This is topic Can a theatre get in trouble for not showing trailers? in forum Ground Level at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.


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Posted by Richard Greco (Member # 2032) on 03-18-2005, 01:36 PM:
 
Can a theatre get in trouble for not showing anything but the attached trailer? Also Not putting up posters till a week before the movie is released?
 

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Posted by Dean Kollet (Member # 1789) on 03-18-2005, 01:39 PM:
 
um, it depends on the deals you have with the production companies. With big chains, as far as I know, there is a deal (of course involving $$) and they are checking on those trailers being there. Our managers always got a "write-up" from the companies when these deals weren't "met". Down the road, I'm sure it could hurt what you get. I'm not a fan of front-loading, but adversiting movies that you are getting (or probably will get) is just a way to keep your theatre full.
 

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Posted by Monte L Fullmer (Member # 2797) on 03-18-2005, 01:50 PM:
 
Most of your large circuit operations has made contracts with film companies to which what trailers are to be on what films on all first run releases. Then "checkers" go to these respective cinemas to actually do "trailer checks" just as there are "film checkers".

Plus, these large circuits has "trailer reports" that must be sent in by the weekend that the booth personnel have listed, so to verify with the "trailer checker" reports that such trailers were indeed presented on these releases. If the trailer was not available at that certain cinema, this was reported on the trailer report, so when the "trailer checker" reports this one trailer wasn't presented on the screen, the trailer report was also verifiying this trailer not bein listed.

If any of the two above doesn't match together, the circuit people call up that certain cinema that is in error and put some pressure, or discipline of sorts to get this one trailer presented on screen to satisfy the film companies due to this contractual agreement between circuit and film company.

Richard, as small as your place is, nothing to worry about.

thx-Monte
 

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Posted by Richard Greco (Member # 2032) on 03-18-2005, 02:01 PM:
 
Ok, Thanks Monte
 

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Posted by Ken Layton (Member # 133) on 03-18-2005, 05:09 PM:
 
Independents sometimes don't show any trailers. At the Skyline drive-in where I used to work we almost never ran any trailers.
 

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Posted by Leo Enticknap (Member # 534) on 03-18-2005, 07:42 PM:
 
I worked at several arthouse independents which didn't show them at all.

In the last theatre I worked at before leaving the business, trailers which came attached to the front of feature prints were becoming a problem. Firstly they disrupted our presentation format (a 'please switch off your mobile 'phone' policy trailer was the last thing we showed before the feature started, unless there was a ratio change between the bullshit reel and the feature) and secondly these trailers were frequently for films we weren't planning to show. This was the bigger issue - I didn't like the idea of promoting a film which customers weren't going to be able to see in my theatre - or, even worse, which our competitors had booked). At one stage I our programmer at head office, who gave me permission to take them out or move them into the bullshit reel if I wanted to. I'd always splice them back into their original place before shipping the feature print out, though.
 

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Posted by Dean Kollet (Member # 1789) on 03-18-2005, 09:50 PM:
 
where I work (FSU Cinema Cinema) we run trailers, but two at most for films we are showing within the upcoming two weeks. If the movie isn't on 35mm, we don't show any trailers.
 

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Posted by Aaron Mehocic (Member # 15) on 03-19-2005, 04:26 PM:
 
Between January 1991 and April 1993 I only remember our theatre having one sheets of Jennifer 8 and Aspen Extreme . During that same period, no more than three trailers were ever shown in front of the prints. Only trailers of films we were guaranteed to get were programed into the trailer pack. It was against the manager's policy to show a trailer just to "see" what it looked like. No tentative = no show.
 

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Posted by Mike Spaeth (Member # 524) on 03-20-2005, 02:30 AM:
 
For first run, the master licence agreement usually only requires that the attached trailer be played.
 

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Posted by Peter Kerchinsky (Member # 1098) on 03-20-2005, 04:56 AM:
 
Richard
I believe your question can be covered in "basic theatre operations 101".
Why would you NOT want to run trailers for upcoming features? It's advertising to a captive audience. We have alot of customers who actually enjoy watching the previews so they know what's coming soon. Same goes for one-sheets. We put them up and customers ask "when is that playing etc.". Our promotions people make damn sure trailers and one sheets are up and running. And yes, we do get the checkers now and again to make sure.
You must have a booker to check with occassionally to see what they have on the schedule? Then obtain and run the trailers.
Hope this helps.
 

