Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: Rules for theatre managers

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Posted by Scott Norwood (Member # 30) on 08-04-2001, 07:28 AM:

1. If you decide to change showtimes, move a print, or not move a print, or otherwise decide to change the schedule from what it was originally supposed to be, please tell the projectionist.

2. If you follow rule #1, it usually works best if you tell the projectionist _before_ he has threaded up and started films in the "wrong" houses or at the "wrong" times because he only had a copy of the original schedule.

3. If you don't follow rules #1 or #2, don't come into the booth screaming and hit the "stop" buttons for the houses whose schedules have changed. This tends to surprise and annoy the projectionist when he is inspecting film at the rewind bench.

4. If you don't follow rules #1, #2, and #3 and the projectionist has to fix a problem caused by _your_ screw-up and tells you that doing so will take 10-15 minutes, don't immediately tell your customers that things will be fixed in "no more than five minutes."

5. If you don't follow rules #1, #2, #3, and #4, don't try to "help" the projectionist fix things by mis-threading something, changing the wrong lenses, or inserting aperture plates upside-down. This tends to either damage film or create more work for the projectionist or both.

(End of rant. Sorry.)

Posted by Bob Maar (Member # 763) on 08-04-2001, 08:14 AM:

Scott,

Hopefully your manager is still alive.

Good post should be drilled into management staff.

Anyone entering booth should have to announce themselves when projector's are running. Including management. It's for their own safety.

Posted by Brad Miller (Member # 2) on 08-04-2001, 02:31 PM:

#6 Don't make a show schedule without OKing it with the projectionist. You could be making foolish mistakes like putting a SRD only print into a DTS only house whereas flipping two prints on the schedule would mean that both prints would play in digital and the seat count would not be altered. This is also important for things like double-ups where one particular platter only has two functioning decks working and the projectionists are waiting for a part.

#7 Do not allow anyone in the booth except for management. Projectionist don't think it is very funny when someone from the floor staff comes into the booth and grabs them from behind yelling "GOTCHA!" when the projectionist is changing out a xenon lamp or has their hands inside a moving machine adjusting or checking something.

#8 In the event of downtime, do not repeatedly call the projectionist every 30 seconds on the radio saying "is it fixed yet?" This will only double the time it takes for the task to be repaired for half of the projectionist's time will be spent replying and not repairing.

#9 Should the power or fire alarm go off, do not run into the booth and restart the projectors. Many times the film will "jump the track" and your restarting it could end up damaging the remainder of that print.

#10 Did you read rule #5? NEVER try and "help" the projectionist unless he/she specifically requests it. You will almost always cause more problems and/or a damaged print.

Posted by George Roher (Member # 91) on 08-04-2001, 05:57 PM:

It's ironic that Scott posted his rules today. Just yesterday I had a manager inform me just minutes before a show of Cats & Dogs that we were canceling that show to interlock Rush Hour 2. I almost threaded and started the wrong show. We've already had a ton of schedule changes and print moves this weekend and the weekend is not over yet. And we have to manually set the masking in most of our auditoriums which makes things even more fun.

It has been my experience that the projectionist is always the last person to know what movies are playing and where they are playing.

I have a couple of rules too:

# 11. Don't yell at the projectionist about a problem that he/she informed you about months ago that you were too cheap to get fixed.

# 12. Don't wait until the picture on screen is pitch black or flickering violently before you order new lamps.

# 13. Follow ALL of Scott and Brad's rules to the letter.

Posted by Jerry Chase (Member # 660) on 08-04-2001, 06:51 PM:

You all have me in stitches.

Bless the manager out. Threaten to call the D.M. directly. Any manager worth his or her salt will apologize and fly right. We are all in it together, and a good manager doesn't want any of this any more than you do.

Send any complaining managers to me. (I'm looking for an "evil grin" smilie.)

Posted by Joe Redifer (Member # 3) on 08-04-2001, 06:59 PM:

Here's a couple:

#14. The booth is not a breakroom. Please don't put the breakroom in the booth or make it necessary for employees to walk through the booth to get to the breakroom.

#15. Don't get angry if the projectionist cannot hear you clearly on the walkie. There is a lot of noise coming from projectors and the projectionist is not always in a position to hear you clearly the first time.

I of course agree with everyone else's rules thus far as well.

Posted by Michael Gonzalez (Member # 593) on 08-04-2001, 11:05 PM:

Wow for a minute there I thought I was in the wrong place. This is the Ground Level for Management, Owners and Staff isn't it? I don't know who runs your theaters I will speak for the managers who not only do our jobs but also:

Thread and start all projectors for every set.

