Why the "New Normal" at Theaters May Mean a Premium Experience for Moviegoers

[Geoff Jones]

It's actually far cheaper to replace the screen than it is to install and maintin curtains.

That's certainly interesting. I hadn't considered that possibility... but it's also incomplete information.

Are curtains more expensive than replacing the screen once a decade? Once every five years? Every two? Yearly? What if the screen gets vandalized twice in one year?

Does insurance cover screen replacement each time it's damaged?

Also, does screen size make a difference? I can easily imagine that curtains are more expensive than replacing a 20' wide 2:1 screen, but what about a curved 70' wide 2.4:1 screen?

How bad does the damage on a screen have to get before a theater will replace it? I wouldn't be surprised if most chains rarely bother.

Of course, there are still a number of beneficial elements offered by curtains that are impossible to calculate, such as:

• The value of "showmanship" that Ed mentioned.
• The disdain for pres-show commercials expressed by Ed, Marcel, and many others. (I've come to appreciate reserved seating as a way to avoid the pre-show crap.)
• The lost revenue from customers who spent an entire movie distracted by marks on the screen and vowed to never return.

why are they trying so hard to attract affluent middle aged patrons who are unreliable movie patrons and sacrificing the business of teens

Maybe because so many teens are content to watch movies on a 5" screen?

[Steve Guttag]

Price a curtain out and find out. You'll be shocked at the cost. They all are hand made (sewn together). you need a table and facility large enough to handle the curtain size you obtaining. Then factor in the material. Grand drapes are, typically 100% fullness...which essentially makes for whatever you see hanging, it is really twice is much material as the pleats have the curtain material going fore-aft as much as side to side (draw curtain). So, that 70-foot screen is going to need an 80-85-foot curtain or about 170-feet of material. And, if it is 70-feet wide, the screen is about 30-feet tall. But you will need more like 40-45 -feet of material to get behind the valance and to hang to near the floor. So you are up to nearly 7700 square feet of material before labor to make it. Naturally, you'll need rigging material, a motor, Still with me?

So, you cover all of those costs and get it installed (and we are talking about a system that is in the 10s of thousands of dollars...the price will vary wildly based on material chosen since whatever it is, it will be multiplied by a significant number). Curtains and the whole drapery system ages. The cord will stretch as it tugs through the pulleys so maintenance will need to be done regularly on the system to ensure that slack is taken up and that no carriers or pulleys are binding or need lubrication (and don't get any of the lubricant on the drape or the screen). Then there is the fact that the curtain is help up via eyelets at the top where it attaches to the carriers. If you hang a curtain that is 1-inch above the floor on day-1, by 6 months in, it will likely be dragging. If it ever starts dragging, it will quickly accelerate the wear on the whole rigging/motor and cord as the drag adds into what the system must pull. So...most will cut the curtain a bit short (6-inches to a foot) but still it has to be checked for stretch AND if the eyelets are pulling out. Periodically, it will need to be serviced due to the stretch.

In short, curtains are not set-and-forget items. The bigger they are, the more they need attention. Their own weight (and length) are their enemy. For what its worth, I'd estimate a curtain system can easily be 3-4 times the cost of the screen system or 4-5 times the cost of the screen itself.

So, okay, you've put in this beautiful curtain on your 70-foot screen and the unthinkable happens, it brakes. Now what? How do you open it to get the show going? Any theatre with a screen that big is one you won't want to be down due to a curtain. Think about how much material you are trying to move. Its weight likely exceeds your weight...which means you can't just pull the cords. Oh, you'll be able to start it opening, presuming the problem isn't something jammed, but as the curtain stacks up, you'll eventually have an easier time climbing up the cords than getting them to move to open that massive drape.

BTW...all of the above has happened to me (Uptown in DC)...which has the added full of being deeply curved so the pull is extra difficult.

So, Mark's point about the cost of the curtain exceeding the cost of replacing the screen, several times, is correct. Then again, a curtain does stop the screen from being damaged, by a large margin. Long before a screen gets replaced, it has to look pretty bad and thus people are watching a damaged image for some time before it gets attended to. HVAC blows dirt on the screen (or is sucked through the screen by the return) in addition to patrons shooting things at it.

Make no mistake, I'm firmly in the camp of theatres should always use curtains (and masking) and it does set the atmosphere of the theatre. There was a time when the technicalities of showing a movie were kept hidden. You didn't see the screen or speakers or the projector. You revealed just enough to show the movie. Plus showing a movie was a show unto itself. I think we are better off getting back to that mentality. I even think that the kids will acclimate to having a performance rather than just seeing a movie. They seem to understand there is a difference between a sit-down restaurant versus McDonald's.

