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Author Topic: Digital Phantom Menace
Ian Price
unregistered




 - posted 05-30-1999 03:44 AM            Edit/Delete Post 
I found this notice on MSNBC so I thought I would pass it along.

Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace

Viewers curious to see “Phantom Menace” projected digitally will have to
wait until June 18, when two theaters each in Los Angeles and New York
will set aside one screen a piece for filmless presentation using equipment
from Texas Instruments and CineComm.
The digital screenings will offer the general public a glimpse of what many
believe to be the future of moviegoing. Contrary to published reports,
however, the film will not be transmitted via satellite to the theaters. It will
instead reside on a high-capacity storage device.
While Fox executives would not discuss the exact quantity of prints it had
distributed, the number is estimated at about 5,500.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

If you read the last pargraph it states that there may be as many as 5,500
prints of Phantom Menace out. This doesn't sound like a limited release to
me. Here in the Denver area there are 41 prints showing in 16 movie
theatres. That is the largest release since Jurassic Park #2. Two of the
theatres are very questionable. One is AMC Seven Hills 10. This plex is 15
years old and doesn't have much going for it. They do have SDDS. The
other is Bergan Park Cinema 4. This theatre is in Evergreen (a mountain
suberb of Denver). They have no digital equipment that I know of. The
Bergan Park theatre has very small auditoriums. Within five miles of both of
these theatres are good theatres I would concider seeing a movie at.

Obviously what George Lucas intended and what happened are two
different things. Purhaps we should make George Lucas watch his movie in
The Bergen Park Cinema.

Ian Price
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1714
From: Denver, CO
Registered: Jun 99


 - posted 06-05-1999 06:22 PM      Profile for Ian Price   Email Ian Price   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
I found this post by Scott Norwood on another site. I just thought it would be interesting to post here.

Ian

Star Wars - digital projection - locations

Posted by Scott Norwood on Thursday, 3 June 1999, at 7:28 p.m.

At the risk of being flamed by the "I hate S*** W***" people, I'm posting this list of the locations which will begin screening SW using electronic projection equipment (from either TI or CineComm) on June 18.

Pacific Winnetka Theatre, Los Angeles CA (CineComm)

AMC Burbank 14 Theatre, Burbank CA (Texas Instruments)

Loews' Route 4, Paramus NJ (CineComm)

Loews' Meadows 6, Secaucus NJ (Texas Instruments)


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Brad Miller
Administrator

Posts: 17775
From: Plano, TX (36.2 miles NW of Rockwall)
Registered: May 99


 - posted 06-05-1999 06:41 PM      Profile for Brad Miller   Author's Homepage   Email Brad Miller       Edit/Delete Post 
I had heard awhile back the new Cinemark mega-plex in East Plano, Tx was to have a digital screen or two. Guess that isn't going to come through. Anyone know any definite info?

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Paul Konen
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 981
From: Frisco, TX. (North of Dallas)
Registered: Jun 99


 - posted 06-07-1999 09:55 AM      Profile for Paul Konen   Email Paul Konen   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
The new Cinemark will have digital projectors. Just look for the 3 porthole theatres. Anyway, with them not opening for May 19, they are now (PUBLIC) heading for June 30. Maybe after opening, they will start Digital Projection. More to come.

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Brad Miller
Administrator

Posts: 17775
From: Plano, TX (36.2 miles NW of Rockwall)
Registered: May 99


 - posted 06-07-1999 01:14 PM      Profile for Brad Miller   Author's Homepage   Email Brad Miller       Edit/Delete Post 
At least the Cinemark is going digital with film backup! The guys at TI weren't sure if new theaters would bother with a backup.

Let's look at this. Brand new technology, usually in one of the bigger houses...and no regular field tech would have any knowledge in repairing them. How stupid would that be to not have a film backup???

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Adam Birge
Film Handler

Posts: 5
From: College Station, Texas
Registered: Jun 99


 - posted 06-07-1999 06:03 PM      Profile for Adam Birge   Email Adam Birge   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
Brad- Plans originally were to open by June 18th, when digital prints are released, but the building is coming along too slowly.. We have our 24 christie packages, but no TI's yet. Last we've heard, it sounds like we will only get one dv projector for right now, but we can hold up to four. It should be getting in just a few days before we open. We have the ability for it in one of the big houses, so I'm interested to see how good the resolution will hold up. I'll post anything if I hear it...

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Scott Norwood
Film God

Posts: 8146
From: Boston, MA. USA (1774.21 miles northeast of Dallas)
Registered: Jun 99


 - posted 06-07-1999 08:48 PM      Profile for Scott Norwood   Author's Homepage   Email Scott Norwood   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
Re: new theatre in Dallas with digital projection equipment--I would be very interested in hearing how someone was able to justify the installation of expensive hardware with a very short useful lifespan (before obsolescense) to support an as-yet nonexistant distribution format. Somehow, I'm surprised that this sort of thing made it past the bean-counters.

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John Wilson
Film God

Posts: 5438
From: Sydney, Australia.
Registered: Dec 1999


 - posted 06-10-1999 10:27 AM      Profile for John Wilson   Email John Wilson   Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post 
Two words...
George Lucas

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