Maintain said projectors by cleaning gates,platters, rollers, lubricating gates rollers etc. changing worn belts and misc. parts when needed.

Changing Xennon bulbs when needed.

Making sure that we have adequate spare parts as well as ques splicing tape etc.

Making up and breaking down films each week (Thursdays).

Shipping old trailers back to the individual film companies.

Oh and this one is for you Brad... I am the one who makes sure that the projectionist (Booth/Ushers) are actually using Film Guard and it is not just sitting on the shelf.

I could go on but I think that you get the general idea. So I think that I know where I am comming from when I do the showclock every week or when I decide to move prints to a bigger/smaller house or decide to interlock prints. Thank you very much.

Posted by Joe Redifer (Member # 3) on 08-05-2001, 01:14 AM:

Some managers are very, very good. Unfortunately others are control freaks and/or just don't quite understand the projection room.

Posted by Christopher Duvall (Member # 284) on 08-05-2001, 02:30 AM:

I feel that all managers should run the projection booth as a projectionist sometime in their career. Not as a manager running a booth, but as a PROJECTIONIST running a booth. I was a projectionist myself for 9 years of my theatre career and I am the better for it. I even helped with installs as well. This has enlightened me in such a way that it has influenced my decisions on house placements, sound formats, showtimes, trailer placements and etc. I am a very hands on manager when it comes to my projection booth and the boys keep me in the loop as well because of this. Unfortunately, there are quite a few managers in my company as well as all of the other chains out there that seem to keep their distance from the booth which I think is borderline criminal activity.

The good news is that Regal is taking a very proactive stance in training all operators and managers in the booth and is going as far to have a certification process as well.

OK...I need to get off my soapbox now...whew.

------------------
Chris Duvall
General Manager
Regal Cinemas Colonnade14
Las Vegas, NV

Posted by John T. Hendrickson, Jr (Member # 849) on 08-05-2001, 01:38 PM:

Here's another one:

Do not allow non-booth personnel to use your tools. You will not likely see them again.

We keep a combo lock on our toolbox for a reason.

In an emergency situation recently, I did allow a manager to borrow a screwdriver, but he had to leave his watch with me as collateral. Incidently, if he didn't have a watch, his wallet would have sufficed. BTW, I got my screwdriver back, and promptly, too.

Posted by Evans A Criswell (Member # 381) on 08-05-2001, 03:41 PM:

quote:

The good news is that Regal is taking a very proactive stance in training all operators and managers in the booth and is going as far to have a certification process as well.

That is great news. Major Kudos to Regal on this one. Some problems in local theatres in my area has been due to operators not receiving the proper training. One booth person at one point said, "They put me up there without me knowing much." Out-of-frame splices and misframings were very common during that time, too.

Regal needs to implement a better quality checking and control system as well to seek out problems and fix them. A good system is to train some users to notice the most common types of problems (focus, alignment, shutter ghosting, misframing, etc.) and each showing checked by someone twice during each showing and have them report any problem they notice (even minor ones) so they can be corrected. One theatre in my area uses this technique and as no surprise, they have the best presentation quality.

I take it that many of the rules posted in the early part of this thread assume that the manager is not an experienced projector operator. At least one of the managers in my area is a very knowledgeable, qualified operator and used to be involved in training projectionists. Are technically knowledgeable managers a rarity in theatres these days? By the sound of these rules that y'all posted, it surely sounds like it.

------------------
Evans A Criswell
Huntsville-Decatur Movie Theatre Information Site

Posted by Andy Muirhead (Member # 712) on 08-05-2001, 06:50 PM:

This is great!

I sent the 'rules for customers' to my cinema last week, and we all had a good laugh about the common problems. This one is so true though.

So many times i've walked in and threaded all machines only to be told after i saunter back downstairs "Oh yeah, were swapping 1 and 2 for this show"!!!

Argghhh!

Posted by System Notices (Member # 2357) on 11-08-2004, 11:37 PM:

It has been 1191 days since the last post.

Posted by Chris Brown (Member # 2800) on 11-08-2004, 11:37 PM:

quote:
#15. Don't get angry if the projectionist cannot hear you clearly on the walkie. There is a lot of noise coming from projectors and the projectionist is not always in a position to hear you clearly the first time.

This one always gets me...whenever I'm upstairs and have to ask someone to repeat what they've said, they think I'm hard of hearing or something. They dont get how much noise is going on around you, especially if you're standing by a projector or going around checking sound levels. Grrr...

