

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quote: Bobby Henderson

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A 35mm film projection setup isn't quite as complicated as one of these d-cinema setups

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quote: Bobby Henderson was the last to post

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Baloney.

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quote: Dustin Mitchell

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Mark you are wrong, messing with the zoom lens is NOT the only way to get the results that Ky observed. Firstly even if the theatre staff was perfectly trained the screenvision ads by default do not fill the screen-nothing to be done about this at the theatre/install level, its just the way they're made. Secondly if you run the show with the wrong program selected on the DCA21 what Ky describes is EXACTLY what happens-I know because its happened here before. Thirdly if you play a trailer in the wrong format-that is have a scope trailer in a flat show-you can get similar results. If the scope trailer would have been full screen in scope it will be letterboxed in flat-doesn't look bad, just like a 35mm flat trailer for a scope movie would be letterboxed. However, if the scope trailer woud have been pilarboxed (scope trailer advertising a flat movie) then if you were to play it in the flat format it woud be letterboxed and still pilarboxed.

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quote: Tristan Lane

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There is a lot more prep, alignment, and tuning involved with a 35mm install than there ever will be with digital cinema.

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quote:

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What I was talking about in terms of complexity in a digital cinema setup is the extra pieces of equipment that must be installed that must be installed, the fact they must all be networked together and that they must all be doing more tasks than a 35mm projector is designed to manage.

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quote: Bobby Henderson

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What about if something breaks?

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quote: Bobby Henderson

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And that kind of gets back to the crux of the argument: some folks seem to believe the Christie/AIX guys are screwing off on the job or something not to have everything just absolutely freaking perfect in the short amount of time they're given to do a complete d-cinema installation for an entire multiplex.

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quote: Bobby Henderson

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And, no, I don't have to have any experience installing 35mm film projectors or d-cinema projectors to figure that out. The situation is simple enough for anyone with any lick of sense to figure out.

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quote: Ky Boyd

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This is probably something about d-cinema I don't understand since I've not worked with it. But the scope shaped image did not fill the scope screen.

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quote: Mark Gulbrandsen

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Well, I haven't seen that you've actually figured anything out yet. In fact you've shown more lack of real knowledge here than anything else.

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quote: David Zylstra

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But let's back up here a second, I am the customer who is paying a HUGE premium per screen for the install to get done - the fact that the install crews are overloaded is NOT my problem, why should I accept a partial job because their company as a whole is committed to a near unrealistic time frame?

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quote: Bobby Henderson

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But the Chrisie/AIX crews are expected to do just that and repeat that feat for a huge number of locations?

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quote: Bobby Henderson

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Get eight or so systems wired up, networked and running with whatever audio booth rack is in place and have the setup playing digital movies perfectly by Thursday evening in time for the theater to be showing movies in D-cinema by Friday.

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quote:

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Christie/Doremi should have come up with some other type of automation interface like the NA-10 that has no human interface except at the server!!

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quote: Bobby Henderson

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Show up at a 20+ year old location on Monday sight unseen. Get eight or so systems wired up, networked and running with whatever audio booth rack is in place and have the setup playing digital movies perfectly by Thursday evening in time for the theater to be showing movies in D-cinema by Friday. It's a cakewalk! No problem with that. No need to go back and "mop up" anything either.

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quote: Bobby Henderson

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Maybe turn-around time is something to be considered before buying the gear. There are other digital cinema providers besides Christie/AIX.

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quote: Bobby Henderson

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OTOH, I haven't heard any complaints about Christie/AIX installations in other theater chains, such as RAVE, etc. The situation with Carmike may be unique due to the larger number of installations.

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quote: Bobby Henderson

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I called people at DTS and management at Carmike to actually get the problem solved -rather than just whine about how "Carmike sucks."

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quote: Bobby Henderson

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I don't install projection systems for a living, but I've seen enough of the process enough times over the years to know it's something that doesn't just happen real fast. But the Chrisie/AIX crews are expected to do just that and repeat that feat for a huge number of locations?

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quote: Steve Guttag

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It is entirely possible that there will be depots that will have necessary modules stratigically placed around the country or that they will be priced such that a service company can stock those modules much the same way we stock projector parts, platter parts...etc.

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quote: David Zylstra

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replace any automation addressing/networking and interlock roller setup with the TMS system and making it work . . . . . . basically with digital there are "near same time" trade offs on the install .

