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Topic: inflatable screen's?

Brad Haven
Master Film Handler

Posts: 300
From: fremantle, West Australia
Registered: Aug 2001

posted 02-24-2002 10:26 AM

here in sunny perth we have ANOTHER new outdoor cinema operating, but this one has an INFLATABLE SCREEN!. i have not personally seen this thing yet, but my other projectionist went to a screening there tonight (tropfest) and came back to tell me that it was hilarious.
while it was anchored down, the screen was apparently still blowing around, (bouncy castle comes to mind) causing obvious focus problem's!. the screen is quite small.
who ever came up with this idea need's help!
fremantle is notorious for the 'fremantle doctor'(sea breeze) and should have been given consideration before buying it.
well, seeing as they are competion, onya!!

has anyone else seen one of these before?

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Mark Gulbrandsen
Resident Trollmaster

Posts: 16657
From: Music City
Registered: Jun 99

posted 02-24-2002 10:31 AM

Several companies manufacture inflatable screens. Harkness Hall is among them. On outdoor screenings that I've assisted with in the past we always used a perf screen. Its a big enough sail just sitting there waiting for a nice breeze at any rate. The largest one I was involved with was a 70 footer. There are pics here on Film-Tech of that setup(Cinema Borealis).
A customer of ours bought some used screens we had last summer and setup in a local park in Provo to show Ghostbusters outdoors. It was a picturesque setting with the screen setup and 12,000 foot mountains in the background. The show went on fine till the Park sprinkler system came on. Apparently the park maintainance people forgot to turn it off!
Mark @ Home

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Steve Kraus
Film God

Posts: 4094
From: Chicago, IL, USA
Registered: May 2000

posted 02-24-2002 11:37 AM

Inflatable screens? No no no...this is not good. Work life would be crossing over into social life.

har har har <kidding>

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Arthur Allen
Film Handler

Posts: 99
From: Renton, WA, USA
Registered: Aug 2001

posted 02-24-2002 11:43 AM

I remember in the 1970's a whole inflatable theater the size of a bouncy room that travels with Funtastic to various state fairs, the Western Washington State Fair in Puyallup in particular. I tried to get my parents to let me go into it, but they somehow knew that it must have been more chintzy than it appeared from outside. They pumped dramatic music out of the theater, but inside it might as well be dimly projected 16mm. It was named something similar to Cinema 360, but I can't remember the exact name now. For all I know it is still around, perhaps even using video projection.

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Jerry Chase
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1068
From: Margate, FL, USA
Registered: Nov 2000

posted 02-24-2002 11:44 AM

Inflatable screens? What a great place to show "Blow Up!"

Can we say "Sta-Puft?"

Fill one of those puppies with helium and have the audience lie on their backs. Actually, that would be kind of fun. The ultimate in stadium seating and reclining chairs combined. The screen would act like a rain shield as well.

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Paul Mayer
Oh get out of it Melvin, before it pulls you under!

Posts: 3836
From: Albuquerque, NM
Registered: Feb 2000

posted 02-24-2002 03:45 PM

In 1975 and 1976 I worked for a company called "Thrillsphere" that used an inflatable projection dome. We did the 1975 US state fair season with one unit, a dome of approx 40' diameter staked to the ground (with car axles!) and attached to one end of a converted 40' reefer semi-trailer. Projection was 570 with a fisheye lens; we used two tracks of the available six for plain stereo. The film was about 10 minutes long and was designed to make people as motion-sick as possible. Which was fun because there were no seats in the dome--everyone watched while standing! No wimpy handrails either! With three prints on board we could do four to five shows an hour depending on the crowd. The dome could hold about 200 people. Oh yeah, with a strong enough wind that dome could really flop around!

In 1976 we added unit #2 which played the US circuit again, while unit #1 went up to Canada. Unit #1 used a Westrex with a Kowa lens and ORC 4K lamp. Unit #2 used a smaller and lighter trailer, and had a AAII, also with a Kowa lens and ORC 4K lamp. I spent almost my entire time with that company on unit #1; only played Billings, MT on unit #2.

The thing was a real money maker--we consistently had the longest lines of anything on each midway we hit, sometimes exceeding three hours waiting time. Unfortunately the company went under after just two years, probably due to money mismanagement--our paychecks were always late or bouncing. The two guys who owned it were a couple of ex-NJ carnival jam auction hucksters who probably couldn't resist stealing from each other. But they were fun to work for and with, and that job gave me my first look at the rest of the US and Canada. Ah the life of a 21-year old carnie!

