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This topic comprises 6 pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6
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Author
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Topic: Looking for thoughts from those who have run a 'Classic Film Series'
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Mike Blakesley
Film God
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Posts: 12767
From: Forsyth, Montana
Registered: Jun 99
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posted 10-11-2011 09:37 PM
We did a series of classics for our 60th anniversary. This was quite a while ago, but we ran:
Casablanca The Wizard of Oz The Sound of Music The Ten Commandments Gone With The Wind
We played the movies three days each, Wed-Thur-Fri, over five weeks. We did it in August thru early September, so the great summer movies were pretty much history by then.
We got the best crowds with the last two. The worst was Sound of Music, which was OK with me because we got stuck with a HORRIBLE print of it. (The others were all pretty good, especially Commandments which was a nearly-new print.)
For promotion, we ran a large newspaper ad (probably not such a good bet now) and we also got a lengthy article placed in the paper. This was pre-website, so no online promo at all.
I was able to find onesheets for all the features, but no trailers unfortunately. We also made up some smaller posters that we put around town. For Gone With The Wind, we timed that show so it played on our anniversary date and we gave out free champagne to the adults during the intermissions.
Overall the whole thing was a success.
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Scott Jentsch
Phenomenal Film Handler
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Posts: 1061
From: New Berlin, WI, USA
Registered: Apr 2003
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posted 10-19-2011 10:20 AM
While running a limited film series makes it easier to market initially, especially in the dregs of the post-holiday season, have you considered making throwback movies an ongoing thing?
Chains like Alamo Drafthouse and Hollywood Blvd seem to have them on a regular basis, where they will bring in something from years ago that is themed to a particular date on the calendar, season, or just because it would be a fun thing to do.
I don't have any first-hand knowledge of the relative success of particular movies or the approach of doing a limited-time series of movies vs. an ongoing "throwback Thursdays" series, but I would think that doing a one-off event does nothing to elevate your brand long-term, whereas doing fun things on an ongoing basis helps people to think of your theater as more than just a place to see a movie before it comes out on home video.
As far as titles go, some of the obvious ones are pretty tired, but maybe they continue to get audiences, which is why theaters keep running them from time to time. I don't think people's attention spans can handle some of the epics that go for hours...
I'm actually surprised that theaters haven't brought Avatar back on a yearly basis. It's one of those movies that did gangbuster business a very short time ago, and its impact can't be matched at home, even on a large TV. Is it not available?
My personal choices for throwback movies would be some of the more popular/people-friendly John Wayne westerns (Rooster Cogburn, True Grit, Big Jake), the Christmas season invites quite a few enjoyable and non-obvious movies, like Scrooged, While You Were Sleeping, or maybe one of the Bing Crosby movies like White Christmas or Going My Way. Valentine's Day invites any number of the classic romantic comedies that have stood the test of time.
Whatever you do, make it as much about the experience as it is about the movie. Any movie you play can be watched at home, so there has to be a reason for people to come to the theater instead. Standing in line for a new iPhone is as much about the experience of standing in line as it is about getting the phone on Day 1. Look at the people that stood in line for hours to get into the last Harry Potter or Twilight movie!
If I were running a theater, I would pay Robert Osborne to do the intros for those movies. If he's not available, then find an actor that has the same presence and give him a good script for the intro. Osborne's intros are always the highlight of watching a movie on TCM, and I would think that having an in-person intro would resonate with the audience if it's done well.
Whatever you end up doing, send me the information when you have everything figured out, and we'll do a Journal Article about it for our readers!
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