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

» Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE   » Operations   » Film Handlers' Forum   » Pulling a header while the film is running 101 (Page 1)

This topic comprises 2 pages: 1  2

Author Topic: Pulling a header while the film is running 101 Gunnar Asgeirsson Film Handler Posts: 64 From: Iceland Registered: Jul 2006 posted 09-03-2006 04:17 AM                        What can i say... wow.. take a look at this video. quote: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bMQ3C-5kO_A That is somethink i would never do when the film is running I was just serching at youtube.com and i found this.  |  IP: Logged Ben Stephenson Film Handler Posts: 29 From: Manchester, England Registered: Jan 2001 posted 09-03-2006 06:11 AM                    Sometimes needs must, can i say they look very profesional and seam to know what they are doing, the operation looks very smooth and with enough practis over the years this is very easy to do, Working in such an invoroment where you don't have the option to get things wrong you don't!  |  IP: Logged Steve Guttag We forgot the crackers Gromit!!! Posts: 12814 From: Annapolis, MD Registered: Dec 1999 posted 09-03-2006 08:20 AM                     The things that I think I've started... When I've needed the trailer pack for the incoming feature and on the last show of the outgoing feature...I've done that verything...without the 2nd guy. Someone once saw me do it and didn't catch the part about keeping everything off the floor during the procedure. He didn't care...after all the film is leaving. If the film is staying, I will often do my trailer swaps on the 2nd to the last show of the day (it depends on the theatre configuration and the time available). I will often isolate the film to be pulled with sponge rubber or cores...wait an hour to get three reels on the take up platter(s)....then go throughout the complex and pull the trailer packs (with three reels, there is enough friction the film won't slide about). Service the trailer packs....then distribute them back to their respective theatres....as the movies drop...it is just one splice away from threading back up. It scares most people the first time they see a center-less film on take up.  |  IP: Logged Brad Miller Administrator Posts: 17775 From: Plano, TX (36.2 miles NW of Rockwall) Registered: May 99 posted 09-03-2006 08:53 AM                     Well let's see. First off, that video did not need to be that freakin' long when it shoudl've been 30 seconds maximum. But putting aside the "artistic vision" of the "film"maker... This has been done, and like Steve said, I've done this myself witout assistance. (The trick is to be taking up onto the bottom deck, then switch to the top deck for platter models such as this.) Indeed the trick is to keep the film off of the floor, not scratch up the end of the last trailer AND put forth extreme care when threading the beginning of the feature through the rollers, as it is very easy to scratch that up as well. It's overall bad practice. If you look closely at the video, you will see that the last 20 feet or so of the trailers gets ripped through without any assistance, thus scratching it up quite nicely. Then for good measure, the trailer pack is put on the floor. In looking at the head of the feature, it appears it was permitted to slip around the center ring, further laying scratches on it for the first few feet.  |  IP: Logged Steve Scott Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1300 From: Minneapolis, MN Registered: Sep 2000 posted 09-03-2006 01:15 PM                     I worked with a guy who insisted that breaking a splice halfway through an outgoing print, still running, was the only way he'd get out of the building at a decent hour on breakdown nights... Without breaking too much of a sweat, I could run the print, break it AND an average of five others down the correct way & still leave at the same time he did. But did this convince him?  |  IP: Logged Louis Bornwasser Film God Posts: 4441 From: prospect ky usa Registered: Mar 2005 posted 09-03-2006 04:24 PM                        I once had a customer who disabled the failsafe switch, then ran the trailers onto a house reel using the lower take up, then was able to put reel one of the feature onto its proper header, which had been prethreaded onto the proper shipping reel during the last showing.. Using a piece of cardboard, nothing touched the floor and (knowing the person involved) the splice was good & in frame. Continuing then, he could almost beat the audience to the street on ship out night. You may wonder: "Why?" Because of the frugality of the theatre owner, this was similar to ANY ship out/in. The theatre did not own a rewind bench or make up table! Louis  |  IP: Logged Chad M Calpito Master Film Handler Posts: 435 From: San Diego, CA Registered: Apr 2006 posted 09-03-2006 04:44 PM                        After seeing the video, I was amazed. I know that is something I personally wouldn't attempt to do since I'm not even trained in doing something like that. Besides, I never even knew that had ever been done before.  |  IP: Logged Steve Guttag We forgot the crackers Gromit!!! Posts: 12814 From: Annapolis, MD Registered: Dec 1999 posted 09-03-2006 08:15 PM                     Oh...I've done the break down on the lower reel arm thing too...they just HAD to hvae it right after the show...so I said Okay Steve  |  IP: Logged Nick Scott Expert Film Handler Posts: 133 From: nsw austrailia Registered: Nov 2004 posted 09-03-2006 09:11 PM                        Ive done this before, i think its easier on a Kinoton ST 200 theres alot less rollers on them and its easier to keep the film of the floor. It is easier with just the one person two people would just get in the way of each other.  |  IP: Logged Monte L Fullmer Film God Posts: 8367 From: Nampa, Idaho, USA Registered: Nov 2004 posted 09-04-2006 03:13 AM                     quote: Chad M Calpito I know that is something I personally wouldn't attempt to do since I'm not even trained in doing something like that. LOL...neither was I. I just figured it out just by analysing the situation and just DID IT! Yea, I've done it all as well. Swapping out the ringset during a run by starting the show manually then doing the swap - but I did this all by myself-no help needed. Then after the swap, hitting the "start" button then turning off the manual switches. My fun thing (and with VIC -5's where the stock CINE upper and lower arms are being used) was having a setup that where you can use the 6k reels (or even the smaller 2k's) with the guidance rollers below the spindles that can be easily swung away. Thus, I'd mark the film on the platter where it would fill a 6k reel, turn on the manual switches, then when my mark would come around, bust the splice, pull that reel off, put one back on its place (it's great to use slip reels in doing this), do the slip wind on the hub, hit the "run" button so the automation can take over and continue with the rest without stopping. This allowed me to bust down the first three reels while waiting for the other half. And, if I was really wanting to get done, then I used the 2k reels with this same procedure. Fun things that you can learn on your own in a booth.  |  IP: Logged Owen Shave Film Handler Posts: 34 From: Manchester, UK Registered: Feb 2002 posted 09-04-2006 08:50 AM                     I guess I'll put my hands up right now and reveal myself as the 'fat boy on a diet' in the video.. First off, thanks to all of you who have praised our video, but I'd like to clear a few things up about it. The video wasn't actually made as a demo on how this should be done, as such the '101' title is definitely misleading, and for that I apologise... See Mr. Miller's post for the various ways that we could've messed up the film and also tips on how to do it better. We didn't actually decide to do it till after the film had started (and was running to the top platter), hence Brad's suggestion on running to the bottom platter wouldn't have worked for us this time. We probably wouldn't have done it by choice, but on this occasion we really needed that header *now*. I have covered at a cinema in Ireland where this was the standard practice for advert removal on a Thursday night from films leaving the cinema. Also we didn't decide to record it until after we knew we were going to do it.. this wasn't film surgery for film surgery's sake, and was only done in one take (no outtakes to come in future videos!). We've been playing around with shooting videos on our mobile phones so we set them up on two different angles then did what we had to do. Of course once the cameras are there you want to put on a bit of a show.. hence the handshake at the end. The video was cut together for a laugh and not as an instructional tool, so I cut it to the song I wanted and strung it out so it fits the length of the track... I'm not a skilled editor, film maker etc.. twas all for the fun, and a high quality end product wasn't high on our agenda. For a high quality DIY film production, I heartily recommend Joe Redifer's Booth Training Seminar which is hilarious for anyone who works in a booth and I believe it is still available in the Videos section of this website. SO, to sum up... keep the film off the floor (in the heat of the moment I really dropped the ball by putting the ring on the floor! - although our floors are of course cleaner than the hermetically sealed rooms at Intel ). If you are doing this on a Vic 5, you need to keep tension one of the arms on the platter, and either switch off the film break roller or keep enough tension on the film coming out of the projector (else you'll get an alarm and the proj will shut down) (turning off a film break roller seems like a great idea until you hear stories of the projectionist who comes back to find an entire feature spooled onto the floor beneath the projector). As for the feature slipping on the ring, I throw all the blame on my colleague.. there was masking tape there and ready.. but hey we all make mistakes.  |  IP: Logged Dennis Benjamin Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1445 From: Denton, MD Registered: Feb 2002 posted 09-04-2006 01:03 PM                        Here's my story on this type of thing: Back in the early nineties I discovered why people would have to change out ads or previews while a show is running. I was a the lead projectionist at an 8 plex in Ft. Myers, Florida. One Friday afternoon, my manager called up on the radio and asked if a particular trailer was on a film. I had just started the very film he was asking about and realized that that trailer WAS NOT on the film. I then called on the radio and asked why anyone was wondering. The GM replied that a trailer checker representing the film company was in the building. I freaked. I then remembered the DM had been saying earlier in the week that being able to change trailers while a movie was running was a true test of how good a projectionist really was (I thought he was nuts!). I then put myself to the test and grabbed the trailer and splicer. Without stopping the film I actually put on the trailer while the film was running and it ran through without a hitch. When I was finished I turned around and my GM was standing there. He laughed and said "that was amazing". He then told me that the trailer checker had left after he told her that the trailer wasn't on the film. Lesson learned: Read the report that the company put out every Thursday telling us what trailers to put on the new films.  |  IP: Logged Frank Dubrois Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 896 From: Cleveland, OH Registered: Mar 2005 posted 09-04-2006 03:05 PM                    OK, so it CAN be done, but I don't really understand WHY this would have to be done? First of all, we have plenty of trailers on hand, usually doubles and triples (I thought most people did), but secondly, if you know you'll need a specific trailer, why couldnt you remove it before the film starts? Why couldnt you remove all of them before the film starts? People coming into a 9pm show on a thrusday night as a movie is leaving arent really showing up to see the coming attractions. I've actually pulled everything off a film before the last show was shown if I knew I'd need something off of it. I've never even tried to remove them while a film is running, and never will. I just don't see the need. Its a nice trick to show the ladies, but shouldnt ever be considered SOP.  |  IP: Logged Steve Guttag We forgot the crackers Gromit!!! Posts: 12814 From: Annapolis, MD Registered: Dec 1999 posted 09-04-2006 03:36 PM                     That is fine if it is company policy that no previews/ads need to run on the last performance for a title. I would say it was a rare bird that I pulled the trailer pack on the last show...it was much more common for me to pull the trailers I needed prior to the last show. Depending on what trailers are in inventory and what the company wanted on which feature...one has to do what they can do. Many people do just run the last show sans-previews/ads...I never did. Of course, running reel-to-reel, this procedure takes on a completely different look and is much less rushed I can not claim to have put a preview on a film while the trailers were running through though. I've added them with 5 minutes notice prior to the show start (double-decking) but not once the show begins. For the life of me...I never understood WHY it was so critical to get a PREVIEW on a particular show...they made it sound like the end of the world if it didn't make it.  |  IP: Logged Monte L Fullmer Film God Posts: 8367 From: Nampa, Idaho, USA Registered: Nov 2004 posted 09-04-2006 04:49 PM                     Trust me Steve, it IS sometimes a life and death situation IF that one trailer isn't on the screen for the wknd performances. Worked for a circuit that had trailer checkers watching for stuff like that like buzzards around roadkill - a specified trailer on a certain movie. Film came in and we were short one required trailer amongst the trailers that were included in the cans. Thus, I reported it on the trailer list that is sent into Home Offive via email that Thurs night and make the request for an order for this required trailer. Home office called me up and asked me if I have received that trailer yet, and of course ,UPS shipmemnt that day didn't include that trailer. Home Office then went absolutely bezerk and raised holy hell all over me saying that I had failed my position as Presentation Mgr. and I would be reported immediately to my immediate boss, who was the Chief of Presentations and Chief Engineer. Yet, I quickly reversed that judgement by mentioning to them that I can get that required trailer from the opposition theatres in town (in which they did have after me calling around and with me having excellent work relations with the opposition theatres). Thus, I ran over to the one theatre that did have that trailer, got that danged trailer, mounted it on the required feature's trailer pak, and still had that required trailer on by the 7pm set and the checkers did report that trailer being in the required trailer pak. Funny is, after all that butt-chewing and hell raising, Home Office complimented me on my valiant efforts in solving this crisis. Shoot, got a raise a month afterwards for doing this and other merits that I've accomplished as Presentation Mgr ....go-figure. thx - Monte  |  IP: Logged

All times are Central (GMT -6:00)

This topic comprises 2 pages: 1  2

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.