Paul
SMPTE Hollywood Section
Unemployed mercenary film/video projectionist/engineer
"Otaku wa tsurai yo" <-- Yeah I know, bad pun. Sue me.
It's tough being a fan!
-24

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System Notices
Forum Watchdog / Soup Nazi

Posts: 215

Registered: Apr 2004

posted 04-08-2004 01:18 PM

It has been 773 days since the last post.

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Thomas Procyk
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1842
From: Royal Palm Beach, FL, USA
Registered: Feb 2002

posted 04-08-2004 01:18 PM

Anyone know about how much these inflatable screens run? Nowhere online seems to have a price list, they just want you to call and I don't feel like talking to anybody.

I was looking for something in the range of 20mX10m (65'7" x 32'10'')

Oh, and including the screen surface, not just the frame [Wink]

=TMP=

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Mark Gulbrandsen
Resident Trollmaster

Posts: 16657
From: Music City
Registered: Jun 99

posted 04-08-2004 06:19 PM

Prices start at about 15 Grand plus the screen surface which is a seperate piece.

Mark @ CLACO

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Floyd Justin Newton
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 559
From: Phoenix, Arizona, USA
Registered: Jun 2002

posted 04-08-2004 09:26 PM

re: Three posts above. What the heck is that all about?!
Just curious!
I've seen him SOMEWHERE before.

fjn

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Aaron Sisemore
Flaming Ribs beat Reeses Peanut Butter Cups any day!

Posts: 3061
From: Rockwall TX USA
Registered: Sep 1999

posted 04-08-2004 09:40 PM

http://www.moviescreens.de/index.php?airscreen&L=1

http://www.harknesshall.com/airscreen.htm

http://www.biggair.com

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Mark Gulbrandsen
Resident Trollmaster

Posts: 16657
From: Music City
Registered: Jun 99

posted 04-08-2004 10:39 PM

Re: Two posts above this one.

Thats Uncle Jack! He shows up at the Showerst convention yearly to receive some sort of dopey awerd that they conceive just for him. Then he goes back to his office till next Showerst while some other dopey awerd is concocted that he'll have to come get. Other than receiving dopey awerds there is really very little that Uncle Jack does.

He has received the Showerst Person Of The Second Awerd, the Showerster Of The Minuite Awerd, The Showerst Person of the Yeer Awerd, The Showerst Copyright Infringement Awerd, The Showerst Person That Has Received The Most Awerds Awerd, The Showerst Award For Giving The Attendees Gas During Dinner Awerd, The Showerst Awerd For Being The Most Boreing Person Receiving Awerds At Showerst, Etc., Etc., Etc. It would jam the server this site is on if I listed them all.

Latest rumors has Uncle Jack opening the Uncle Jack Awerds display Museum in Beverly Hills.

The proof that he shouldn't be getting these awerds are that films are still being bootlegged and copyrights violated at alarming rates(probably by Joe).

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Peter Hall
Master Film Handler

Posts: 314
From: London, UK
Registered: Dec 2000

posted 04-09-2004 05:52 AM

Harkness do not make these themselves - as far as I know there are only two manufacturers. Would be curious to know anyone else's experience with high winds and these things..

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Ken McFall
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 615
From: Haringey, London.
Registered: Apr 2001

posted 04-11-2004 03:09 PM

My own personal experience of working with inflatable screens is that they require PROPER setting up and planning or they will just bend and billow in the wind.

The last time I had a hand in one was in Trafalgar Square London. The site had not been looked at correctly by the company and the ballast weights were far too close to the screen.

Trafalgar square has a lot of roads converging on it and the wind was very strong. So strong in fact the screen was almost bending over and touching the stage in front. The whole thing was a shambles and dangerous. The german guys who designed the system were there and were helping us to try and stabalise the whole thing..... The screen should never have been put up with the ballasts so close due to space limitations. Correctly done the screen worked very well.... in this case it was an accident waiting to happen.

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Peter Hall
Master Film Handler

Posts: 314
From: London, UK
Registered: Dec 2000

posted 04-13-2004 04:56 AM

Ken -

Same screen different nightmare me thinks !

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