Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: Fun with Pre-Show Slides

This is topic Fun with Pre-Show Slides in forum Film-Yak at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.

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Posted by Manny Knowles (Member # 1171) on 04-20-2003, 12:15 PM:

I'm working on a silly slide show for Brad's screening room. Any suggestions?

Looking for specific questions as well as ideas for interesting categories.

Brad's example was:

Movie Dialogue (Name the Movie)
"May the Force be with you!"

I'd like to see funky definitions of movie terms of things like:

Policy Trailer
MPAA

Categories including:

People
Places
Remakes

...and so on.

Think "funny."

Posted by Brad Miller (Member # 2) on 04-20-2003, 12:41 PM:

Yes indeed, trivia slides must be just as lame as the NCS/Val Morgan ones. Anything not painfully obvious that brings about a groan just isn't good enough. [Wink]

Anyone have ideas for fake local business ads? Bear in mind these will never be shown in a typical theater, but is only for poking fun at these terrible pre-shows that patrons of commercial theaters are forced to endure.

Posted by Daniel Fuentz (Member # 1684) on 04-20-2003, 04:25 PM:

Don't know if you have it where you are, but here in California a Mexican bakery distributes their products under the "Bimbo" name. The first time I ever heard of this company was a few years ago, I was walking through Pak N' Save and saw a rack with a giant sign on top proclaiming "BIMBO". (A friend of mine in New Jersey thought I was making it up, until I sent her a package of Bimbo cookies.) I'm sure you could make a very funny ad for this company.

Posted by Scott Norwood (Member # 30) on 04-20-2003, 04:41 PM:

I once made up a slide that said something along the lines of "apologies for the technical difficulties." We never actually used it for the intended purpose, but it was fun to throw it into the projector (intentionally) upside down and backwards before midnight shows.

Although it isn't a slide, I recently had a trailer made up that looks exactly like a standard "Coming Soon" trailer, but mine says "Not Coming Soon." It's fun to run that one before funny trailers for old movies (not for paying audiences, though).

I used to know someone who would cut out the lab reference frames (such as "LAD girl" and her older sibling "Lilly") and stick them in slide mounts to replace lame trivia slides.

Posted by Rachel Gilardi (Member # 1016) on 04-20-2003, 04:46 PM:

"Visit (enter whatever theater Scott is at that day) for 2 free tickets and a medium popcorn--JUST ASK FOR SCOTT NORWOOD!"

Posted by Scott Norwood (Member # 30) on 04-20-2003, 04:54 PM:

Rachel--I prefer the "Congratulations! You've just won free admission to [insert Rachel's theatre here]! Just show up at the box office and ask for Chipper!" variant, personally. I have it running on 31 screens right now...I hope that you appreciate the business!

Posted by David Stambaugh (Member # 1102) on 04-20-2003, 05:38 PM:

How about a Coke race where a little plastic baggie filled with white powder comes out of nowhere and finishes first? Just a thought. [Wink]

Or at least make the winner a Red Bull or maybe a Schlitz Malt Liquor or something.

Posted by Jesse Skeen (Member # 586) on 04-20-2003, 05:46 PM:

Make sure to have Christmas-themed slides in the middle of summer! [Wink]

Posted by David Stambaugh (Member # 1102) on 04-20-2003, 06:07 PM:

How about a variation of a standard Movie-Flub trivia slide, like "During the filming of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, Ricardo Montalban's wig almost falls off during a scene!". Then make the next slide a followup like "Mr. Montalban's hairdresser was subsequently punished by being forced to have kinky sex with Herve Villechaize while Montalban watched through a one-way glass."

How about a graphic showing a theatre exit door engulfed in flames, and the caption is "In case of FIRE, head for the nearest EXIT!" (Regal actually has a slide like that.)

Posted by Daniel Fuentz (Member # 1684) on 04-20-2003, 07:23 PM:

You've got to have a slide about renting your theater for your next meeting... There's a joke in there, I'm just too tired to find it. [Cool]

Posted by Per Hauberg (Member # 529) on 04-20-2003, 07:35 PM:

Twenty-five years ago, I ran a small distribution company of my own, specialicing in reissues of old more-or-less-classics from The Marx Bros "Go West" to "My Fair Lady" (yeah, 70m !!),
"Little Big Man" and "Battle of Britain". Before video really got started, titles like these still sold really fine in big as well as small cinemas. Each time, when i had a print of a "new" film arriving, I invited staff, friends, family and possible custumers for the very first screening, that always ended up very social [Big Grin]

When i invited to a first hand look a 1965 / MGM / Carlo Ponti war pic "Operation Crossbow" the cinema was filled to last seat, and my projectionist trainee and my equipment dealer kindly told me, they would run the show, -i should just mingle and take care of my guests. - Nice guys, yes ?
As soon as i had been planted mid raw, far from booth, -the lights went down, curtains out, and opening of the show was a slide, showing me BAREASS at some wild beach party in Germany (staff outing) a couple of months earlier.
So much about friends, and admitted, Crossbow faded a bit, due to the opening effect.
Those "friends" of me never claimed copyright on the idea, so next time on Your way to ShowEast or West, You might just catch Brad some "funny" way...??

p.