I'm happy to report I'm working on a theatre now in Ventnor City, NJ where the large house does have a grand drape, monogrammed, no less!

[Marcel Birgelen]

The problem with curtains is that they're not on the "Minimum Equipment List", as in, you can run a show without curtains, but not without a screen. First it was the curtains and later it also happened to proper masking.

Installing curtains in some of those bare-bones black boxes might be a challenge of its own. You probably end up building a new frame in front of the screen in some cases, as curtains and the mechanism to drive them are also pretty heavy. Keep in mind that you can't just use any odd fabric for curtains, as they need to be made from fire-proofed material, which also significantly adds to the costs.

The cost of curtains is usually proportional to the screen size. A larger screen also requires larger curtains. You don't want to stop your curtains half way past the screen, like some kind of crop top.

Damage to screens and or curtains will usually be covered by insurance, if you do have the right insurance. Maybe, if you're a big chain, you choose not to insure this kind of damage, as it may statistically be cheaper to account for such damage yourself instead of paying for insurance for all properties under your management.

If trade-offs need to be made, for me the lack of curtains would hurt me the least... Maybe the last 30-or-so years of having no curtains by default has lowered my expectations. But if I'd need to choose between proper masking and curtains, then I'd always go for proper masking, as this has a more profound impact on the show.

[Mark Lane]

We have been working on upping our game for a couple of years now.
We have fake curtains.. they are on the top of the screen and the sides to frame the screen. They look like they could open and close but they are not nearly large enough. They are just there for looks, to give the theater a more vintage feel. This was a low cost option as it only took a fraction of the cost, and there was no need for a motor or electrical work.

We have been playing around with showing vintage commercials (or other material that doesn't require a license) from the 60s before the trailers. I want people to arrive early so they have time to buy concessions and this gives them some entertainment rather than watching a blank screen. I think this encourages people to come out a little earlier. We turn down the volume so people can still talk to each other but can watch the old commercials if they wish.

When possible we have a manager or floor person walk through the theater before the presentation to welcome back regulars on an individual bases, and to welcome new guests and to give them some of the history of the theater. This person will often have a bucket of cheap small candies he or she will give out. We also stand in the lobby when the movie is over and thank everyone for coming out.

We removed three rows of seats. We spread out the rows. This allows people leg room and helps with the line of site. We were not selling out as it was, so less seats did not really hurt us. This was much less expensive than replacing the seats with the luxury seating..

We try and keep our prices low. We are located in a lower income community and to make the theater experience affordable for families, we have to be mindful of their budget.

We can not control the quality of the movie, but we can be involved more with the overall theater experience.

[Mike Blakesley]

Long-time readers will know that I have had an ambition to put a curtain in my theater for many years. It had curtains, until about 1983. The old home-grown system wouldn't work with our newly-installed automation and even when they did work, the roped inevitably jammed anyway and you had to climb under the stage and rotate a wheel that was attached to the rope system to slowly wrench the curtains open. So eventually we got tired of fooling with it and, after a couple of years of the curtains being open all the time, we took them down. That was when I learned how gawd-awful heavy they were and they weren't even fancy curtains. Our screen is 30x15 so they weren't huge, but they were weighty.

A few years ago I got a quote for a curtain system. Even with our smallish screen, it was over $20k. So while I still have the ambition to someday have curtains, I am not getting any younger; and I have resigned myself to the notion that we probably won't have curtains during my tenure here. Given the way the industry is going, I'll be happy to make it to retirement and still have the doors open.

We do still have the "curtain lights" which show a colorful pattern on the screen before the movie. I absolutely refuse to have the audience looking at the blank screen, so at least there's that.

[Steve Guttag]

Mike,

Don't give up on the curtain quest!!!! Everything you said is very consistent with others and curtains. They are still worth it! And yes, they are not essential, (as has been demonstrated by your theatre since 1983). I'm guess you had a waterfall curtain, of some sort?. Those use a wench type motor, and if really classy, someone will counterbalance them with stage weights (I don't see that much anymore but I used to see that). Normally, those motors do supply a "crank" incase of failure so you have a chance, if your arm doesn't fall off due to the gear reduction) to crank them back up.

Here is a picture of the one I was at this week and is set to open in a week or two. The picture doesn't do it justice either...it is even more impressive in person. It is the Ventnor Square Theatre in Ventnor City, NJ. Come for the movies, stay for the curtain! The picture and sound are impressive as well (NEC NC3541L laser projector with Dolby ATMOS sound via QSC's QSYS). Note, the image below is distorted. The seating rows are not curved like that and the screen is slightly curved for light reflectance. The curtain follows the screen curve.