Posted by Wolff King Morrow (Member # 2226) on 11-09-2004, 06:58 AM:

#16: Don't just radio up the projectionist and say "check number 14". Please give details on what is wrong. If a customer requests a sound check, ask them to describe the problem before calling the projectionist.

#17: If you're a floor-staffer, never direct a customer to a projectionist who happens to be walking by at the moment. Most of the time it ends up being a complaint about ad content or scheduling, which a projectionist cannot give out passes or properly resolve the situation like a manager can. That's what managers are good for. [Wink]

Posted by Chase Hanson (Member # 2779) on 11-09-2004, 02:01 PM:

This might not apply to many of your guys, but for those of us that work in chain theaters and have projectionests that are intentionally not taught how to fix certain problems (because that is the domain of a Market Technical Rep).

#17: If your projectionist(s) says its broken and they cant fix it. It IS broken and they CAN NOT fix it. Put the radio down, pick the telephone up and page the tech.

Yelling at a projectionist over a problem they cant fix causes 3 things.

1)You still have a blank screen, and theater of upset patrons.
2)Other movies are going to start late, which means more angry patrons
3)Massive decrease in projectionist morale, which leads to a decrease in work quality and output.

[ 11-12-2004, 03:50 PM: Message edited by: Chase Hanson ]

Posted by Chris Brown (Member # 2800) on 11-11-2004, 11:59 PM:

quote:
#16: Don't just radio up the projectionist and say "check number 14". Please give details on what is wrong. If a customer requests a sound check, ask them to describe the problem before calling the projectionist.

This is something I've dealt with many times, usually from the usher who takes the customer complaint. It definitely ticks me off though, especially if its one of those stressful days to begin with....not that ushers should always be expected to know what's going on, but at least go down there and describe it as best you can. That's all I ask... [thumbsup]

Posted by Jack Ondracek (Member # 1466) on 11-12-2004, 12:22 AM:

I didn't know this thread was buried in the archives... great stuff here.

Friday's at the drive-in are hectic... probably something like what you indoor guys deal with on Wednesdays & Thursdays.... only sometimes worse. If I don't open something on the break, it'll come in on Friday... sometimes after 3pm. That means building on the run, no way of pre-screening & knowing I could have well over 800 people in the field that night.

With that in mind, my staff (almost) knows that I will either ignore the booth phone if it rings, or I will be very irritated-sounding if I do answer it, so it better be about somebody dying.
Hollering on the talkie before showtime on Friday is pretty much the same. If somebody needs me & it's not an emergency, they come up to the booth so I don't have to drop everything to get the phone or the radio.

Posted by Allison Parsons (Member # 2728) on 11-12-2004, 12:26 AM:

rule #1001 Please don't ask the projectionist if they can help fix the butter pump in the middle of the set.

that happend to me today. Why me.....

Posted by Chris Hipp (Member # 1788) on 11-12-2004, 02:49 AM:

quote:
#16: Don't just radio up the projectionist and say "check number 14". Please give details on what is wrong. If a customer requests a sound check, ask them to describe the problem before calling the projectionist.

I would have to disagree on that one. It is not the customer's responsibility to describe or even notify the theater of a problem. The theater staff should be monitoring the auditoriums and fixing problems before a customer has to complain. I will agree that they should specify on volume which is more a matter of personal taste.

If a staff member or manager is available to check it then I think they should before calling booth.

Posted by Wolff King Morrow (Member # 2226) on 11-12-2004, 04:16 AM:

Chris, the point is you cannot guess what the customer wants because 99% of the time they are complaining about volume. Now how are you gonna know if they want it turned up or down? If the volume sounded fine when you checked it, you've got no clue. That's the point.

Posted by Robert E. Allen (Member # 1351) on 11-12-2004, 03:59 PM:

Rule #18. Don't schedule two starts at the same time if the machines are at opposite ends of the booth.

In our house I've had #1 and #7 scheduled to start of the same time and they are about 100 yards apart. (I'm not paid enough to try to run that fast at 72 years of age.)

Posted by Jason Miller (Member # 2341) on 11-12-2004, 04:26 PM:

During a staff meetingonce, I made a "gag" reel of a bunch of trailers with problems in it and showed the entire staff what things look like and what to call it over a walkie.

they from then on knew what "out of frame" was.. or soundtrack reversed, or even a tails up picture (in case the rare occasion would arise taht a trailer was added in tails up).

I also had someone upstairs change sound format setting from digital to analog, stereo to mono, open the soundhead on the 5-star (that sounded interesting).

