8mm Forum: Projectionists-The end of the road?

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Topic: Projectionists-The end of the road?

Mark Williams
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 846
From: West Sussex
Registered: Mar 2007

posted December 09, 2010 02:55 PM

Interesting article

http://www.slate.com/id/2266654/pagenum/all/#p2

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Pasquale DAlessio
Film God

Posts: 3523
From: Bristol,RI, USA
Registered: May 2010

posted December 10, 2010 09:46 AM

Mark

Excellent article. I am printing it for a projectionist friend of mine.

Pat

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Joe McAllister
Expert Film Handler

Posts: 179
From: London England
Registered: May 2007

posted December 10, 2010 02:40 PM

I think many people outside the industry are unaware of the skill required to run a projection room. Even rewinding films by hand without cinching the print is a lost art. Ist projectionists in large cinemas would have been able to re wire and repair the whole installation and would have had several years on the job training.
The many I knew and worked with were also eccentric character whose only common quality was a love of the movies, my kind of people.

--------------------
Always interested in privately produced amateur and home movies.

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Graham Ritchie
Film God

Posts: 4001
From: New Zealand
Registered: Feb 2006

posted December 13, 2010 11:26 PM

Joe
Projectionists are not "eccentric".... nuts yes.. anyone conected to this business has to be [Big Grin]

I have been doing it full time for the last 10 years and thankfully my background before this was something else. Joking aside I have met some normal people and in general its been a good experence.

The cinema where I work is part of a mall and has just three screens, thankfully not part of any big chains [Smile]

We dont have a procedures or training manual "I am dead against it" just people that know what they are doing and that works just fine.

The old Bauer U4 projector, left on the photo was installed 20 years ago second hand and it runs like everything else 10-12 hrs a day 7 days a week and apart from Christmas day is the only time its not running. It does need to be replaced, however this place has certainly had its money worth out of 35mm projecting. As to the future of the projectionist....there isn't one, digital will see to that, however in my time working there I have opened the projection room a bit more to allow visits and that part has been fun.

We have showed people who are visiting NZ from the US the UK, Canada, birthday groups etc as most have never seen a film projector as they think its all video and thats where the "wow" thats interesting factor comes in, they dont just buy a ticket to a movie but get to see a working museum as well [Smile]

it just adds that little extra to the movie experence.

Its a pity to see the decline in the way cinemas have become eg once the manager was downstairs in a suit and tie greeting the evening patrons and so on, the list is long, anyway on a more positive note we did write an article for the mall newspaper regarding the projection room. I thought at least we should get something on record before it all finally disappear's here is a small part or it.

Graham.

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Graham Ritchie
Film God

Posts: 4001
From: New Zealand
Registered: Feb 2006

posted December 16, 2010 02:58 AM

Meet the future.... our soon to be replacement.

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