From: fontana@cis.ohio-state.edu (Mark Fontana)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.movies
Subject: Re: Overworked projectionists (Was: PEEVES at MOVIE THEATERS)
Date: 22 Jan 1993 00:25:33 -0500
Organization: The Ohio State University Dept. of Computer and Info. Science
NNTP-Posting-Host: iguana.cis.ohio-state.edu

In article <1jntshINN1je@usenet.INS.CWRU.Edu> ac717@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Jeffry L. Johnson) writes:

>In a previous article, tvervaek@col.hp.com (Tom Vervaeke) says:
>>2. Poor sound, unfocused projector.

>Long gone are the days of a projectionist only having to deal with a single 
>screen. If you are lucky, the only duties of the projectionist is projection. 

>If there is a problem, you must inform the staff. As a projectionist, I wish
>I could be at every screen all the time checking focus, sound, framing, etc.
>Try doing that in a 10 screen theatre. You are running everywhere prepping
>for the next show.

This is true!  And most big multiplexes have a booth staff of maybe
one or two truly competent projectionists, supported by several 
bare-bones people who know the basics (so that the competent people can
have at least some time off).

The competent folks are the ones more interested in their job, and
more likely to go running about checking focus/framing/sound/etc on
their own initiative.

BUT!  When the competent projectionists are there, they are typically
asked to handle additional duties not assigned to the minimally-skilled
crew; ie. building up/tearing down prints, trailer work, projector
maintenance, etc ON TOP OF everyday operations!  Thus, their ability
to run around and check things is somewhat impaired.

From a projection quality point of view, Wednesday and Thursday nights are
probably the worst times in the week to see a movie, because anyone
involved in projection is probably preoccupied building up new prints
and making up trailers for them.  (And late on Thursday nights, tearing down
the prints we'll no longer be showing- a task that typically must be
completed ASAP, as the prints get picked up by dollar houses or
film services either that night or very early the next morning.)

Lots of theatres suffer from boobs-in-the-booth syndrome.  By all
means, fight incompetence!  If any MAJOR problems occur (beyond
focus/sound-type problems, ie. film break not promptly taken care of,
reels out of order (!), film spliced backwards, etc) make your
feelings known such that the manager will have no second thoughts
about eliminating the source of repeated problems.  (Which is
not always possible; there aren't many people interested in 
doing this kind of work for scarcely above minimum wage)

Example:  For our sneak of Used People last week, the person who
built up the print made a bad splice between reels 3 and 4; the
soundtrack was on the wrong side.  The print was not run through
prior to the sneak (said person didn't stay late to do this nor
ask someone to do it in the morning).  As a result, we had
a 3-minute interruption to fix the problem, with a full house
of 320 people.  This is embarrassing and simply should not have
been allowed to happen.  

Mark
-- 
 "IF YOU SEE ONLY ONE MOVIE THIS YEAR..."  |  Mark A. Fontana
        ...you should get out more often!  |  Computer and Info. Science
     Projectionist, AMC Dublin Village 14  |  THE Ohio State University