I showed them what lighting levels were supposed to be during trailers/credits and during the show so when a customer complained the lights were still onthey could see where they were suppsed to be.

after that presentation, I had a LOT more informative walky chatter and even fewer requests to "check the lights" because the floor staff would walk in to the aud with the customer and know what to say.

plus it is always good to teach the kids a little bit more about the business they are in and what kind of things can happen when someone who sucks runs the booth.

Posted by Chris Hipp (Member # 1788) on 11-12-2004, 11:10 PM:

Wolff, perhaps you should re read my post where I did say that volume should be specified. For other things such as static or digital sound cutting out, They should not have to tell you "there is some static coming from the left surround speaker" or anything else like that. Just saying "hey, the sound is messed up in #2" is more than enough.

Posted by Dominic Espinosa (Member # 2122) on 11-13-2004, 12:34 PM:

If there's really a problem in one of the houses then just knowing about it is job 1. Kudos to them for informing the projectionist that there's something wrong with the sound in xyz house.

Rule #17: Use the house numbers. Don't tell me the title of the movie if there's more than one, we don't have time for banter!

Rule #18: Don't just stand at the bottom of the stairs yelling up at me and then get pissed off and come up to yell cause I don't hear you at the other end of the booth over all the projectors.

Rule #19: Projectionists aren't ushers. Don't tell us to deal with noisy patrons.

Posted by Joseph Pandolfi (Member # 223) on 11-13-2004, 05:58 PM:

Robert, I'll amend to your Rule #18 -- Don't schedule two starts at the same time if the machines are at opposite ends of the booth, when the previous show ends five minutes or less before start time and the second one on the other side ends right at the start of the next scheduled show.

Posted by Barry Martin (Member # 1376) on 11-14-2004, 12:22 AM:

Chris, I had some occasions where I was asked to check the sound in such and such a theater with no specifics. Turn on the booth monitor, nothing wrong. Open the projection port, I can't hear anything wrong (especially over the machinery) and by the time getting downstairs if it was an intermittent problem, it might be gone. Always helpful to have specifics. Even if those specifics are as vague as the "sound is wrong" vs. "the sound is low/high". At least that tells you to rule out volume as a complaint.

Posted by Frank Angel (Member # 248) on 11-14-2004, 10:24 AM:

I have a standing rule -- never call the booth and tell me the sound is too loud or to low based on a complaint from one or two patrons. If a patron complains, go into the theatre, LISTEN for 10 minutes and then, IF the floor manager feels there is a problem, THEN call the booth. Sound and temperature are VERY subjective. There's a bell curve with both. There will always be a few people on either end of the curve who will feel the sound is too loud or too low, too hot or too cold. I am not going to adjust volume or temperature based on one or two compliants from patrons. I need a reliable assessment by staff as to the viablility of any complaints.

As for the managers' rules,

quote:
#8 In the event of downtime, do not repeatedly call the projectionist every 30 seconds on the radio saying "is it fixed yet?"

...here's what I say whenever I got a call like that, "Yes, I know there is a problem with the sound...I am the PROJECTIONIST. And I WAS diligently fixing the problem but, heh heh, someone just called me up, so I've had to put down my tools to answer the phone where I can't fix the problem, but coincidently, am having a pretty pointless conversation with the caller....oh, that would be you, wouldn't it? Am I making myself clear?" [evil]

I love sarcastic humor, but then again, my line with the center is tenured....I don't have to worry 'bout a boss who might NOT appreciate sarcastic humor. [Big Grin]

Posted by Barry Martin (Member # 1376) on 11-14-2004, 09:34 PM:

Frank, that is priceless. Seems to me there are a LOT of film handlers who appreciate the quality that good old sarcasm can bring to a workplace. [Wink]

Keep fighting the good fight. [Razz]

Posted by Nicholas Suchyta (Member # 2050) on 11-15-2004, 07:36 PM:

Rule #20 - In following rule #5, do not stand around the projectionist while he is trying to fix the problem and ask questions like "Now what does that do?", "How does that happen?", "can't you do it another way?" or anything of that nature. This is considered hostile action.

Posted by David Yauch (Member # 2754) on 11-16-2004, 12:36 AM:

Rule number whatever: Don't sneak up on the projectionist in the booth while they are threading a movie and ask very loudly "what're you doing!!!" especially if they don't know you are even in the building at the time...

Posted by Dominic Espinosa (Member # 2122) on 11-16-2004, 02:30 PM:

Scarring people can be a fun game...except when you're holding a xenon lamp or a lens.

