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This topic comprises 2 pages: 1 2
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Author
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Topic: Technicolor Speaks At U.D.I.T.O.A Conference
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Tim Sherman
Expert Film Handler
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Posts: 125
From: North Ridgeville, OH, USA
Registered: Aug 2000
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posted 02-07-2002 03:29 PM
As some of you may know the United Drive-In Theater Owners Association had its annual conference this week. At the conference one of the guest speakers was Brad Carroll, who is the Manager of Exhibitor Relations with Technicolor Entertainment. We found out some information regarding some of the problems we all encounter with TES. First off I would like to say thank you to Brad Carroll for coming and we really enjoyed having him. We were also able to find out the reason why Technicolor never became a member of Film-Tech. Brad told me that he comes to the site often and reads the posts, and really would like to join and reply. But the problem is Technicolor’s lawyers will not allow him to join. The reason being that there would be documentation on the site to prove what he said. Understand what I mean? We were able to ask him about many things, such as, reels and the integrity inspection process. First off they are now working on making new reels. The first type of old reels are the black ones that always broke very easily, then the next type they came out with were the ones that were of the almost clear plastic, that really didn’t break but warped very easily. The new reels they are trying to make are supposed to be a happy medium, where the reels will not break very easily and will not warp. So kind of mixing the two reels together to form a new consistency of plastic. We also mentioned the problems we are having with the cores, that we have to drill a hole through the shaft for the drive pin on the rewind bench. We had also found out about the integrity inspections. From what I gathered TES basicly has two types of integrity inspections, The very thorough inspection where the entire print is inspected, and the other type of inspection is just them making sure all the reels are there, then unrolling about 15 feet of film from each reel and checking the print for scratches. The type of inspection is determined by the film company. These are just a couple of the things that were discussed and I’m sure that other people at the convention will be adding more to this thread and I will do the same.
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Brad Miller
Administrator
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Posts: 17775
From: Plano, TX (36.2 miles NW of Rockwall)
Registered: May 99
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posted 02-07-2002 04:00 PM
Brad Carroll can do his little pep talks around the country about how *wonderful* their services are, but not addressing the issues right here where the projection industry gathers as a whole is as good as admitting the problems TES has and unwillingness to improve, plain and simple. If I was a lawyer for Technicolor I would be afraid of what he might leak out too. I also have no doubt that if he ever registers and posts here on the forum that he would be bombarded for about 3 weeks solid answering questions from the very people TES is supposed to be servicing, but once the initial question/answer/solution process was taken care of, assuming TES really *does* care about improving their practices, those Technicolor lawyers would have nothing to worry about.I understand Universal is going to pull out of TES and switch over to ETS because of their horrible service. Perhaps he would care to comment on that at his next social gathering? I don't think so. It will be all fluff, like always. Oh and since the odds of Mr.Carroll reading this is pretty good, STOP USING THAT DAMNED IMAGEGUARD SHIT ON YOUR OSCAR REISSUE PRINTS!!! I know TES spent a lot of money on their ImageGuard machines and they make a tidy profit from "rejuvenating" the print with it, but ASK the theaters if they want that crap on their prints before you send out the prints. Rewashing is great, but that other junk has go to go! (Remember how TES had to change out 7 prints in a row of Saving Private Ryan for me on the Oscar reissue because I refused to run that film with the ImageGuard on it? It's going to happen again this year if I get another one like that. I'll take a dark screen any day over a print that has ImageGuard on it!)
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Dustin Mitchell
Phenomenal Film Handler
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Posts: 1865
From: Mondovi, WI, USA
Registered: Mar 2000
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posted 02-08-2002 01:26 PM
In Brad Carrol's defense (and note, not in TECHNICOLOR'S defense) if he were to come on here and apologize to Rachel, or even just email her an apology, he would in effect be admitting Technicolor's responsibility. Well, everyone here is saying 'DUH!' right now, but think about this. In a courtroom it could be argued that Rachel was running the make-up table to fast, or even that she herself mishandled the reel and broke it. We all know this is not true, but that doesn't matter to the lawyers, they could still argue it. If an official representitive of TES admitted wrongdoing-which is what an apology is-it would be an open and shut lawsuit. How long do you think Mr. Carrol would be working for TES after that? One can't do a very good job at trying to improve a companies customer service record if one is no longer working for them.So, long story short, yeah, TES sucks, but don't verbally abuse Brad Carrol for wanting to keep his job. At least he's reading our comments and attempting to respond to them-if not here then at conventions, etc. Thats more than can be said for the film labs and Hollywood studios who we complain about just as much.
