my profile | my password | search | faq & rules | forum home

» Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE   » Community   » Film-Yak   » I dislike incompetent projectionists..

Author Topic: I dislike incompetent projectionists.. Daniel Boisson Expert Film Handler Posts: 157 From: Buffalo, NY, USA Registered: Oct 2001 posted 01-04-2003 10:59 PM                     I finally go to see Gangs of New York and this is what I get, at my own theatre, with the projectionist working that replaced me while I'm at college.... First the slides start. All we see is the bright light, so I go upstairs. The projectionist didn't bother to set the slides to the start position, so I did. Then the movie starts finally, 5 minutes after the start time. The slides ended at 8, and we saw more empty slides for 5 min. The shutter opens and there is no sound, and the picture is excactly halfway in frame. After several seconds of the picture moving all over the place, everything turns off, and the lights come on a few seconds later. After adjusting the film (century head), the movie starts again, still out of frame, and still no sound . After more moving around, the picture stops in one place, still out of frame. About 10 seconds before then end of the trailer, we finally get sound, in stereo. At this point, I'm ready to take over. We finally get DTS sound just as the movie is starting, and the frame is fixed a good 30 min. later. Sorry about the rant, continue with your activities....  |  IP: Logged Paul Cassidy Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 549 From: Auckland, New Zealand Registered: Aug 2001 posted 01-04-2003 11:24 PM                        It's a pity your talking to the converted , but I've had to do the same thing one time at a Single screen with automated projection , I just got tied of watching an out of focus film that I went into the booth and corrected the situation , sometimes when you need a good job done you have to do it yourself.  |  IP: Logged Tim Reed Better Projection Pays Posts: 5246 From: Northampton, PA Registered: Sep 1999 posted 01-05-2003 02:10 AM                       I can relate, guys. Runs out of frame/focus/whatever for 10 minutes... no one notices, so ya go in and fix it. The audience applauds and the theatre staff is none the wiser. This is often easier than tracking down someone who can find a manager, and then having to wait for the info to travel upstream to someone who can do something about it, etc.. Pitiful.  |  IP: Logged Jack Ondracek Film God Posts: 2348 From: Port Orchard, WA, USA Registered: Oct 2002 posted 01-05-2003 02:22 AM                        quote: ... no one notices, so ya go in and fix it. The audience applauds and the theatre staff is none the wiser. Best not ever do that at one of my places. You'd be sent out the door... but then, so would the staff that missed the fact that you got into the booth in the first place... along with whomever allowed the show to run that long out of focus (hopefully, not me! ) On the other hand though, it's amazing how some people can manage to get access to a theatre's booth. 16 years ago, my wife and I attended the local drive-in. In our radio, we could hear the sound from one of the other (fully speakered) screens better than the one we were in. I went to the concession, introduced myself to the manager, asked if I could help & she said "go ahead". I went upstairs and fixed it. The manager did not follow, and never knew what I had done in her booth. Years later, we visited a local indoor quad and, after 20 minutes of enduring an out of focus picture, asked the manager if it could be trimmed a bit. They made it worse and it stayed that way through the rest of the show. That theatre closed about 6 months later. Ironically... we now own both of them!  |  IP: Logged Tim Reed Better Projection Pays Posts: 5246 From: Northampton, PA Registered: Sep 1999 posted 01-05-2003 04:18 AM                       quote: Best not ever do that at one of my places. You'd be sent out the door... For the record, I have been to your theatre, and I have done this. Since you didn't know it was running wrong, you didn't know it got fixed.  |  IP: Logged

All times are Central (GMT -6:00)

Printer-friendly view of this topic

Hop To: Select a Forum: Category: Operations -------------------- Digital Cinema Forum Film Handlers' Forum Large Format Forum Ground Level Feature Info, Trailer Attachments & REAL Credit Offsets Category: Community -------------------- Film-Yak Film Handlers' Movie Reviews The Afterlife Bob Maar's Joke-A-Thon Category: Classified -------------------- Equipment and Supplies Wanted/For Sale Help Wanted/Seeking Employment Category: System -------------------- Software Beta Testing Forum

The Film-Tech Forums are designed for various members related to the cinema industry to express their opinions, viewpoints and testimonials on various products, services and events based upon speculation, personal knowledge and factual information through use, therefore all views represented here allow no liability upon the publishers of this web site and the owners of said views assume no liability for any ill will resulting from these postings. The posts made here are for educational as well as entertainment purposes and as such anyone viewing this portion of the website must accept these views as statements of the author of that opinion and agrees to release the authors from any and all liability.