I love sarcastic humor...The staff at most of the theaters I work at thinks I'm a little odd though...I think it's all the time in the booth. It gets to you...

Posted by Robert E. Allen (Member # 1351) on 11-16-2004, 05:04 PM:

"Robert, I'll amend to your Rule #18 -- Don't schedule two starts at the same time if the machines are at opposite ends of the booth, when the previous show ends five minutes or less before start time and the second one on the other side ends right at the start of the next scheduled show."

Amen Joseph.

I'd also like to see management refer to projector parts by their correct name when breaking in a new projectionists. It amazes me how many don't know what an intermittant or hold-back or pull-down sprocket is or what shoes, gate or trap is.

Posted by Brad Allen (Member # 470) on 11-19-2004, 04:11 PM:

Robert, you mean when they call you and tell you that one of the "cameras" isn't working?

Posted by Robert E. Allen (Member # 1351) on 11-20-2004, 03:54 PM:

Not only that Brad, but the company I work for has a que tag for the projectonist they run on their pre-show digital projector and instructs the projectionist to look for the "projector" icon. It's an image of a camera. If the home office doesn't know the difference how can we expect these kids to know?

Posted by Dave Williams (Member # 299) on 11-21-2004, 01:05 PM:

quote: Dominic Espinosa
Scarring people can be a fun game

Yeah I agree. Running around with red hot pokers scarring people in the face and on the arms is lots of fun. [evil]

In all jest, I would add that as a former Manager and SUPREME EXPERT GOD OF PROJECTION, I usually knew more than my projectionists. I would radio up information that was TOO technically savvy for them. They would be lost and after I go up to show them, they go "OH, why didn't you just say flip the sound thingy!"

Ciao baby

Dave

Posted by Dominic Espinosa (Member # 2122) on 11-23-2004, 06:07 PM:

I do that to the managers all the time...Though it's not with anything technical, it's usually very simple.
The hardest part of being technically incline is dumbing down the information for consumption by "outsiders"; those not familiar with the field.

Next rule...
Do not piss off the projectionist with dumb questions in the middle of a set. And more importantly, don't ask the projectionist to change popping oil cans durring the set either, we're busy too.

Posted by Thomas Procyk (Member # 1170) on 11-27-2004, 11:54 PM:

Another rule...

Don't give the projectionist inane floor tasks between sets and then scold them for not upkeeping the booth enough. [Mad]

=TMP=

Posted by Jason M Miller (Member # 2597) on 11-29-2004, 12:31 AM:

scaring is fun....We are a small 4 screen theater, we have one booth supervisor and one staff projectionist, and the 4 managers are projectionist, so we know each other very well, so what I will do (when appropriate..will not do this if a task is being done that could damage or hinder the show in anyway) is I will sneak up to the booth in an empty booth and turn up the booth monitor then leave, with out letting the projectionist see me [Big Grin]

One rule for the projectionist from a manager...HAVE YOUR RADIO WITH YOU AND ON.

Posted by Jason Miller (Member # 2341) on 11-29-2004, 04:42 PM:

My biggest problem with the radios was having to listen to 30 minute conversations about how to ring up a friggin coupon in the concession stand.

I would rather have a decent paging system that didnt scare you when it went off and wasnt too loud that customers could hear it in the auds. then when someone needed to get ahold of the projectionist, they simply found the nearest phone and paged them.

often the people calling you on the radio think you sit in a quiet room with nothing going on and the radio attached to your eardrum. no. you are surrounded by clattering projectors and if you are trying to work on something you may have your head next to a machine.

and for fugs sake... dont sneak up on anyone threading a machine or trying to fix something. it isnt funny to make the buzzing noise while we are trying to reconeect a wire.. or grab our shoulders while our hand is in a small place trying to get a nut back on a bolt. you make us drop that bolt and WE have to spend the extra time to fish it out of whatever crevass it fell into.

now I pissed myself off...

Posted by Brad Allen (Member # 470) on 11-29-2004, 05:21 PM:

Sneaking up, scaring and such is horseplay. And if the manager is of any count, it's against the rules of the theatre and would result in a write up and or termination.
A place of business is not a place for horseplay, let alone a projection booth, period.

Posted by William Hooper (Member # 71) on 11-30-2004, 01:35 AM:

I agree 100% with Brad Allen. It's unsafe, causes morale & personnel problems, lawsuits from not maintaining a safe work environment - safe from *any* personal assault, not just physical.