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Posted by Dieter Depypere (Member # 3184) on 05-30-2005, 04:49 AM:
 
It occurs that we get a trailer but don't play the actual movie. In this case, I just leave the trailer in the box and don't care about it. Also if there are few people watching a movie, I do not play trailers anyway. Just the commercials on slides with a cassette voice.

Say, do you have to return the trailers after showing? It seems that there are hundreds of old trailers in my booth.
 

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Posted by Jeremy Jorgenson (Member # 2989) on 05-30-2005, 10:41 PM:
 
Any interesting ones?
 

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Posted by Dieter Depypere (Member # 3184) on 05-31-2005, 04:47 AM:
 
Er... I said old ones. I do not think that might be interesting, as the movies already exist on DVD
 

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Posted by Robert John Jeromson (Member # 2559) on 05-31-2005, 05:18 AM:
 

quote: Dieter Depypere

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Say, do you have to return the trailers after showing? It seems that there are hundreds of old trailers in my booth.

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quote: Mike Spaeth

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For first run, the master licence agreement usually only requires that the attached trailer be played.

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Sounds about right unless it is a preview at which point they (distributors) will more than likely spit the dummy if a competitor trailer screens with their product. Once the film has opened to the public it should pretty much be fair game. But I will always try to schedule trailers from the same distributor on the front of particular featues, it avoids the arguement and is not any extra work for us really.
 

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Posted by John Hawkinson (Member # 1135) on 05-31-2005, 05:57 AM:
 
My goodness, this is a complex subject.

Trailers are a fascinating supply and demand problem, and they in fact become scarce, and how to handle them varies a huge amount from locality to locality, much less country to country. In the US (where most FT participants are), most studios do not care about trailer returns and most theatres do not return them -- but some do! Others throw them out. Others archive them for future use. And, of course, some return them to "the wrong place" (where they might be recycled for scrap, but certainly not reused. For instance, Technicolor doesn't open returned cans after an engagement, so returning trailers in-the-can to TES doesn't let someone else use them.)

Certainly, in the US, studios do not complain about failure to return trailers, except for some very special cases of limited trailer releases for small film releases, etc. (e.g. The Bicycle Thief, The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra).

There are also always people looking for old trailers. Mostly second-run theatres who have discovered that distributors are out of stock of a trailer for a recent movie. But also repertory theatres that show old movies. (Also random "collectors.") While demand is more scarce, good condition trailers for old movies, or simply those past their DVD release date, can be almost impossible to obtain. (There are some collectors who make a business out of this, people who resell trailers on EBay, etc., etc.).

In short, yes, someone wants your old trailers. And yes, many theatres have piles of old trailers, but many don't.

Oh, and for programming trailers. It all depends on your contracts, which certainly vary from country-to-country, not to mention region-to-region and chain-to-chain and chain-to-independant (and theatrical-to-non-theatrical), but generally studios expect you to play any trailers physically attached to the film (be they printed-on or spliced-on), and *hope* you'll play as many of the enclosed trailers as you can.

In fact, studios make agreements with each other to trade which movies get enclosed (or attached) with which other movies, So while they no doubt appreciate your choosing not to play competititor's trailers before their film, it is certainly not the norm here in the US.

Businesswise, though, small theatres pay a lot more attention to trailer programming, and are a lot more influenced by it. So small-town theatres, independants, singles, and twins are much more likely to program trailers with only movies they think they will show in the future (this makes good business sense!), and large multiplexes will program trailers that look really cool (or whatever) becaue they're going to show every movie anyway.

--jhawk
 

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Posted by Dieter Depypere (Member # 3184) on 05-31-2005, 02:36 PM:
 
Mmh... Maybe I should consider getting rid of these old trailers... Regarding the space, it isn't a problem. All the empty reels that are in the booth take more space.
BTW: I have also seen old posters in the corner .
 

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Posted by Jeremy Jorgenson (Member # 2989) on 06-01-2005, 12:42 AM:
 

quote: Dieter Depypere

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I said old ones. I do not think that might be interesting, as the movies already exist on DVD

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quote: John Hawkinson

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Also random "collectors."

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quote: Dieter Depypere

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BTW: I have also seen old posters in the corner

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