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Author Topic: Shortest Runs Richard Greco Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1180 From: Plant City, FL Registered: Nov 2003 posted 11-25-2003 09:00 AM                     Today I'm losing Master and Commander and Looney Tunes afterr 12 days in order to make room for 4 new movies. However we have been selling very well for Master. Just wondering, How long was the shortest run of a movie for you guys and girls out there. Anything that is shorter than 12 days?  |  IP: Logged Evans A Criswell Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1579 From: Huntsville, AL, USA Registered: Mar 2000 posted 11-25-2003 09:25 AM                        How many screens are at your theatre? I'd say the fewer the screens at a complex, the shorter the runs. I'd think many movies would only run one week at smaller multiplexes, or less in the case of Friday releases followed by Wednesday releases.  |  IP: Logged Richard Greco Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1180 From: Plant City, FL Registered: Nov 2003 posted 11-25-2003 11:33 AM                     We have 8 screens. Master And Commander and Looney Tunes were Friday Releases and Haunter Mansion, Bad Santa, Timeline, and The Missing are all Wednesday. You Might Be Right.  |  IP: Logged Adam Martin I'm not even gonna point out the irony. Posts: 3686 From: Dallas, TX Registered: Nov 2000 posted 11-25-2003 11:51 AM                     I've run a couple of three-day runs: Traces of Red which bombed horribly and Players Club. I had a Sunday morning 3am phone call with the director of operations of the chain discussing the problems we (and mall security and the sheriff's department) were having with the crowds and I told him that Sunday would be the last day of the run. Lucky for me, he agreed.  |  IP: Logged Gary Crawford Expert Film Handler Posts: 200 From: Neptune NJ USA Registered: Nov 2003 posted 11-25-2003 11:51 AM                     Run an old single-screen sub-run house. We run shows for a week or two for the most part. Shortest run we had was for "Pay It Forward" 2 years ago. We ran it for 3 days, then closed for Christmas week. Longest run we had, and this was for a rare first-run for us, was "Greek Wedding" for 17 weeks, summer 2002.  |  IP: Logged David Stambaugh Film God Posts: 4021 From: Eugene, Oregon Registered: Jan 2002 posted 11-25-2003 12:02 PM                        Regal Cinema World 8 here booked 2 prints of Matrix Revolutions, and dropped one of the prints after 1 week. Normally 2 weeks seems to be about the shortest normal run. Gigli and Pluto Nash come to mind (they were doubled up in the 2nd week too).  |  IP: Logged Aaron Sisemore Flaming Ribs beat Reeses Peanut Butter Cups any day! Posts: 3061 From: Rockwall TX USA Registered: Sep 1999 posted 11-25-2003 12:18 PM                     Since you didn't specify anything about them: I have run more films that were booked for 1 and 2-day runs than I can count... As far as standard 'megaplex' fare goes, The shortest runs have been only a week in duration. -Aaron  |  IP: Logged Marcial Feliciano Ramos Expert Film Handler Posts: 108 From: Puerto Rico Registered: Oct 2003 posted 11-25-2003 12:28 PM                     Our shortest is one week.  |  IP: Logged Scott Norwood Film God Posts: 8146 From: Boston, MA. USA (1774.21 miles northeast of Dallas) Registered: Jun 99 posted 11-25-2003 12:40 PM                        Most repertory houses change programming daily, so that would usually mean a "run" of one or two shows per title. Same for colleges, military bases, etc. Split weeks (e.g. one program for Fri->Mon and another for Tues->Thurs) aren't uncommon in singles in small towns. In second-run houses, it's rather rare to keep anything for more than two weeks, while one is more common. Even at commercial art houses, one-week runs are fairly common. Films which completely bomb sometimes leave before the end of the week ("Gerry"--which was a great film--comes to mind as one which lasted for six days in at least one major market). In most other cases, "first run" generally implies two weeks minimum, although that may be negotiable if a film does terrible business in its first week.  |  IP: Logged Paul Konen Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 981 From: Frisco, TX. (North of Dallas) Registered: Jun 99 posted 11-25-2003 01:45 PM                     I believe that Cinemark Tinseltown in Plano, when I was there, ran BullWorth for less than a day. They brought in another copy of a title that opened that weekend.  |  IP: Logged Ian Price Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1714 From: Denver, CO Registered: Jun 99 posted 11-25-2003 01:50 PM                     We are just ending our run of Party Monster. It has played one show per day for 5 days. Last night it made $7. Good riddence.  |  IP: Logged Thomas Procyk Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1842 From: Royal Palm Beach, FL, USA Registered: Feb 2002 posted 11-25-2003 02:01 PM                     I remember running "Dog Park" for 5 days. 4 people for the whole run. And they wanted us to do a huge promotion with the humane society, too =TMP=  |  IP: Logged John Carpenter Film Handler Posts: 96 From: Fort Walton Beach, FL, USA Registered: Nov 2002 posted 11-25-2003 05:18 PM                     In a 16 screen theatre we ran Irreversable for only 3 days... scheduled to run for a week or so, but after our home office saw the weekend results - they called Monday and pulled it right then. Of course there may have been some complaints about it that I never knew about.  |  IP: Logged Charles Everett Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1470 From: New Jersey Registered: May 2001 posted 11-25-2003 06:12 PM                     In New Jersey there have been the odd cases where a film runs less than a full week. The Montgomery Cinema in Rocky Hill ran The Opposite of Sex for 5 days, then dropped it to open Armageddon. The Regal Commerce Center in North Brunswick ran some Bollywood picture for 5 days, then dropped it to open Sidewalks of New York (day-and-date with Manhattan). The Princeton Garden Theatre ran Novocaine for 5 days, then dropped it to open The Fellowship of the Ring. The AMC Hamilton ran Y Tu Mama Tambien for 6 days, then dropped it to open Star Wars Episode 2. If memory serves me, the Amboy Multiplex in Sayreville ran The Spanish Prisoner (arthouse film with Steve Martin) for 5 days. That too was dropped to open Armageddon.  |  IP: Logged Leo Enticknap Film God Posts: 7474 From: Loma Linda, CA Registered: Jul 2000 posted 11-27-2003 06:35 AM                        In mainstream houses here it's not uncommon for a film to be 'pulled' after the first weekend (i.e. it only plays Friday to Sunday) if it really bombs. The most spectacular recent example I can think of is Honest, which was pulled from the whole Odeon chain - around 100 sites if memory serves me correctly - after just three days. It was assumed that the film would do well because it was a vehicle for a successful and well-known 'girl band' pop group. When it became obvious that, regardless of their singing, they couldn't act to save their lives, that was the end of that. And as Scott says, some arthouse venues will programme titles for just one or two shows.  |  IP: Logged

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