It may be funny to look at, but basically it's deriving enjoyment from others' discomfort. Nicey-nice aside, the next step is reaction, & that's likely going to be VERY physical. You don't just have to worry about an anger response; the defensive resposne will be to move away or strike back even *before* an emotional response of anger (or amusement) is created. Moving away reflexively will likely injure the person who's assaulted, striking out will injure the person who initiated the situation & it often escalates from there. And liability will be with the person who launched the initial assault, even if it wasn't physical.

The most notorious example of that kind of thing is the bright, quick 4 finger slap on the palm of the hand when standing behind someone with his head in a transmitter or both hands in a wiring panel. It *does* sound just like an arc from a live circuit, or a cap discharging. Electricians & engineers always hear about it, & the catastrophes that occur afterwards.

There's a real sort of historical & vocational tendency for technical pranks among technical people, but they're usually non-dangerous - like glueing someone's lunchbox shut or photocopying mirror images of schematics. Well, not *immediately* dangerous.

Posted by Dominic Espinosa (Member # 2122) on 12-01-2004, 06:34 PM:

As an overall whole fun activities in the work place can be good for productivity and morale. And by fun I mean team activities that work to promote teamwork, communication, and good work habbits.
Granted work is always a serious matter but so is creating a work environment where working is fun. Games and contests that encourage good customer service and good work habbits can be very rewarding for the staff and the company.

Back to topic though...
My problem is getting the damn floor manager to keep the radio on their person. I've given up all together since no one ever does and I always have to go down stairs and tell them or call them which is only effective 80% of the time.
Moreover how many extra minutes does it take when there's really a problem?
Instead of calling me on the radio the assistant manager actually came upstairs to tell me about a complaint that the volume in one of our houses was too loud!

So, radio rules:
1.) All radios assigned to personell must be kept on and at full volume unless inside auditoriums.
2.) All radios assigned to personell must be kept within 3 feet of that person or on their belt/pocket, etc as work load permits.
3.) Radios are for work-related communication only, no idle banter.
4.) When calling someone, call them by name, title, or department first. Example: "Dom"..."yes?"... Or "Floor manager"..."Yeah?"...etc.

Posted by Brandon Willis (Member # 2345) on 12-01-2004, 10:00 PM:

Never talk about money over the walkie talkie. Use code words when you need change or need a security officer or whatever.

Posted by Brad Allen (Member # 470) on 12-02-2004, 11:09 PM:

Use ear pieces with radios. I HATE being anywhere and hear radios blarring. It's annoying and extremely un-professional.
Worse than idiots with Nextel cell phones that think they have to keep it on speaker phone/walk-talkie mode. bleeeeeeeepppp.

Posted by David Yauch (Member # 2754) on 12-03-2004, 09:10 PM:

Radios are nice, but keep them only as loud as you need, and keep them off when you are in a theatre. Also, get radios that can utilize 2 channels, keep floor chatter on channel 1 and put projectionists, security guards, and the like on channel 2. We do this and it works great, and thats with over 30 people with a walkie at any given time on a weekend. We also have presentationists who are the only people forced to wear a headset(since they go in theatres but the projectionists still need to reach them). Headsets for all personel with walkies would look incredibly dorky.

Posted by Chris Brown (Member # 2800) on 12-06-2004, 12:43 AM:

We used to have ear pieces for our walkies at my theatre...it only lasted about a week though. We typically didnt have a problem with excessive radio chatter or anything in the first place (usually we'd just radio to someone to call us on an office phone). The ear pieces were kinda cool I suppose, though they did make us look like FBI agents.

Like I said though, we've never had problems with the way we use our walkies. We follow pretty closely to Dominic's "radio rules" I'd say. Everyone keeps their walkie on them at all times, and most people know enough to speak clearly and identify who they're talking to. Our biggest problem with walkies actually is people dropping the damn things!

Posted by Paul Rosenberry (Member # 2870) on 12-06-2004, 02:38 PM:

Rules for projectionists

1) If you turn your radio down or off to do theater checks, turn it back up when you're done. If there's an urgent problem, we don't have to waste 2-3 minutes calling out your name on the radio before making the hike upstairs to fix it ourselves.

2) If something breaks, tell the manager first thing. That way we don't look like fools to the customers that come to complain about it; then find out the projectionist already knew there was a problem and didn't say anything.

3) If you're fixing a problem that causes a show interruption or delay, give us an accurate estimate of the time it will take to resolve it.... not a "wishful thinking" estimate. We need to make decisions based on the time the machine will be down, such as cancelling the show, offering passes, moving customers to another house with a later showtime, etc. If you're not sure how long it will take, say so, or give us a range estimate i.e. "anywhere from 15 to 30 minutes".