12716 (1).jpeg

[Kenneth Wuepper]

Hello Steve,

What a really beautiful setting.

Is the front of the stage straight? The screen and "Grand" curved away from the seating? (concave)

When the temple did movies, we had two curtains. The red "Grand" and a second upstage movie curtain that moved slightly later than the grand.

It took a carpenter to move the grand and the movie curtain is motorized.

Those were the days of presentation.

KEN

[Steve Guttag]

The stage has a slight "thrust" towards the audience. This picture wasn't with a fisheye lens so you'll see the seating a bit more true-to life. It is before the screen went up (or the subwoofers moved in) but you can get a better feel for how much the stage curves our and the screen and curtain curve in. Screen Shot 2021-05-08 at 3.20.25 PM.png

[Kenneth Wuepper]

Thanks Steve for the better photo here.

That is a great sound system wall with a real 5 across layout.

[Mark Gulbrandsen]

Long-time readers will know that I have had an ambition to put a curtain in my theater for many years. It had curtains, until about 1983. The old home-grown system wouldn't work with our newly-installed automation and even when they did work, the roped inevitably jammed anyway and you had to climb under the stage and rotate a wheel that was attached to the rope system to slowly wrench the curtains open. So eventually we got tired of fooling with it and, after a couple of years of the curtains being open all the time, we took them down. That was when I learned how gawd-awful heavy they were and they weren't even fancy curtains. Our screen is 30x15 so they weren't huge, but they were weighty.

A few years ago I got a quote for a curtain system. Even with our smallish screen, it was over $20k. So while I still have the ambition to someday have curtains, I am not getting any younger; and I have resigned myself to the notion that we probably won't have curtains during my tenure here. Given the way the industry is going, I'll be happy to make it to retirement and still have the doors open.

We do still have the "curtain lights" which show a colorful pattern on the screen before the movie. I absolutely refuse to have the audience looking at the blank screen, so at least there's that.

I remember the last time we priced a curtain for you and JUST the curtain was a little over 5K dollars. You also had odd requirements for the traveler and other stuff because of the building constraints. By the time it was said and done you were approaching 10K dollars installed. Thing about putting in curtains is you don't want to install cheap stuff. Only the best stuff because the curtain may break and not open for a given show. When I worked at another Salt Lake City dealer they used cheap garage door pulleys and other cheap parts and all that stuff broke and broke often. The same goes for movable masking! Nick Mulone was selling modified screw type garage door openers as masking motors, and those broke down pretty often. So, avoid stuff like that.

[Marcel Birgelen]

The stage has a slight "thrust" towards the audience. This picture wasn't with a fisheye lens so you'll see the seating a bit more true-to life. It is before the screen went up (or the subwoofers moved in) but you can get a better feel for how much the stage curves our and the screen and curtain curve in.

Pleased to see that someone is still building a proper baffle wall in 2021... Try to convince someone into investing into stuff people can't see nowadays...

[Steve Guttag]

It's a real Dolby ATMOS room. This one, I believe, has 42 separate speakers/channels. My general rule on the ATMOS rooms is do it right or don't do it. If the baffle wall and 5-across or the proper number of surrounds are too much, then so is ATMOS. I can save you tons of money if that is the goal...step 1, put in a 7.1 system...that will save upwards of $100K right there (if you add in all of the little bits and pieces of the speakers, rigging, amplifiers, additional time/labor to design, install, document, it adds up pretty fast and it isn't all or even mostly going to Dolby...it is just a lot of stuff. In truth, it is a bit less but still, if $100K makes one flinch at putting in ATMOS, then don't do it. That is the ballpark you are in to do it right where it stands a chance at making the difference.

When I ran "Amaze, " after it was tuned, what they spent the money on was VERY apparent. Mind you, acoustic everything was used in this room to knock down on what appear to be hard surfaces to keep the historic appearance but acoustically sound decent. It paid off too...the EQ on each channel, was relatively minor. Yeah, the more off in the corner a surround speaker was, the more squirrelly the response gets (can't get away from the physics of boundary conditions, including hanging speakers from the ceiling) but overall, pretty uniform and the SC-424 stage speakers needed very little (truthfully, they needed no tuning to meet 2969 beyond their "voicing" which, in QSYS, is the same applied to all of the SC-424. "DAD" has a fixation on trying to get things "perfect." Pans around the room, however, have a pretty even timbre.

