This is an Olympic year, why not have the first annual Film-Tech Olympics? Film Techers the world over can compete in various film-tech related events and have a great time as well as prove (or disprove) their projection or technical prowess! All in fun, of course, as some of these things I am proposing are obviously not exactly the most 'kosher' things to do under a real booth condition, but I think it would be a great way to blow off a little steam and have a great time doing so

Event ideas I have thought of include:

-Timed platter threading from ring-in print to a picture on screen. Seconds deducted for misthreading, out-of-frame, bad loops, missed platter components, etc.

-Timed projector fieldstripping, or timed projector reassembly(from a pile of parts(?)) or both: Points deducted for sloppiness or missing parts, or non functionality, etc

-Timed xenon bulb changes (using a 'dummy' bulb for obvious safety reasons)

-Timed Diode changes

-DTS 'discus' throw

-Timed print inspection/make-up/breakdown, in two divisions: Platters and 6000' reels: points deducted for sloppiness and other mistakes

-(Team Event) Complete booth installation from boxed gear to operating booth picture and sound... points off for obviousl discrepancies...

Any other ideas for events??

We could have the Olympics sometime in the summer, or maybe better yet suring ShoWest, where we could get the manufacturers and dealers to sponsor events with equipment or funds

Just thought I'd toss this one in the air and see where it landed....

Aaron

OK, now having said that I will promptly contradict myself by suggesting another timed event: Changeover projection using an old print that has been chopped into progressively shorter and shorter rolls (each leadered up and cued): 20 min, 10min, 5 min, 3min, 2min, 1min, 30 seconds etc. You're threading the next roll while the prior is running and changing over to it on time. Miss the change and you're out.

The "Changeover Limbo"....I like it! ;-)

Steve

PS, I haven't forgotten the other thread...the Baysox have been on a homestand and I haven't had the time to get back to it.

All competitors will have gone without sleep for 20 hours prior to the competition.

This is a platter event. The participant can choose the platter and projector that they compete with.

They will thread and play a two minute length of film as quickly as they can, repeatedly for 30 minutes.

A scratch means you lose, period.

Mistakes in loops will be tolerated so long as they do not cause presentation problems (jumping, etc).

NO FILM GUARD!!! You must preserve the quality of your film with no outside help.

Finally, as each contestant takes his turn, the others will be in the auditorium beating on the port glass! Obscenities will be allowed so long as they are "politically correct".

The operator may not break down and return the obscenities. He/she must maintain thier composure and be a "pillar of the community" at all costs.

Everyone jump in! Can this event BE any harder!!?

-Timed alignment of a Christie basement Dolby Digital reader with a 6 month old LED and two year old belts so it read's 0's, 1's and 2's. Maximum time alloted: 5 minutes

-EQ auditoriums by ear (accuracy will be checked with a THX R2 analyzer.)

-Timed rewinding of media pads.

-Competition to see who can change a xenon bulb mid-show and lose the least amount of light (all while the projector is running).

-Threading of projectors while they are running.

-Competition to see who can change out a bad Christie platter LED while the show is running and not cause a brainwrap or platter drop (must be done on a real movie with a real audience).

-FilmGuard swallowing contest (who can drink the most bottles in 2 minutes?)

-Sleeping contest. Who can enter the deepest sleep and ignore all manager and customer complaints, while all of the projectors running (but not correctly, of course)?

The EQing by ear would be interesting.

There is a union man (retired now I belive) up north somewhere who could actually thread a machine while it was running. Wish I knew his name or the local's number. Anyone know this guy?

Steve and Steve...I'll race ya. It's been 10 years since I've done any changeovers on a regular basis (outside of special screenings), but there's nothing like running previews alternating between 2 machines because the theater won't spring for a splicer! (You'll probably both still slaughter me on this one, but it would be fun.)

Aaron Sisemore...there are no dummy xenons in use today, so I feel we should be using REAL 7000 watt xenons nice and hot fresh from being ran only minutes earlier for the olympics. Otherwise what's the fun?

We used to do a smaller version of our own booth olympics back at Cinemark Vista Ridge in the late 80s. My favorite events were:

*One handed threading. Yes, you have one hand tied behind your back and you must thread the entire platter AND projector IN FRAME. Whoever can do it the fastest with perfect loops and no mistakes wins. (I always won.)

*Blind threading. Just like the above, but you get both hands, but no sight. Any out of frame startups is an automatic disqualification! (I only lost once.)

*One handed and blind threading. Even more fun. Combine the two previous. No misframes! (Definitely difficult, but I can do it given enough time.)

Other fun events that come to mind:

*The interlock competition. Whoever can interlock all 30 screens at the local AMC with one print and NOT damage it in any way whatsoever with the quickest thread and setup time wins.

*The minimal interlock competition. Who can set up an interlock system from scratch at the local AMC 30 plex with the LEAST amount of rollers wins. (Rollers mounted on the platter trees do not count towards your overall roller count, so use them creatively.)

*The manual changeover competition. Whoever can run the most auditoriums without missing a single changeover or making a single mistake of any sort wins. Note: this will be ran on original 2000 foot shipping reels with absolutely NO automation of any sort, including failsafes. Only splicing together of the trailer presentations will be allowed. (Of course, I think we all know who will win this.)

*The ADA competition. Who can run the most screens with platters while being restricted to a wheelchair.

*The creative dubbing competition. Each person gets a print of "Dinosaur" and is to make a tape/cd of dialogue to be played through the center channel, while the other channels are played simultaneously off of the digital tracks. Most points are given to the most creative and perverted storyline. (We all know projectionists are perverted. )