behind the screens
It's hard out there for a movie theatre. Sure, people see the ticket and concession prices and think the theatres are rollin'--so they start hatin.' But this is one case where they shouldn't hate the player--they should hate the game. Most of the ticket money goes back to Hollywood, so moviegoers face insane prices at the concession stand. And all that insane money goes into keeping the theatre open--employees get paid, things get cleaned and maintained, heads are barely kept above water.
Of course, to get concession money, you gotta put bums in seats. Not only do you need movies that people want to see, but you need movies that people who spend money on concessions want to see. Which is why I'm not entirely surprised to see Festival Cinemas, a local chain usually devoted to artsier fare, showing blockbusters and big Hollywood movies. Their mission statement has been edited from "We are committed to bringing films to the community that are out of the mainstream, independent productions, revealing qualities of the human spirit" to "Festival Cinemas is committed to bringing to the community films that explore qualities of the human character." Lately, it seems like smaller movies make it to their screens by accident, like it snuck in while the door person wasn't looking. In other words, they're just like your local Silvercity or Tinseltown, except with slightly more reasonable concession prices. Sigh. I know I'm all about supporting the little guy and patronizing independent movie theatres whenever possible, but what about my need to support the little filmmaker and her independent movie?
Maybe we'll see more independent movies making their way to the Rio Theatre in the next few months. It's under a new management that involves various business owners, Watermelon, and Moses Znaimer. Sounds interesting so far, right? Read this from their Facebook group page:
On Broadway and Commercial Drive: The coolest hood in Vancouver is going to have a new local live performance venue with a single screen movie theatre! That's right we're gonna mix it up: film screenings, comedy, music, theatre, lectures, dance, festivals.... 455 luxury seats and 20 x 40 ft stage. Contact us for bookings. All we can say is... things are gonna get a lot more fun around here!
I don't want to be a doubting Thomas, but how is this going to work exactly? And by "work," I mean "make money." Now, I know that movie theatres can and do make a mint booking their theatres for non-movie events, like business meetings, WWE Pay-Per-View specials and Operas. Hell, one local multiplex even books an auditorium to a church on Sunday Mornings. Thing is, though, when those events happen, they're either off-hours or pre-empting one of the less popular movies. But what happens when you have to choose between guaranteeing a distributor two weeks so they can show a crappy romantic comedy and booking a week or more for something really cool and artistic?
I understand that this new business plan is straight out of early 20th century vaudeville, but there were fewer entertainment options back then and vaudeville tended to have something for everybody. Can you do the same thing at the turn of the 21st century, when we have more entertainment options, and gear it towards the Commercial Drive audience?
I guess we're about to find out.
Of course, to get concession money, you gotta put bums in seats. Not only do you need movies that people want to see, but you need movies that people who spend money on concessions want to see. Which is why I'm not entirely surprised to see Festival Cinemas, a local chain usually devoted to artsier fare, showing blockbusters and big Hollywood movies. Their mission statement has been edited from "We are committed to bringing films to the community that are out of the mainstream, independent productions, revealing qualities of the human spirit" to "Festival Cinemas is committed to bringing to the community films that explore qualities of the human character." Lately, it seems like smaller movies make it to their screens by accident, like it snuck in while the door person wasn't looking. In other words, they're just like your local Silvercity or Tinseltown, except with slightly more reasonable concession prices. Sigh. I know I'm all about supporting the little guy and patronizing independent movie theatres whenever possible, but what about my need to support the little filmmaker and her independent movie?
Maybe we'll see more independent movies making their way to the Rio Theatre in the next few months. It's under a new management that involves various business owners, Watermelon, and Moses Znaimer. Sounds interesting so far, right? Read this from their Facebook group page:
On Broadway and Commercial Drive: The coolest hood in Vancouver is going to have a new local live performance venue with a single screen movie theatre! That's right we're gonna mix it up: film screenings, comedy, music, theatre, lectures, dance, festivals.... 455 luxury seats and 20 x 40 ft stage. Contact us for bookings. All we can say is... things are gonna get a lot more fun around here!
I don't want to be a doubting Thomas, but how is this going to work exactly? And by "work," I mean "make money." Now, I know that movie theatres can and do make a mint booking their theatres for non-movie events, like business meetings, WWE Pay-Per-View specials and Operas. Hell, one local multiplex even books an auditorium to a church on Sunday Mornings. Thing is, though, when those events happen, they're either off-hours or pre-empting one of the less popular movies. But what happens when you have to choose between guaranteeing a distributor two weeks so they can show a crappy romantic comedy and booking a week or more for something really cool and artistic?
I understand that this new business plan is straight out of early 20th century vaudeville, but there were fewer entertainment options back then and vaudeville tended to have something for everybody. Can you do the same thing at the turn of the 21st century, when we have more entertainment options, and gear it towards the Commercial Drive audience?
I guess we're about to find out.