4) If you give an estimated time for a show being down, and you come to realize the problem is more serious than you thought (e.g. a new bulb didn't fix it), update the manager immediately.

5) If you have a problem that you just don't know how to fix, say so. Don't waste 2 hours tinkering with it because you don't want to admit you're over your head. Techs are just a phone call away and some managers know a diode from a jackshaft.

6) If you're training a new guy, check his work and take responsibility for it. If you're there to train him and he damages a print, what was the point of having you there?

7) If you leave to make a run to Subway, tell the manager. This goes back to #1, above.

8) Don't sneak up behind a manager who's carrying a billion dollars in cash to the office and stick your finger in his back and yell "your money or your life". It'll be YOUR job to dispose of the soiled undies.

9) Lift the lid if you're going to spray, ok? There's people here.

10) If there's a hottie in the auditorium and you can see down her shirt, call the manager for help!

Posted by Wolff King Morrow (Member # 2226) on 12-06-2004, 07:08 PM:

Answers to off-topic rules:

1. This is more a mistake that a person individually makes, not just projectionists. Managers and security have been guilty of this crime as well.

2. Goes without saying (unless your projectionist has his/her priorities wrong).

3. This requires knowing exactly what happened and knowing what to do to fix it. If the sound suddenly stops, it could take 5 seconds to fix or it could take 5 hours to fix.

4. See #2.

5. Usually the techs have you tinker with it for 2 hours over the phone before finally deciding they need to look at it... The next day. Pick your poison.

6. You can train the next person the exact same way and they go off to a perfect record. It's up to the individual to decide to do a good job and if they don't, they get fired. The point of having "you" there is to make sure the training is accurate. Beyond that, you can only replace the bad with the good.

7. Can't believe you let your projectionists take off on food runs without permission. This should be done by someone else, since something 'could' go wrong in the booth while they are gone.

Posted by Alan Dallas (Member # 2537) on 12-08-2004, 07:43 PM:

quote: Wolff King Morrow
7. Can't believe you let your projectionists take off on food runs without permission. This should be done by someone else, since something 'could' go wrong in the booth while they are gone.

This is exactly why Harkins Theatres trains ALL managers in operating the projectors. [Smile]

Trouble shooting however is another issue altogether. Still when I'm on my projection shift other managers are pretty considerate. "Yo Dallas! I'm making a run for the boarder, you want anything?" heheh or were ever they happen to be going for food.

Posted by Dominic Espinosa (Member # 2122) on 12-09-2004, 12:44 PM:

quote: Wolff King Morrow
7. Can't believe you let your projectionists take off on food runs without permission. This should be done by someone else, since something 'could' go wrong in the booth while they are gone.

At Cinema West projectionists and managers are assigned "on-duty" lunch breaks. It works out rather well. We can't go too far unless there's another projectionists on duty. I usually stay within a 1 or 2 block radius of the building as it is or get delivery. Works great and I get paid for my lunch. On the off-chance that something breaks there's no reason I can't fix it and go back to my lunch.
If you think about it thought. More often than not projectionists get paid to sit around listening to projectors rattling. What a great job.

Posted by Jeremy Fuentes (Member # 2135) on 12-09-2004, 02:07 PM:

quote:
Rules for theatre managers

Pay your projectionists more.

Posted by Scott D. Neff (Member # 185) on 12-14-2004, 11:16 AM:

A lot of the theatres I visit will put the projection booth on an entirely different channel of the walkie talkies. That way they don't have to listen to change requests and customer service issues.

When there's a projection problem, downstairs switches to channel 2, and BAM! Problem reported and the projection staff doesn't get in the habit of tuning out radio chatter.

Posted by David Yauch (Member # 2754) on 12-15-2004, 04:21 AM:

I said:

"Also, get radios that can utilize 2 channels, keep floor chatter on channel 1 and put projectionists, security guards, and the like on channel 2."

And you said:

"When there's a projection problem, downstairs switches to channel 2, and BAM! Problem reported and the projection staff doesn't get in the habit of tuning out radio chatter. "

See that makes 2 of us.

Posted by Christian Volpi (Member # 2370) on 12-15-2004, 01:35 PM:

Paul--

It sounds like your theater has a lot of problems or shotty projectionists because the majority of your "rules" refer to film breakage. What's up with that?

Posted by Dan Costello (Member # 2124) on 12-15-2004, 02:27 PM:

Anyone know where to get some good earpieces to use for staff communication?

