Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: The Dark Side of Oz - Timing Question for Theatrical Show

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Posted by Mike Olpin (Member # 1115) on 12-23-2010, 12:20 PM:

We are booked for playing Wizard of Oz in sync with Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon. I understand that I punch play on the cd player at the third roar.

My question is, what is traditionally done when the cd ends? Do you switch to film audio? Drop the curtain and send everyone home? No one here knows, and they've asked me to find out what is traditionally done at these screenings.

Posted by Tony Bandiera Jr (Member # 2365) on 12-23-2010, 12:36 PM:

Mike, do a google search, there is a website that has the "definitive Dark Side" program. IIRC you actually set the cd player to repeat so it runs to the end of the film....

Posted by Jesse Skeen (Member # 586) on 12-23-2010, 03:32 PM:

Play the album on 8-track!

Posted by Bill Enos (Member # 440) on 12-23-2010, 03:46 PM:

Forget the whole synch thing and buy the "Dark Side of Oz" DVD from Redux films. Looks excellent on the screen, sounds great and no more synch issues.

If you have to do it the hard way, start the CD on the third roar.
It's best to play 2 CDs with a cross fader, when the first one creeps out of synch with the film cross to the other CD, then resynch the first CD, repeat as necessary, we found that we had to do that at least 3 or 4 times during the movie. You can find lists of synch points on line.

Posted by Scott Norwood (Member # 30) on 12-23-2010, 09:04 PM:

The slickest option might be to vary the projection speed if your projectors have variable-speed motor controllers. Having a pre-prepared cue sheet is a good idea.

Alternatively, you could get a CD player with pitch (variable speed) control and use that to maintain sync. The Denon DN-C680 and Tascam CD-01U both work well. It is probably not a bad idea to have a second CD player running in sync as a backup in case there are mid-show issues with the primary player or disk.

(I have not actually done this show, but would like to someday.)

Posted by John Lasher (Member # 968) on 12-24-2010, 12:13 AM:

You will need to have the CD paused at the start of track 1, the moment Leo finishes his third roar, start the CD playing.

Put the CD on repeat as there are a few "syncs" during the 2nd and 3rd plays (nothing like the first play, but still pretty trippy, like when they cut to a closeup of Dot right on the line "race toward an early grave", then just watch the Lion during "Money"), the film will end about 1/3-1/2 way through the third play of the CD (I forget, and it is somewhat dependent on how quickly your CD player returns to the start of the CD.

My recommendation (and this is just my own personal taste, nothing to do with any official rule or tradition) would be to fade the lights up after the film ends and let the CD continue to play as "exit music".

Check out Dark Side Of The Rainbow - the definitive list

Posted by Mike Blakesley (Member # 26) on 12-24-2010, 01:09 AM:

quote: Mike Olpin
We are booked for playing Wizard of Oz in sync with Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon.

You can actually book it that way?? [Eek!]

L. Frank Baum and Victor Fleming and the entire cast (including Terry the dog) must be rolling in their graves.

Posted by Aaron Garman (Member # 1653) on 12-24-2010, 02:49 AM:

If you can, see if you can run the SACD: it sounds pretty fantastic!

AJG

Posted by Mike Olpin (Member # 1115) on 12-24-2010, 02:24 PM:

This is more complex than I had anticipated!

I think I will try to find a pre-synced copy on DVD to play. Supposedly there's a really good 5.1 mix dub somewhere.