Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: Death to the Green Band!

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Topic: Death to the Green Band!

Keith Peticolas
Expert Film Handler

Posts: 108
From: Eagle River, Alaska, USA
Registered: Aug 2001

posted 02-21-2002 03:54 AM

Tried something different this evening and cut the green bands off my trailers. I left the first one on to give us something to ensure framing/focus. Watched it. And just about came in my pants. Very cool. Never again will I force people to stare at the evil green light more than once. I encourage those won't haven't done this to give it a try. The folks I had previewing "Queen of the Damned" tonight all commented positively on it. Thanks to whomever tried this first.
kp

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Brad Miller
Administrator

Posts: 17775
From: Plano, TX (36.2 miles NW of Rockwall)
Registered: May 99

posted 02-21-2002 04:02 AM

I hate it. Makes me feel like I am watching tv or "previews" on the front of a rented videotape. Plus the audio is frequently cut off at the beginning of the trailers. Ugh!

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Dave Williams
Wet nipple scene

Posts: 1836
From: Salt Lake City, UT, USA
Registered: Jan 2000

posted 02-21-2002 05:09 AM

I personally always loved the green bands. Let me know that the coming preview is not loaded with nasty nasties, and if the movie has been rated or not. Also if you put six or seven of these in a row, you really get to hear a wonderful groan from the audience.

Dave

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Michael Brown
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1522
From: Bradford, England
Registered: May 2001

posted 02-21-2002 07:31 AM

In the UK we dont have green bands but we do have certificate logos which have the identicall purpose. I'm a fan. They help to break up and separate the trailers, they show the audience the rating of the trailer and sometimes the film, and sometimes they contain the 1st second of the trailers sound.

Sometimes we get used trailers with the ratings missing. So i find another old trailer with the same rating and chop the logo off that to put on the new trailer.

Chopping off the 1st second of the trailers audio (seen it many times) is not "Film done right."

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David Stambaugh
Film God

Posts: 4021
From: Eugene, Oregon
Registered: Jan 2002

posted 02-21-2002 07:48 AM

I like them. Makes it easy to see if the focus is right and also a quick check for uniform illumination.

Regal plays them, Cinemark cuts them off.

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John Pytlak
Film God

Posts: 9987
From: Rochester, NY 14650-1922
Registered: Jan 2000

posted 02-21-2002 08:19 AM

Although the film ratings are a voluntary system in the USA, many in NATO and MPAA would frown on removing the ratings bands:
http://www.filmratings.com
http://www.natoonline.org/ratings.htm
http://www.natoonline.org/ratingsabout.htm

Does anyone shorten them to just a second or so on screen (assuming no sound is cut off)?

------------------
John P. Pytlak, Senior Technical Specialist
Worldwide Technical Services, Entertainment Imaging
Research Labs, Building 69, Room 7525A
Rochester, New York, 14650-1922 USA
Tel: 585-477-5325 Cell: 716-781-4036 Fax: 585-722-7243
E-Mail: john.pytlak@kodak.com
Web site: http://www.kodak.com/go/motion

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Adam Martin
I'm not even gonna point out the irony.

Posts: 3686
From: Dallas, TX
Registered: Nov 2000

posted 02-21-2002 08:55 AM

The green bands are there for a reason, in addition to other issues like chopping the sound and hiding splice jumps. It also lets people know that it's just a preview. Most Imax trailers don't have green bands, and some people freak out thinking they're in the wrong movie when the preview comes on unannounced.

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Mitchell Cope
Master Film Handler

Posts: 256
From: Overland Park, KS, United States
Registered: Jun 99

posted 02-21-2002 09:04 AM

From what I've seen, AMC cuts them off.

Assuming no MPAA rule is being broken, I like them off. I feel like a deer in the headlights when I see one. As Brad said, this could be a problem with some trailers... in this case save the audio and perhaps shorten the band to 24 frames. Of course, that makes for an inconsistent presentation. Ahhhhh for the wisdom of Solomon.

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Charles Everett
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1470
From: New Jersey
Registered: May 2001

posted 02-21-2002 11:08 AM

Mitchell: AMC always removes the green band.

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Jim Casterioto
Film Handler

Posts: 32
From: Wilmington, DE, USA
Registered: Feb 2002

posted 02-21-2002 12:00 PM

Cinemark theaters never show the green bands. I personally can't stand them, they just seem to delay the feature presentation longer. People in the audience don't need the green band to figure out that it is a preview, they are accustomed to the Theater's Image Trailer, being the last thing played before the actual movie.

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Tim Sherman
Expert Film Handler

Posts: 125
From: North Ridgeville, OH, USA
Registered: Aug 2000

posted 02-21-2002 12:36 PM

You can't tell me thats all you use to focus the film with is the green bands. They are horrible looking and made in very very bad quality. You might be able to get it kinda close with it. but i sure wouldn't leave it set there.

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http://www.autoramadrivein.com

come on out to the drive-in and spend a night out with the stars"
ME!!

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Steve Kraus
Film God

Posts: 4094
From: Chicago, IL, USA
Registered: May 2000

posted 02-21-2002 01:18 PM

The studios could force the band to be shown if they wanted to simply by stating that it's an integral part of the trailer and as they are the copyright holder they demand that the trailer be shown in its entirety or not at all. Doubt they ever would though; there is no financial incentive to care.

A more subtle way would be to make sure the soundtrack begins adjacent to the very first frame of the rating so that removal would totally mangle the trailer.

I go quite a bit to an AMC 30-plex (my friend is duly amused by "the screens that suck"), usually to see films I was too busy to watch during while press screening it and can attest that they always cut the bands. Oddly, this particular venue (South Barrington, IL) hasn't seemed to figure out where to cut their own policy and other corporate thingies to avoid the 2-Beep.

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Scott Norwood
Film God

Posts: 8146
From: Boston, MA. USA (1774.21 miles northeast of Dallas)
Registered: Jun 99

posted 02-21-2002 01:37 PM

Keep the green bands on the trailers. They're useful as a pause between trailers, for saying "this is a trailer" to the audience, and for avoiding cutting into the soundtrack. They are also often useful for checking lamp alignment and framing for 1.85.

Reducing the length of the green bands is probably a reasonable idea, although I like to leave a couple of frames' worth of black film attached before the green band, since splicing tape (even the good Neumade clear tape) tends to be very obvious when it is placed over the green background.

I still think that there should be an option for PG-rated ("yellow band") trailers? There are too many G-rated trailers that shouldn't be and too man R-rated (red-band) trailers that have only mild language or a brief suggestion of nudity.

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Jesse Skeen
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1517
From: Sacramento, CA
Registered: Aug 2000

posted 02-21-2002 02:37 PM

If you don't like them, ask the studios to stop putting them on. As long as they are on, they shouldn't be cut off. Are you going to cut off the studio opening logos at the beginning of the movies if you don't like those either?

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Joe Redifer
You need a beating today

Posts: 12859
From: Denver, Colorado
Registered: May 99

posted 02-21-2002 02:41 PM

I like using the green bands to show off how clean we keep everything. Most theaters suck so bad that their green bands look incredibly dirty. They chop 'em off. Just flashing 24 frames of greenband would look even worse than chopping the whole thing off.

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