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Brad Miller
Administrator
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Posts: 17775
From: Plano, TX (36.2 miles NW of Rockwall)
Registered: May 99
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posted 02-08-2002 05:07 PM
Dustin, that's a load of crap.Mr. Carroll could have said: "I am very sorry to hear of your accident". Note that is not saying: "I am very sorry the company I work for does not give a flip about you or your safety by sending out cheap, broken reels which are dangerous." See the difference? And Rachel, you really should have sued that company for every dime your lawyers could've sucked out of them. As it stands, I am STILL receiving reels that obviously never "clipped" together at the depot and are still broken with dangerous sharp edges. I'll bet if we were to do a Film-Tech survey that well over 90% of the members here would acknowledge that the problem is just as bad as it ever was. A company that big that let's it's lawyers run the business will never learn until someone sticks it to them. Oh the day I get cut badly on a TES reel...now THAT will be a lesson!
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Scott Norwood
Film God
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Posts: 8146
From: Boston, MA. USA (1774.21 miles northeast of Dallas)
Registered: Jun 99
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posted 02-08-2002 07:31 PM
Is it just me or has the quality of reels from _all_ depots been declining lately? A few years ago, when I first started working at theatres, the reels were mostly good. Now it seems that at least 50% of the reels that I'm seeing are complete trash. The scene in the latest training video--where a reel disintegrates during the "inspection" process--is all too common...at least the part about the reel falling apart on the bench... (Unlike Joe, I don't eat greasy food when I inspect prints.)It's been at least six months since I've seen a print arrive with all reels intact. I can't remember the last time it happened, actually. It's not just Technicolor, either, but they seem to have more problems than anyone else. Worse, they don't seem to care about fixing these problems. (I'm sure that there are people at Technicolor who _do_ care. These rants aren't directed at them. They are directed at whoever is responsible for the attitude that the company publicly displays, which is, essentially, "we don't care, we don't have to." If they really cared, they would allow their employees to post here and work with theatre owners and projectionists to improve their service. Since they aren't doing this, it appears that the company as a whole is uninterested in improving anything except perhaps its bottom line.)
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Paul Turner
Expert Film Handler
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Posts: 115
From: Corvallis, OR, USA
Registered: Apr 2001
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posted 02-09-2002 12:25 AM
Good comments, Brad. Last Friday I got three stitches from a reel sent by Reel Easy. Then again, I only have about 20 years experience building film, so I'm sure it was my fault. . . . As little as I think of TES, I think the shitty reel problem is becoming more universal. Then were back to: would these reels be made if TES, ETS, Reel Easy were not using them? TES knows their product has hurt people. They weigh the cost of a pay-off against the cost of changing policies and products. So, we lose. Their lawyers are crouching, ready to spring as soon as the law suit is filed. Until then, they just tell everybody to shut up. If this Carrol guy is anything more than an apologist for TES, then he'd grow a pair, quit, or tell the people he's supposed to be servicing what is really going on. Instead he hides behind his legal counsel and keeps collecting check from his company. What's this fearing "documentation for what he said" shit? What good is ANYBODY if they don't stand behind what they say? Asked and answered . . . .
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Brad Miller
Administrator
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Posts: 17775
From: Plano, TX (36.2 miles NW of Rockwall)
Registered: May 99
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posted 02-09-2002 01:58 AM
Dustin, that comment was far from "talking down to you" and was also not "verbal abuse". While I do not mean this, saying something like "Dustin, you are a fucking idiot who needs to learn a little bit about the law" would constitute "talking down to you", "verbal abuse" and would be completely uncalled for. See the difference?Next time you have a problem with anything you read on the site regardless of who wrote it, contact me offline and I'll do what I can to remedy it. I'd say about once a week I am requested via private email to intervene with something said on the site between two people and have always been able to make things right. However, I don't put too much concern into comments made publicly like this.
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