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Author Topic: Center Droping? John B. Keathley Film Handler Posts: 29 From: Fort Worth TX Registered: Mar 2009 posted 04-09-2009 03:51 AM                     What does everyone think about center droping a print? I had to rebuild the first two reels of "Fast and Furious" becasue a manager misthreaded a projector and scratched the first two reels. I had to rebuild trailers and ADs. It was my first center drop. Everything went well (Thank Goodness!).  |  IP: Logged Joe Redifer You need a beating today Posts: 12859 From: Denver, Colorado Registered: May 99 posted 04-09-2009 11:14 AM                        I do it all the time. Well, not ALL the time, but when the power goes out for an extended period of time, for example, and I have to drop the first half of the movie back into the middle. I try to not make any new cuts/splices when I do this so when the power comes back on I will motor to the next splice if I have time.  |  IP: Logged Monte L Fullmer Film God Posts: 8367 From: Nampa, Idaho, USA Registered: Nov 2004 posted 04-09-2009 01:14 PM                     Center dropping is a platter operator's little side talent: We've all done it from time to time. Doing a two-reel drop can be a little risky since that is a bit of weight that one has to muster with around the rollers and the platter tower since thinking of a ring popping out spells disaster.  |  IP: Logged Joe Redifer You need a beating today Posts: 12859 From: Denver, Colorado Registered: May 99 posted 04-09-2009 02:13 PM                        Oh, by the way... never allow an inward bulge. Outward bulge for the win!  |  IP: Logged Dustin Mitchell Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1865 From: Mondovi, WI, USA Registered: Mar 2000 posted 04-09-2009 02:58 PM                     In the case of a power outage/etc nothing wrong with a center drop if you do it right. I gotta say though if I had to rebuild the middle of a movie I would pull the last few reels off onto a large reel and then just rebuild the movie.  |  IP: Logged John B. Keathley Film Handler Posts: 29 From: Fort Worth TX Registered: Mar 2009 posted 04-09-2009 03:09 PM                     Thankz for all of the input!  |  IP: Logged Michael Hossen Expert Film Handler Posts: 136 From: Perth, Australia Registered: Apr 2007 posted 04-12-2009 12:15 AM                        Can someone explain to me exactly what "Centre Dropping" is? Sounds like, for what ever reason, your pulling the film off the take-up platter and, without cutting the film, are dropping it back in to the centre of the print on the pay-out platter? Sounds like it may be rather difficult.  |  IP: Logged Brad Miller Administrator Posts: 17775 From: Plano, TX (36.2 miles NW of Rockwall) Registered: May 99 posted 04-12-2009 01:58 AM                     Most people do cut the film when they do this, but it can be done without cutting it. Others wind to the next reel change splice to break it apart. It is actually extremely easy to do. I've changed out trailers (and occasionally a defective reel 1 or 2) like this for 20 years without mishap. The trick is knowing how to handle the film so you don't damage it.  |  IP: Logged Michael Hossen Expert Film Handler Posts: 136 From: Perth, Australia Registered: Apr 2007 posted 04-12-2009 03:52 AM                        Cheers for that Brad! We change out trailers with a "spinner" that slots in the middle of the platter deck. We then wind the film on to a plastic core allowing us to change out trailers/ads etc. Changing out a reel, however, sounds like a challenge seeing as I've never had to do it before...  |  IP: Logged Monte L Fullmer Film God Posts: 8367 From: Nampa, Idaho, USA Registered: Nov 2004 posted 04-12-2009 03:58 AM                     What I do if I have to do a center drop is to unthread the machine first, then take the rewind ring off the deck and follow it through the rollers and wind the film on the ring as I go. Then, I lay the ring on the film roll where it needs to go and unlace the brain, roll that bit of film on the ring, then lay the ring over the opening of the filmroll, pull the ring and lay that small roll of film back inside that opening on a slant since I know that it will never go back inside that filmroll completely. Relace the brain and projector and start the program all over again. And keep an eye on that slanted roll so the film paying out won't flop out of the brain. Quite easy to do .. .just gotta be careful when doing this trick. I don't think that I ever had to do any cutting...  |  IP: Logged Michael Hossen Expert Film Handler Posts: 136 From: Perth, Australia Registered: Apr 2007 posted 04-12-2009 05:59 AM                        Thanks Monte! Good info to know as we had a less experienced projectionist thread the wrong show the other day and cause an awful mess... Might have to try this method next time, it sounds very easy and practical... More practical than ending up with a heap of the film on the floor anyway.  |  IP: Logged Joe Redifer You need a beating today Posts: 12859 From: Denver, Colorado Registered: May 99 posted 04-12-2009 10:52 AM                        I haven't done a center drop bigger than a trailer pack for a long time (and it is the only way I change trailers), but I remember when I had to do twelve of them the day Independence Day (the movie) premiered with three prints. It was to "premiere" for the public that night and we had a power outage was during the day the set before. The power stayed off for about an hour or a bit more and starting three huge sellout shows late was not an option. I think I cut the first few films I dropped but others I remember flipping the center around a few times to untwist it so I wouldn't have to cut it. I never removed the ring. I unthreaded the projector and just took up the slack by hand so the platter was threaded directly from payout to take up. You can definitely do this without anything touching the floor, even if your platter is 3 miles from your projector. The most recent time I did a center drop outside of changing trailers was when I accidentally started the wrong movie my first day at my current job (talk about embarrassing) . But again, that was a very small drop, less than a trailer pack and I had the correct movie on screen in about 2 or 3 minutes after I realized what I had done and no one was the wiser except for the audience which had to sit through about a minute or so of nothing between trailers while I threaded. No cuts. Fun times! Speaking of which this week they switched the schedule on me so that a house with two prints suddenly played at different intervals but the same times than it has been at for the last 4 or 5 weeks, so I threaded the one I usually do for a certain time. Right before I started it, I noticed the change. So rather than unthread, I just swapped the leaders and dropped the other leader into the print that didn't run. I think they were trying to trick me with that evil schedule!  |  IP: Logged Michael Hossen Expert Film Handler Posts: 136 From: Perth, Australia Registered: Apr 2007 posted 04-13-2009 08:02 AM                        Cheers Joe! I've had similar problems with programming, luckily I've always noticed the change prior to threading the show...  |  IP: Logged Steve Guttag We forgot the crackers Gromit!!! Posts: 12814 From: Annapolis, MD Registered: Dec 1999 posted 04-13-2009 08:12 AM                     Nah...just hit stop...select the desired show and hit play...film is already obsolete, you know. What is all this "center drop" business? You all are too funny.  |  IP: Logged Mark Gulbrandsen Resident Trollmaster Posts: 16657 From: Music City Registered: Jun 99 posted 04-13-2009 08:38 AM                     Hey! For once Steve is 100% correct !!!  |  IP: Logged

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