Posted by Kris Brunton (Member # 432) on 12-17-2004, 11:28 AM:

quote:
1. If you decide to change showtimes, move a print, or not move a print, or otherwise decide to change the schedule from what it was originally supposed to be, please tell the projectionist.

This reminds me of opening night at a 10 screen theater. We (the booth) recieved the schedule for shows in the afternoon and did a run through in the afternoon to make sure everything was good. Sometime between the afternoon and the evening the shedule and auditorium placement was changed without notifying the booth. Thankfully someone was walking downstairs and noticed via the LED signage that the movies were in the wrong houses. After talking with managment we had 5 minutes before showtime to move 9 of the 10 threaded prints to new houses. We were a little late getting all on screen but at least they were in the right auditoriums.

Posted by Dominic Espinosa (Member # 2122) on 12-20-2004, 12:51 AM:

That happened to us once at the 13 screen.
Mid-week schedule change to make room for new prints and to get the earliest out print of whatever we had into a big house so it'd be out of the way for the sneak of Mummy Returns...It was an ugly morning.

Posted by Adam Heath (Member # 2910) on 12-21-2004, 11:27 PM:

What I hate is when you change the schedules, move the movies for the projectionists and leave the clamps on the film and in our case, the wrong ring for the platter (hint, hint) And they still start the wrong movie! Now I just leave notes in big fonts all over the place and let them do the work!

Posted by Monte L Fullmer (Member # 2797) on 12-22-2004, 03:15 AM:

Yea, been there as well. Back a few years when New Line released that IB anamorphic release of "Gone with the Wind", I wasn't told that the print was to be in another house. Course, we know how long GWTW is (222m/13reels). I used to work in a 21 screener and this print was playing in large house. I worked that evening shift to close. I opened that next day and started GWTW on schedule. Then, I got called that GWTW was to be in another house-clear across the complex,for they decided to move that print later the previous night, but never made mention to me on this decision (obvious breakdown in the "chain of command"), and the print was going 20minutes. I had to shut down, unload the machine, wind the film back on the ring, attempt to put most of that small wind back in the big wind and move the print to the newly assigned house. I called up some help from downstairs, got TWO of the "Pizza boards", scooped that print with boards end-to-end overlap, and monkey-hustled that monstrosity to that assigned house. After about losing that print a couple of times down from one end of the building to another, we got the show running again. Only thing I was gorked at is that Mgnt blamed us for not doing our job. "HEY! we weren't told, so leave us alone!" (I was presentation manager/engineer at this 21 plex...)

quote: Jeremy Fuentes
Pay your projectionists more.

We need the "force" of the IATSE @ MPMO to be back amongt us. -Monte

Posted by Thomas Procyk (Member # 1170) on 12-22-2004, 10:25 AM:

What you could have done is quickly move just the first half of the print to the new house since it's got an intermission. That would save you the time and danger of moving such a large print. After intermission, just splice the second half to the first half and let 'er go! [thumbsup]

Luckily when we had this, it only changed houses twice. Both times we did it in two parts. Really sucked when it moved to the house with vertical masking because the masking would come down for Scope, and then you'd have this little 1.37 box which was no bigger than a 60" TV set. [Frown]

My biggest gripe with moving prints is that MANAGEMENT will move them for whatever idiotic reason they want, middle of the set or not, whether to "control the traffic flow in the lobby" or because too many people were sneaking in so they want it closer to the door post... But when there's a LEGITIMATE reason such as a digital sound incompatibility, lens issue, platter issue or whatever, they outright refuse because it's "too much work to change it in the computer and change the mylars."

I also hate it when there's a clear indication that the movie in the smaller house will sell out, but the one in the big house won't even get half full, and a request to swap houses falls upon deaf ears. Hey! I care about how much business we do, too, and it irritates me when the manager complains about not being able to afford raises, but ignores a suggestion that would have generated another $1,000 per set. [Mad]

Rule #84736289: Don't be a dumbass. If you don't know enough about industry trends or the content you are showing, don't pretend to. You will just look like an idiot to those who do.

=TMP=

Posted by Dominic Espinosa (Member # 2122) on 12-22-2004, 07:40 PM:

Preach it, bruva!
That happened to us a while back with Spongeboob. I'm assuming it was probably because of a deal with the distributor because anyone who pays any attention to our business would know that it was going to have a solid opening at our theater.

Anywho,
I say your booth manager should always be consulted when making the schedule if you don't know the booth inside and out because then you can be sure you're going to have as many possible movies in digital (i.e. you wont be sticking a print with no dts in a house that has dts, etc.) and so on.