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quote: Mike Blakesley

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I'm amazed that they put 3D in Bozeman and Butte MT, but not in Great Falls.

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quote: Steven J Hart

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When will Digital Cinema become mainstream enough for me to be able to afford it on my small-town single screen?

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quote:

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Not sure what the situation is in Great Falls. [snip] The Carmike theater in Bozeman now has 2 Real D systems and one in Billings has 3 Real D systems installed. Do those cities have larger populations of younger adult movie-goers?

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quote: Bobby Henderson - Regarding Carmike Screens in Pennsylvania

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No DLP Yet: (23 screens remaining)
Beaver Falls - Plaza 6
Du Bois - Cinema Five
West Mifflin - Maxi Saver 12 #

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I'm familiar with these remaining three as the company I work for used to own the Beaver Falls and West Mifflin locations. The projection equipment at Plaza 6 was a hodge-podge of total shit when it was sold to Carmike well over ten years ago. I doubt they've upgraded, yet I'm not surprised this theater hasn't gone digital since they don't really have much competition down that way. Maxi Saver, on the other hand, was a homogenous booth when it too was sold in the same deal that took Plaza off our hands. They had regular operators with decades of experience. If Carmike employees didn't wreak that booth there is no need for DLP.

Cinema 5 in Du Bois is right off Interstate 80. Its mountain country up there. Once again, no direct competition.
 

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Posted by Steve Guttag (Member # 268) on 11-17-2007, 07:30 PM:
 
Mike...the 2nd amendment... oh wait...different arguement

I would say the best hope is to continue with film if you are doing a good job with it. It is less expensive now and for the forseeable future. The equipment also has a much longer likelihood of surviving for decades.

As to 1st generation DCinema equipment...it is alread obsolete...you must be talking about the 2nd generation (2K machines)...one of the stupid things that Dcinema has done is to obsolete working 1st generation machines...smaller and sub-run houses would have done well with the first machines...it would have also shown that one could buy with confidence knowing that the industry wont just decide to quite supporting the technology. For what its worth, I recently had a mirror fail in a Barco DP50 (1.3K machine) and Barco WAS able to supply a replacement though it did have to come from Europe...not too bad considering the machine had VERY low production numbers and has been out of production for 4-years now.

Steve
 

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Posted by Darryl Spicer (Member # 711) on 11-18-2007, 01:51 AM:
 

quote: Bobby Henderson

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Lexington, KY - Carmike 10

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quote: Bobby Henderson

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Cheyenne, WY - Cole Square 3

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quote: Steve Guttag

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If the rumors at ShowEast are true...the virtual print fees are coming to an end for everyone...

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quote: Mike Blakesley

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And why shouldn't they want to end VPFs? They'll save mega bucks and get off for a fraction of what they should pay.

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quote: Mike Blakesley

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I'm amazed that they put 3D in Bozeman and Butte MT, but not in Great Falls. (Much larger town.)

Bozeman about 27,000
Butte about 34,000

Great Falls about 57,000

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quote: Mark Gulbrandsen

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Word has it that Carmike is out of Cole Square 3 when the lease is up. The entire mall is for sale and will eventually come down.

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Dibs on the sign.



sweeeeeeet
 

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Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 01-29-2008, 09:14 PM:
 
Its probably one of the better looking neon signs in Cheyenne bar a few of the old motel neon signs down on Lincolnway....

Mark
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 01-29-2008, 11:16 PM:
 

quote: Sam Graham

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Dibs on the sign.

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They might take you up on that...unless someone else wants to cash in the cabinet for steel and aluminum recycling. It's either going to get chopped up for that or just take up space rusting in a "bone yard" somewhere.

It's not a bad sign. Signs featuring exposed neon take more effort to build. They're certainly more eye-catching than the typical rectangular box with vinyl decorated white acrylic faces commonly used (often with badly laid out and distorted type).

But Coca-Cola called and would like its script back.


The only thing I can knock about that sign is how the green border neon is treated. It has some visible cross-over connections from one green row to the next. Kinda messes up the art deco inspired look. And the lettering is a little crooked in places. But again, it's a lot better than the sorts of signs you normally see bolted to a building. I just hope it's wired to NEC specs and UL listed. Don't need any buildings burning to the ground.

Here's a couple examples of exposed border neon similar to the Cole Square sign, but IMHO done a bit better:


 

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