Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: How locked-out are you with a pre-show contract?

This is topic How locked-out are you with a pre-show contract? in forum Ground Level at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.

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Posted by Gary Davidson (Member # 2198) on 08-20-2004, 12:54 AM:

If a theater has signed a long term contract with a screen advertiser, is that theater allowed to use its pre-show digital projector to screen other content. For example, if a theater wanted to run a one minute cartoon right before the trailers that it self-produced, would that be okay with most screen advertisers? It is technically not an ad, so the pre-show advertiser shouldn't freak out about it, right?

Posted by David Buckley (Member # 2600) on 08-20-2004, 02:28 AM:

Key words - Signed and Contract.

What does the contract say? If it says you can or cant use the digipro, then there is your answer. If it says nothing, then you are not contractually prevented from using the digipro...

Posted by Gary Davidson (Member # 2198) on 08-20-2004, 09:35 AM:

Unfortunately I don't happen to have a screen advertising contract in my possession (someone wanna send me one to look at?) so I wanted to throw it out to the group to sort of see what the general consensus was.

Posted by Bill Gabel (Member # 1105) on 08-20-2004, 09:39 AM:

Remember it is a contract between the theatre chain and the ad company that provides those projectors and service. So you are talking about money and ad screen time. Someone paid money to place or run their ads in that screen time before the show. If you are working for a chain , the theatre manager might not have the right to say you can do it. You would have to check with your District Manager or Home Office for the answer. With you being in the Southern California ad market, you might not know who's in the auditorium watching. It could be someone from the home office or someone who paid for the ad or the ad service.
Running those slide or digi-projector pre-shows is money paid to the theatre. I would watch out and get the right answer from the District Manager.

Posted by Mike Spaeth (Member # 524) on 08-20-2004, 02:13 PM:

Usually, the theatre is given a certain amount of time that they can use for their own promos. If they would prefer to use this to run a cartoon, instead of a gift certificate promo, etc., I'm sure there would not be a problem with this.

Posted by Gary Davidson (Member # 2198) on 08-20-2004, 03:34 PM:

Thanks for that answer, Mike. Is this theater "free time" an industry wide trend as far as you know?

Posted by Jack Ondracek (Member # 1466) on 08-20-2004, 06:01 PM:

Gary, as others have already said, you REALLY do need to find out what your theatre is contractually required to do. Industry trends are nothing to bank on, and if you do something to violate your theatre's contract, no trend will help you. A contract can literally be individualized to the location... it's probable that it's not, but the point is that it CAN be. Therefore, no discussion about trends or actual requirements at other locations can substitute for actually knowing what is expected at your specific place.

Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 08-21-2004, 01:04 AM:

Most of the theatres that have them in my service area also rent out the theatres for DVD screenings for private partys and Birthdays. The customer rents the house and brings his own DVD and friends.

Mark