As for a curtain. Mark's $10K figure seems VERY low. Even the $5K figure for the drape itself seems very low. I believe Mike's $20K number much more, particularly, installed. You do want to use good materials (rigging and drape). That is for sure. You want a combination of light-weight material (remember, the curtain's weight is its enemy) yet durable. It is going to be moving every show and supporting itself and going through changes as it moves and how humidity alters it.

[Leo Enticknap]

When I worked at another Salt Lake City dealer they used cheap garage door pulleys and other cheap parts and all that stuff broke and broke often.

I know of one medium-sized chain that uses Chamberlain garage door openers, of the sort you can buy at Home Depot, as masking motor/controller units. Their engineering VP told me that he has found them to be just as accurate and resilient as purpose-designed masking motor/controllers, at around 20% of the price.

Of course the gotcha would be if you needed to have more than two presets (flat and scope, or closed and open if it was driving a garage door) - but this chain doesn't, so that isn't a problem.

[Mark Gulbrandsen]

I know of one medium-sized chain that uses Chamberlain garage door openers, of the sort you can buy at Home Depot, as masking motor/controller units. Their engineering VP told me that he has found them to be just as accurate and resilient as purpose-designed masking motor/controllers, at around 20% of the price.

Of course the gotcha would be if you needed to have more than two presets (flat and scope, or closed and open if it was driving a garage door) - but this chain doesn't, so that isn't a problem.

Better them than me. Been down that Pike before. A good masking motor is at lest 3 grand, but they last just about for ever. Same with curtain motors. Garage door openers usually.have to.be modified to be able to be utilized.

[Marcel Birgelen]

It's a real Dolby ATMOS room. This one, I believe, has 42 separate speakers/channels. My general rule on the ATMOS rooms is do it right or don't do it. If the baffle wall and 5-across or the proper number of surrounds are too much, then so is ATMOS. I can save you tons of money if that is the goal...step 1, put in a 7.1 system...that will save upwards of $100K right there (if you add in all of the little bits and pieces of the speakers, rigging, amplifiers, additional time/labor to design, install, document, it adds up pretty fast and it isn't all or even mostly going to Dolby...it is just a lot of stuff. In truth, it is a bit less but still, if $100K makes one flinch at putting in ATMOS, then don't do it. That is the ballpark you are in to do it right where it stands a chance at making the difference.

I agree, but it's always hard to convince those bean counters. Many operators want an Atmos room, because just of the nameplate and as long as the competition is doing essentially the same, their corner-cutting won't be recognized by the public. In my experience, a full baffle wall is almost always the first thing that gets eliminated, no matter if it's an ATMOS or 7.1 setup.

I think that if you'd a screening or listening room of a decent size, with equal equipment, one with and one without baffle wall, it would be easier to convince people.

When I ran "Amaze, " after it was tuned, what they spent the money on was VERY apparent. Mind you, acoustic everything was used in this room to knock down on what appear to be hard surfaces to keep the historic appearance but acoustically sound decent. It paid off too...the EQ on each channel, was relatively minor. Yeah, the more off in the corner a surround speaker was, the more squirrelly the response gets (can't get away from the physics of boundary conditions, including hanging speakers from the ceiling) but overall, pretty uniform and the SC-424 stage speakers needed very little (truthfully, they needed no tuning to meet 2969 beyond their "voicing" which, in QSYS, is the same applied to all of the SC-424. "DAD" has a fixation on trying to get things "perfect." Pans around the room, however, have a pretty even timbre.

I guess, if you build a room with decent acoustical qualities and you buy somewhat quality gear, you shouldn't need to have to tune a lot, or else something is wrong. Too often we simply rely on "software fixes" to fix hardware deficiencies, but those can only go so far. Tuning is what the word implies: tuning.

It's a pity those ceiling speakers are still a requirement for a proper ATMOS install, I'd rather replace them with a second row of surround speakers and maybe just a single "voice of god" speaker. Technically, the ATMOS format should support such configurations... More like the original Auro 3D setup. Speakers on the ceiling are a pain to get right and they add the least to the experience.

For some good ATMOS audio-panning at work, I also like the "Nature's Fury" trailer (the beginning, the rest of the trailer is just showing off at full-blast...), that's the shorter version of the "Universe" trailer, which skips the Dolby Vision demo, which wouldn't make much sense in DCI-P3.

Dolby also has a pre-show DCP which they run in front of their Dolby Cinema shows, which includes a subtle sound pattern panning around through the auditorium. It's one of the more convincing demonstrations of ATMOS, but I still need to get hold of that one. Maybe someone knows what it's called?