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Author Topic: Booth size John Hegel Expert Film Handler Posts: 166 From: Lake Mills, Iowa Registered: Sep 2000 posted 03-23-2007 01:05 AM                        I am on a non-profit board that is rebuilding a single screen theatre from the walls up. The architect spected the booth as 12x12', I proposed 18x12' and as built it ended up as 9'x12'. My question is can you fit a simplex XL, sound rack, rectifier, and platter/mut in a 9' wide by 12' deep booth and make it functional? Thanks for your help  |  IP: Logged Monte L Fullmer Film God Posts: 8367 From: Nampa, Idaho, USA Registered: Nov 2004 posted 03-23-2007 02:57 AM                     I work in a 6plex with 9ft wide booth floors and a STRONG setup give you 4 ft clearance from back of the console to the back wall. With a miniwind 42inch platter setup to the left of the machine and amps in the console rack or even mounted on a wall rack to the right of the machine, a 9x12 room should easily accomodiate such a setup.  |  IP: Logged John Walsh Film God Posts: 2490 From: Connecticut, USA, Earth, Milky Way Registered: Oct 1999 posted 03-23-2007 07:49 AM                     I ocassionally work in a booth about that size. That's pretty small. Of course, you can make almost anything work, but you will have a tougher time during show makeup and break down. As Monte mentioned, you might purchase a platter with smaller decks. If you are going to spend some time in there, put sound absorbing material on the walls. Projection rooms always get 'shorted' it seems, when the project is at the end of the planning stage.  |  IP: Logged Scott Norwood Film God Posts: 8146 From: Boston, MA. USA (1774.21 miles northeast of Dallas) Registered: Jun 99 posted 03-23-2007 10:43 AM                        Is this for daily use, or is it for occasonaly screenings only? I remember reading somewhere that 12x20' was (is?) considered to be the minimum size for a 2-machine booth. You might need/want more space for a platter and could get away with less space with a double-MUT in place of the second machine. Will the rewind bench be in the booth as well, or is there a separate rewind room? Is there any other equipment (followspot? video projector? slide projector? something else?) that will need to be in the booth as well? I'm sure that it can be made to work, but I hope that the air conditioning is good in there...otherwise, the operators will be extremely uncomfortable.  |  IP: Logged Mark Hajducki Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 500 From: Edinburgh, UK Registered: May 2003 posted 03-23-2007 10:48 AM                     What usage is the booth going to get (multiple shows each day or just occasional) If there is only occasional showings a tower system may be more space efficient than a platter. --- I have used smaller booths than this (with towers) but the film makeup is done in a separate room (or larger booth) onto 6k reels and then wound onto 13k reels. It would not be pleasant to spend much time in the small booths.  |  IP: Logged Stephen Furley Film God Posts: 3059 From: Coulsdon, Croydon, England Registered: May 2002 posted 03-23-2007 12:40 PM                     I've seen ones down to about 8 feet wide x 6 feet deep, dating from around 1910, but that would have been with a separate rewind room, rectifier/generator room, etc., and only handling 2000 foot spools. I've seen a box that size still working, but that was with BTH machines, which were unusually narrow. It would be very tight, maybe impossible, if working with a tower or platter system. Your one doesn't sound too bad at 12 feet deep, but 9 feet wide does sound unpleasantly tight for a tower of platter, not so bad for two machines. Where are things that you can't move; door and fire exit, for example? You obviously can't block those. How much height have you got? If you've got enough for a tower that would take less floor space than a platter. If you're working a single machine where is the port? If central then it wouldn't leave you much room on each side; it might be better if it was somewhat to one side. If the port is central and you want to run a platter then you might have to put it behind the machine, as is more common with a tower, rather than to the side. You could fit digital into that space, but I doubt it that's going to fit your budget if it's for a 'non-profit'.  |  IP: Logged John Hegel Expert Film Handler Posts: 166 From: Lake Mills, Iowa Registered: Sep 2000 posted 03-23-2007 01:05 PM                        The booth is going to be used daily. Long term I'm sure that we will have a digital projector in the booth as well. Since this building is also going to be setup for meeting and speakers we are going to need some sort of video projector as well as an audio mixing counsel. At this point we can still move the walls to enlarge the booth, but I need opinions other then my own as to why we need to do it.  |  IP: Logged Stephen Furley Film God Posts: 3059 From: Coulsdon, Croydon, England Registered: May 2002 posted 03-23-2007 01:50 PM                     quote: John Hegel Long term I'm sure that we will have a digital projector in the booth as well. Since this building is also going to be setup for meeting and speakers we are going to need some sort of video projector as well as an audio mixing counsel. Is all of this going to have to go into the projection box, or have you got another room for the audio gear etc? Is there going to be a lighting rig, even a simple one? If there is another room then maybe you could put the video projector in there. If it's all got to go in the projection room, then you really do need more space. If you think you're going to need other things 'long term', and 'At this point 'we can still move the walls to enlarge the booth', I'd get it enlarged if at all possible. It's going to be easier now than in a few months, or years timewhen someone, or something, else has established it's claim to the available space. Apart from anything else, there are potential health and safety issues to working in an inadequate space.  |  IP: Logged John Hegel Expert Film Handler Posts: 166 From: Lake Mills, Iowa Registered: Sep 2000 posted 03-23-2007 02:56 PM                        Yes, it must all fit in this room.  |  IP: Logged John Walsh Film God Posts: 2490 From: Connecticut, USA, Earth, Milky Way Registered: Oct 1999 posted 03-23-2007 03:34 PM                     My own feeling is that 9'x12' is too small for a digital projector, 35mm projector, a platter (even one with smaller decks) regular 19' audio rack, makeup table (is there also a rewind table?) and all the extras like shelf space, place for the cans, etc. So small, I would try to point this out to the architect, if they will listen.  |  IP: Logged Scott Norwood Film God Posts: 8146 From: Boston, MA. USA (1774.21 miles northeast of Dallas) Registered: Jun 99 posted 03-23-2007 07:18 PM                        I just looked this up; the "old" SMPTE projectionist book says that 14x21' with an 8-9' high ceiling is the minimum size for a 2-machine booth and that each additional projector or piece of equipment (e.g. followspot) requires an additional five feet of space (in the horizontal direction, I assume, though this isn't specified). I think you'll have a hard time finding a projectionist who is willing to be stuck in a 9x12' booth every night. That's smaller than the smallest booth that I have ever seen in a commercial theatre.  |  IP: Logged Bernie Anderson Jr Master Film Handler Posts: 435 From: Woodbridge, New Jersey Registered: Apr 2000 posted 03-23-2007 07:40 PM                        If you're running a single screen, why would you want to run a platter? If the machine goes down, you'll be down until it can be fixed. With the second machine you still can get through the show. And a 2nd machine takes up less room than a platter. That's one of the things I learned at the drive ins.  |  IP: Logged Monte L Fullmer Film God Posts: 8367 From: Nampa, Idaho, USA Registered: Nov 2004 posted 03-23-2007 07:48 PM                     ...esp if you had those EPRAD Muts where each window would have a EPRAD setup, so if one side went down, the other one could still do the running, and have a Goldberg bench in the booth rewinding those 13k reels.. as this guy has in his drive-in. ...  |  IP: Logged Joe Redifer You need a beating today Posts: 12859 From: Denver, Colorado Registered: May 99 posted 03-23-2007 07:49 PM                        But if one projector goes down, he'll be down until he can get it fixed unless you want to have intermissions between each reel. Platters are way better than changeovers any day. Times have changed. Technology has advanced. Getting a platter will at least allow for 20th century technology. Audiences hate changeovers and will throw Coke at your screen if you have a changeover booth.  |  IP: Logged Monte L Fullmer Film God Posts: 8367 From: Nampa, Idaho, USA Registered: Nov 2004 posted 03-23-2007 07:52 PM                     quote: Joe Redifer Audiences hate changeovers and will throw Coke at your screen if you have a changeover booth. ..esp if you miss your changeovers....  |  IP: Logged

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