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Author Topic: Policy on Late Customers. Phil Blake Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 558 From: esperance western australia Registered: Nov 2003 posted 07-21-2006 12:44 AM                        We seem to be exeriencing more and more customers arriving late to shows , many recently arriving over an hour late! I find this frustrating and anoying to other patrons , disrupting those settled into the show. I am curious as to what proceedures others may have in this area, do we have a cut off point where people are refused entry and deferred to another session? Or do we let them in at any point through the show ? My personal view would be to close the session 15 minutes after feature start time. Would this be fair and correct ?  |  IP: Logged Ron Curran Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 504 From: Springwood NSW Australia Registered: Feb 2006 posted 07-21-2006 02:06 AM                        Yes Phil, I believe that to be fair and correct. Customers have been multiplexed over the past few years. They arrive at least 20 minutes after start to miss all the ads we don't screen. Those people don't read our information that we don't show ads. We have a policy on some films that no one will be admitted after the start. Yes, they bitch and abuse us but we have to have a standard. I recall a classic case when a woman demanded entry an hour into Mission Impossible. "I'll catch up," she protested. "There are people who have been in there from the beginning," I explained "And some of them are having trouble catching up!"  |  IP: Logged Phil Hill I love my cootie bug Posts: 7595 From: Hollywood, CA USA Registered: Mar 2000 posted 07-21-2006 02:49 AM                  As a consumer/patron that would be immensely annoyed at some jerk trampling thru the theatre that late; I think the same "penalty" should apply as if one is late for a credit card payment. Tell them they would be admitted ***IF*** they paid a US$20.00 late fee...or they could purchase a ticket for a later show. I'm SURE that would discourage most assholes!  |  IP: Logged Christopher Crouch Expert Film Handler Posts: 128 From: Holywood, ca, usa Registered: May 2006 posted 07-21-2006 03:31 AM                  Most of the companies/theatres I've worked for didn't have a cut off point. Theoretically, patrons could buy a ticket for the end credits. However, my current employer has a 30 minute cut-off; the ticketing system won't allow for sales after that point.  |  IP: Logged David Kilderry Master Film Handler Posts: 355 From: Melbourne Australia Registered: Sep 1999 posted 07-21-2006 10:07 AM                        People arrive all night long at our theatre, we think it's fine...............as long as they switch their headlights off! David  |  IP: Logged Jack Ondracek Film God Posts: 2348 From: Port Orchard, WA, USA Registered: Oct 2002 posted 07-21-2006 10:31 AM                        quote: we think it's fine...............as long as they switch their headlights off! Good one We also let people in throughout the night... usually. When we're really full, we'll sometimes pull the plug shortly after the main show starts (roughly 15 minutes into the evening, and call it sold out, even though it may not be. At that point, there can be way too much driving back and forth, looking for a spot, and they don't always want the place our field people suggest. At our indoor, we had a policy similar to what Christopher described... an automatic cutoff 20 minutes into the show. That was 20 minutes of show plus 10 minutes of trailers. It was also easy to enforce... I programmed the POS system to take that performance off the screen, so the staff couldn't sell a ticket if it got too late. With that as a rationale, nobody had problems explaining the situation to latecomers who might otherwise have tried to talk their way past the policy.  |  IP: Logged Sam Graham AKA: "The Evil Sam Graham". Wackiness ensues. Posts: 1431 From: Waukee, IA Registered: Dec 2004 posted 07-21-2006 10:56 AM                        Are late arrivals any more annoying than those who make bathroom runs, snack bar runs, or cell phone runs out and back in? If your auditorium is half empty, I'd sell the ticket. If it's a close to full house (and therefore a situation where the late arrival spends ten minutes staring at the stadium tier while their eyes adjust so they can find one of the two or three available seats), I'd tell them the show was sold out.  |  IP: Logged Chad M Calpito Master Film Handler Posts: 435 From: San Diego, CA Registered: Apr 2006 posted 07-21-2006 11:06 AM                        At my theatre, the cut-off time is 30minutes after the show star time (which includes the Rolling Stock and Trailers time). Then, the Box Office Software advances to the next show time. Once that happens, we stop selling for a particular show time.  |  IP: Logged Allison Parsons Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 630 From: East Peoria, IL Registered: Oct 2004 posted 07-21-2006 11:14 AM                        We have a "15 minute rule". At the last show, if no one shows for a movie 15min after it was suppose to start, we don't show it. Especially on Thursday nights. If a theater employee wants to see a movie that is leaving on thursday nights (at the last show), and there are no paying customers in that movie, I don't show it either. Most of our employees know that I'm anal on thursdays so they stay away.  |  IP: Logged Mike Blakesley Film God Posts: 12767 From: Forsyth, Montana Registered: Jun 99 posted 07-21-2006 12:11 PM                        We don't run ads either, and we do get the occasional people who come in 45 minutes after showtime and say, "I haven't missed anything yet, have I?" We don't have a set policy. If a movie is a dumb comedy or other mindless crap entertainment, we'll let people in whenever they want. If it's a serious adult-type movie like "The DaVinci Code," if they're more than 20 minutes late (for the feature) we'll strongly try to talk them out of it, but will still sell them a ticket if they insist. And then we pretty much hang with them until they've found a seat, to make sure they are quiet. If we are anywhere close to sell-out we usually put up the "sold out" sign and stop selling all tickets when the feature begins.  |  IP: Logged Aaron Mehocic Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 804 From: New Castle, PA, USA Registered: Jun 99 posted 07-21-2006 01:02 PM                     15 minutes on the weeknights, 20 minutes on weekends. Our software advances to the next show about 45 minutes after start time. Certain films attract customers who are habitualy late to begin with so I often start them even if nobody shows up when they are due to begin. Generally, however, somebody will come within the time permitted. Does anybody still have (mostly) the senior citizen(s) who arrives half way through a movie, goes inside the auditorium, and then stays for the next show up to the point they originally were seated. I've been told by a few that back in the 20's and 30's operators ran shows continuously without set start times and this was an accepted form of attending a movie. Any truth to this?  |  IP: Logged Louis Bornwasser Film God Posts: 4441 From: prospect ky usa Registered: Mar 2005 posted 07-21-2006 02:19 PM                        "This is where we came in." is a phrase that died sometimes in the '60's. Cut them off early....when they "catch up" that requires TALKING! Thereby creating yet another problem. Louis  |  IP: Logged Mike Blakesley Film God Posts: 12767 From: Forsyth, Montana Registered: Jun 99 posted 07-21-2006 04:21 PM                        quote: Aaron Mehocic I've been told by a few that back in the 20's and 30's operators ran shows continuously without set start times and this was an accepted form of attending a movie. Any truth to this? This actually dates back to when movies were just mindless stuff to watch, not necessarily a story, but maybe dancers, or scenic features, stuff like that. Theatre marquees advertised "Continuous shows daily," so you could just go in when you wanted to and leave when you "came in" or watch it 3 or 4 times if you wanted. When movies started actually being stories, it took a long time for people to get out of that habit.  |  IP: Logged Ky Boyd Hey I'm #23 Posts: 314 From: Santa Rosa, CA, USA Registered: Jun 99 posted 07-21-2006 07:14 PM                       Mike, I think some people never "got out of that habit." But then we had some old guy in Wordplay the other day complaining that the movie was going too fast for and we needed to slow it down for him. That was a new one.  |  IP: Logged Adam Martin I'm not even gonna point out the irony. Posts: 3686 From: Dallas, TX Registered: Nov 2000 posted 07-22-2006 02:08 AM                     quote: The Evil Sam Graham Are late arrivals any more annoying than those who make bathroom runs, snack bar runs, or cell phone runs out and back in? They can be. I have often experienced some retard banging around in the back of the theater, feeling people up looking for the walls/seats, and shouting "OH MY GOD, IT'S SO DARK IN HERE!"  |  IP: Logged

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