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Author
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Topic: Pre-Show Rituals
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Colin Wiseley
Expert Film Handler
Posts: 123
From: Blacksburg, VA
Registered: Dec 1999
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posted 06-16-2001 09:13 PM
Anyone out there have any pre-show rituals (not the voodoo kind) that they do before the start of a show to ensure it's success? I for one always clean and thread the projector before I do anything else when I get to the theater to show the projector that I appreciate it the most so it will be kind to me  Since I also help out in the lobby before the show I also close the auditorium doors in a certain order before I go upstairs to start the movie. So far I haven't had a breakdown in 2 years since I started doing this.------------------
Colin Wiseley
Lyric Theatre
Blacksburg, VA
www.thelyric.com
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Randy Stankey
Film God
Posts: 6539
From: Erie, Pennsylvania
Registered: Jun 99
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posted 06-17-2001 12:54 AM
When working at the college theatre I used to go backstage and check the setup before making sure the lights were out, the backstage phone had its ringer shur off and the doors were locked. Then I'd walk down the outside hallway. (Walking through the auditorium is tacky!) Once I got up to the balcony I would make one last check of the projecor. I usually had it threaded up at least 1/2 hour before showtime. From there I would stand at the front of the balcony watching the customers flow in until the phone rang in the booth. The box office girl would give me the go-ahead and I would shut off the ringer on that phone and let it rip. Once the previews had gone by I'd give everything one final check and then go down to the back of the auditorium and watch a few minutes of the film. If anything needed to be tweeked I'd take care of that before settling into a seat at the back of the balcony right near the booth door.The Work Study students that helped me had little idea what a cue dot was really for. All they knew was that every time they saw one they had to get up and go check the projector. There were usually two or three students. Work Study in the projection booth was a pretty cushy way to make money so I had to do something to make it look like they were doing a useful job. After the film was over I went backstage to tear down the speakers and fly the screen out. The Work Studies would break the movie down. We were usually out of there by midnite. I often hung around and tinkered with something before going home. The students usually had class in the morning so they had to leave as soon as they were done. That's pretty much the extent of my rituals. When I work at the googolplex it is pretty much "Let 'er rip!"
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Rick Long
Jedi Master Film Handler
Posts: 759
From: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 06-17-2001 01:22 AM
I think we all have our own rituals that we perform each day before starting a show. Having worked with many projectionists, I had the opportunity to watch them perform their own rituals. Although we all (effectively) perform the same job, each of us has his or her own daily order that we follow. The one thing I have noticed, in observing these rituals,however, is that Rule 1 is: the ritual must ALWAYS be done in a certain order and hopefully, without interuptions. Its kinda like threading a projector. You have done it so often it becomes automatic and your mind wanders. You are not thinking necessarily about the film on the sprocket. Yet, if you get interupted (say by an intercom call) and then return to the projector, you may find it difficult, at first, to pick up on where you left off. The ritual has been broken. It could, I suppose, be an elementary form of Obsessive, Compulsive Behaviour, but hey, it works for us.
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