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Author Topic: Where’s the innovation? Or, where’s the Steve Jobs of the exhibition business? Gary Davidson Expert Film Handler Posts: 101 From: Santa Monica, CA Registered: Jan 2004 posted 04-04-2006 01:14 PM                     Movie theatres have taken an economic hit lately as everyone knows; so is there any INNOVATION on the horizon (other than D cinema) that has the possibility of injecting the business with some customer excitement and cash flow for the theater? I mean, where is the Steve Jobs of the exhibition business? Just wondering.  |  IP: Logged Brian D. Whitish Expert Film Handler Posts: 103 From: Seattle, WA, USA Registered: Apr 2001 posted 04-04-2006 01:26 PM                     Thats the very problem. There is no more creativity or showmanship in Hollywood. When TV threatened the movies we got color, stereo sound, cinerama, cinemascope, the list goes on. Now that the exhibitors and studios are run by bean counters the only thing they care about is the bottom line. Its very sad. I have been working in theatres since 1979 and even though I work for one of the better exhibitors I have become very disillusioned about this business. I bust my butt to make sure my theatre runs as well as it can and I put a great deal of work into my booth and how the films run. And I know there are many out there who do the same and more that would do so if they knew better. But in my estimation the exhibitors have ruined things. Im sure theatres will go on, but I fear the best days are past.  |  IP: Logged Louis Bornwasser Film God Posts: 4441 From: prospect ky usa Registered: Mar 2005 posted 04-04-2006 02:37 PM                        Bean counters.....judging by the number of exhibitor bankrupcies, we don't even have very good counters of beans. Louis  |  IP: Logged John T. Hendrickson, Jr Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 889 From: Freehold, NJ, USA Registered: Apr 2001 posted 04-04-2006 06:39 PM                     And yet, the Mike Blakesleys, Richard Wolfes and Jim Bedfords of the world (and many others) still manage to carry on. It's not the independent exhibs who are killing the industry. They are still the showmen- the people who really care. You have only to look to the big chains and the distribs, who don't give a rat's ass about anything except the bottom line.  |  IP: Logged Bobby Henderson "Ask me about Trajan." Posts: 10973 From: Lawton, OK, USA Registered: Apr 2001 posted 04-04-2006 08:47 PM                     The movie business has, much like the music business, counted on the cusomters always being there. The bean counters have taken customers for granted. The movie industry has done very little to respond to other market forces now fighting for the attention of customers. Instead the bean counters are just trying to sell the same old shit -and tell investors they're going to sell even higher percentages of that shit in successive quarters! I think what the bean counters are doing is the equivalent of feeding a hot dog to, um, a dog. The dog shits out the, ahem, hot dog. The bean counters pick up that turd (only after it has cooled and hardened), repackage it and then try to resell it as a fresh hot dog!  |  IP: Logged Steve Guttag We forgot the crackers Gromit!!! Posts: 12814 From: Annapolis, MD Registered: Dec 1999 posted 04-05-2006 06:45 AM                     Actually, a better name to throw out for this industry...Mike Todd rather than Steve Jobs. Mike Todd brought us the modern 70mm format back in the mid 1950s...the clowns of today STILL can't top that in picture or sound. 70mm film, wide aspect ratio, 6-channels of sound, 30 frames per second...it was/is better than current presentations and digital ones in most all respects. Not bad for a 50+ year old design. Maybe it would be easier for the modern people to do better if they would at least choose the best shoulders to stand on.  |  IP: Logged Scott Jentsch Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1061 From: New Berlin, WI, USA Registered: Apr 2003 posted 04-05-2006 11:23 AM                        The correllation to Steve Jobs and the "exhibition" business is probably a mismatch. Steve Jobs isn't in the computer enjoyment business, he's in the electronics hardware business. If you're looking for an equivalent to Steve Jobs in the "movie" business, you already have him. His name is Mark Cuban. Considering how most people in the exhibition business probably feel about Mark Cuban, that's probably not the guy you're looking for. But, like him or not, he is an innovator and he's got the money to try out the things he believes in. And by the way, Steve Jobs is actively trying to get people to watch movies on the small screen of an iPod for $x.99 a pop.  |  IP: Logged Bobby Henderson "Ask me about Trajan." Posts: 10973 From: Lawton, OK, USA Registered: Apr 2001 posted 04-05-2006 01:35 PM                     I don't agree with the comparison between Mike Todd and Mark Cuban. Mike Todd spearheaded the development of the modern 5-perf 70mm format. He helped bring a new way to show movies into reality. I think Mike Todd cared a great deal about the long term health of the movie industry, including commercial theaters. Mark Cuban didn't invent (or even fund) the development of modern HDTV formats or the 2K and 4K digital imaging standards in use for CGI, digital intermediate and commercial video projection. Cuban came aboard after such technologies were developed and is looking for the best business opportunities to exploit. He's a real cheerleader for the format -even to the point of spinning inaccurate claims about how those video formats are better than film. That's the main area where he draws the ire of many film fans. Cuban is also a proponent of getting rid of release windows between commercial theaters and home video. That and some of the other ideas he has do not have good benefits for commercial theaters. In regard to collasping release windows, such would be extremely destructive to the commercial theater industry. I think that's a big difference between Cuban and Mike Todd.  |  IP: Logged Bob Koch Expert Film Handler Posts: 183 From: williams ca Registered: Nov 2001 posted 04-05-2006 02:27 PM                     I certainly agree with Steve on this one. It was the best; and Louis, how much longer have we,when even the bean counters of today, are so far inferior to the ones we used to hate years ago.  |  IP: Logged Caleb Johnstone-Cowan Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 593 From: London, UK Registered: Mar 2006 posted 04-05-2006 08:31 PM                     Problem lies in Hollywood and the amount of rubbish they produce. There doesn't look like there will be another Titanic on the horizon, especially after King Kong didn't do as well as predicted. Theres a need for more films that are well-produced and have popular themes that engage with the audience. Digital cinema as a new technology isn't going to bring people in beyond the odd 2k or 3D presentation in a few cinemas. What it will bring is a greater range of films to exhibit and greater flexibility. With no need for prints the costs of distribution will go down over time. I can see a future where you will have 30 or 40 screeners as the norm with an average screen size of 150-200 seats. That way you can show indies and 'limited release' or foreign films and not have loads of empty seats and also show the biggest popcorn movies every 30-40mins. IMAX will cater increasingly for those of us who value the cinematic experience.  |  IP: Logged Mike Blakesley Film God Posts: 12767 From: Forsyth, Montana Registered: Jun 99 posted 04-05-2006 09:25 PM                        I can't believe there were actually people who expected King Kong to do Titanic-sized numbers. I'm certainly no expert, but from talking to my staff and about 5 other people around here, I could tell there was no blockbuster "buzz" on that movie. "Narnia," on the other hand....as soon as the poster went up, I had people asking me daily when it was coming.  |  IP: Logged Caleb Johnstone-Cowan Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 593 From: London, UK Registered: Mar 2006 posted 04-05-2006 09:46 PM                     The marketing machine was hyping up King Kong far more than Narnia. Thought similarly that those expecting $1bn takings were off the mark however personally thought it would do better than Narnia and break the $500m barrier. Can only talk for Narnia as we didn't show King Kong but it was busiest weekend I have worked and it was on at two other cinemas that are literally across the road.  |  IP: Logged Matt Kerekes Film Handler Posts: 73 From: Rio Rancho, NM Registered: Oct 2004 posted 04-06-2006 12:01 AM                     Is digital cinema not good enough innovation? They just need to stop worrying about same date dvd releases, and get some better movies out.  |  IP: Logged John Hegel Expert Film Handler Posts: 166 From: Lake Mills, Iowa Registered: Sep 2000 posted 04-06-2006 02:47 AM                        I think the biggest problem is that theaters have priced themselves out of the game. When 2 tickets and a pop cost the same as a DVD why would people want to go to a theatre? For an example if AMC took a 30% price drop across the board. They would almost definitely make more money at a lesser price and higher volume. You would think there bean counters would know exactly what the point of equal librium is but the falling attendance seems to prove otherwise. I think this industry will soon be reverting to the beginning of the business cycle to survive. I'm not saying that we will be going back to the movie palaces, but we may look at some of there functions of high capacity auditoriums, limited movie selections, and making the whole experience an event.  |  IP: Logged Matt Kerekes Film Handler Posts: 73 From: Rio Rancho, NM Registered: Oct 2004 posted 04-06-2006 11:14 AM                     I agree that prices are too high everywhere, I don't understand why before every blockbuster season prices have to up, just seems like greed to me.  |  IP: Logged

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