Posted by David Stambaugh (Member # 1102) on 04-20-2003, 07:44 PM:

quote:
You've got to have a slide about renting your theater for your next meeting... There's a joke in there, I'm just too tired to find it.

Maybe you accompany the cheery text with a graphic of a theatre full of white-pointy-hatted Ku Klux Klanners.

Posted by David Favel (Member # 1125) on 04-20-2003, 07:48 PM:

Your horoscope, Today you will see a movie"

Posted by Joe Redifer (Member # 3) on 04-20-2003, 08:37 PM:

"In case of a fire, you will probably die. We suggest you head to the nearest exit in a calm, orderly fashion. But we know that you'll actually trample over your grandma to save your own skin. Therefore if you survive we will shoot you."

Posted by Kenneth Wuepper (Member # 1174) on 04-20-2003, 09:28 PM:

How about a few slides from the list of 4"x5" glass images used for the silents?

Image of lady with very large hat.
Superimposed lettering "Ladies please remove your millinery"
(There were mirrors in the lobby for replacing the hat after the show. There were also special metal rings beneath the seats for convenient storage of 'stovepipe' hats worn by gentlemen)

Image of cuspidore
Superimposed "Chewing is prohibited in this theatre"

Image of hand with pointing finger
Superimposed text "Please use side exits after this performance"
(This slide was used when the theatre had full house audiences and the lobby was filled with patrons waiting for the next showing so exiting through the front lobby was disruptive)

Image of umbrella in seat
Superimposed text "Be sure you have your personal articles before departing"

KEN

Posted by Gerard S. Cohen (Member # 994) on 04-20-2003, 09:44 PM:

Such glass lantern slides as Kenneth describes may still be found at camera shows and swap meets, but they are getting scarce and pricey. Blackhawk Films of Davenport, Iowa used to sell sets of them as Intermission Slides, copied onto 2" slides to fit Carousel and Ectographic projectors. (I haven't seen their catalogs lately--last time I bought MGM tee shirts and caps.)

More common are the local advertising glass lantern slides and
sing-along sets of hand-colored photographic popular songs that used to be rented to theatres. The last ones I bought were $10 apiece, but you can bargain for a group at camera shows. Look for a seller with an old Balopticon or Stereopticon projector.
Among his boxes of obsolete classroom lantern slides you might find a few theatrical ones.

On websites I've seen nickelodion slides of the "policy" type, asking patrons to aplaud with their hands, not their feet, to refrain from whistling and bad language, to remember ladies and children are present, and "This is a clean and decent place for ladies, gentlemen and family entertainment."

Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 04-20-2003, 09:52 PM:

I think a bunch of "True Facts" slides would be cool.

Such as this pic from another thread:

Posted by Per Hauberg (Member # 529) on 04-21-2003, 04:47 AM:

My opening picture the last thirty years has been

Welcome to Malling Bio - and thank You for keeping Your feet on the floor !

-It works !

Posted by Matthew Peters (Member # 1495) on 04-21-2003, 10:26 AM:

Posted by Adam Martin (Member # 641) on 05-05-2003, 08:51 PM:

Or are you looking for something like these ...

Posted by Brad Miller (Member # 2) on 05-05-2003, 08:59 PM:

Adam, you have managed to perfectly nail the kind of slide show that I want! That first one is just too perfect. [thumbsup]

Posted by John Lasher (Member # 968) on 05-05-2003, 10:59 PM:

Make sure to get two copies of the last one and put one of them in upside down. <snicker>

and finally (for now, anyway)

[ 05-06-2003, 12:25 AM: Message edited by: John Lasher ]

Posted by Adam Martin (Member # 641) on 05-06-2003, 01:39 AM:

OMG - Barth's Burgers! [thumbsup]

Posted by Daniel Fuentz (Member # 1684) on 05-06-2003, 01:49 AM:

Barth's Burgers!!! Now there's something I haven't heard of in ages! (Oh, TV Land!!!)