70mm Oppenheimer

[John Eickhof]

Tony is on the right track when you figure in the human response time to seeing a changeover cue on screen...in that moment of delay by time the c/o is done the picture has past the aperture by a few frames just like the sound has passed the slit lens, after practice a good projectionist can hit the first 3-4 frames of the incoming reel as the last 3-4 frames are in the outgoing one, this varied a lot by the projectors start up time and the projectionists reflexes, of course it became easier as prints were cut for long play, running reel to reel and trying to time your c/o so the splices of the outgoing and incoming reels hit the gate at the same time would present a challenge! as for DTS the timecode is ascending on each reel, not accumulating thus the c/o of picture is basically unchanged but when the incoming reel is sensed by its timecode being lower than prev reel, the DTS does a sound c/o, it delays by approx 2 sec as though there was a section of film missing, so, depending on the scene, the sound will go slightly out of synch. however with careful setup, the DTS can be dialed in for a pretty seamless c/o. my set up here worked great on reel to reel w/DTS even running 2000ft! As long as the leader is intact, the sound would changeover fine. Again this timing depends on mechanical conditions, etc. For example, I used to run a pair of ERPI universal bases w/ Supers, you had to thread on 11 as the machine took all of that time to reach speed! yet I ran modern Centurys and Motiographs that you would thread on 3 or 4 as they would start up fast. so probably the only perfect changeover you will ever see is either on long play systems or digital...but that takes all the fun out of it anyway!

[Scott Norwood]

But every setup I ever ran had the pic and track switching at the same time.

These types of setups are a bit of a pet peeve of mine. Having separate controls for picture and sound changeover can be really useful if, for example, a print arrives that is missing the original head and tail leaders (and thus is missing the sound pull-ups on the incoming reel). No, it doesn't work for DTS and SRD (and probably not SDDS, either), but newer prints tend to have fewer problems, anyway. Foot pedals (for picture) and push buttons (for sound) should be standard.

End of rant.

[Victor Liorentas]

The word so far for the Varsity cinema in Toronto is Oppenheimer 70mm will continue until August 31!!!

[Lyle Romer]

Autonation IMAX in Fort Lauderdale has added shows through 8/27 with many sold out already. At least there are some shows available for purchase now if people want to see it.

[Allan Young]

The London BFI IMAX must be doing rather well out of this. I caught the film for a second time on Monday afternoon at 1330 and it was completely sold out. Quite remarkable after 24 days on release. They've now extended the run until 10th. September, with three or four screenings per day.

[Jim Cassedy]

<edited> . the audio suffered from the same issue that usually accompanies any DTS print being
shown on a changeover basis: the sound from the oncoming reel downcuts the sound from the
outgoing reel by a half-second or so, as a result (so I am informed) of the time-code from the
oncoming reel hitting the audio play-out server just slightly prior to the shutter being flipped over,
causing the sound to skip ahead slightly. I have seen this in every single 70mm DTS show I have
ever attended, except those that were run off a platter. <edit/jump> this issue is to me is awfully
damned annoying, especially across 10 or 12 instances per showing. .

What you describe is more a fault of poor projection practice than of the DTS system. I'm not a
fan of the way DTS handles reel changes, but when timed properly, the sound should be seamless.
There are 8 change-overs in OPPENHEIMER (not "10 or 12" ) and IMO all but two (possibly 3) of
them have more than enough "dead time" at the change-over point to prevent upcutting of the audio.

Also, there are a couple of scenes within the movie which were edited in a way that the audio for the
incoming scene leads the picture by a few frames - - in one case by almost two seconds. This was
an editing choice, not a DTS defect. I have listened, very carefully to the sound at my change-overs
over the past several days, and I do not hear what you describe, although, in the interest of full
disclosure, I'll confess that my monitoring facilities in the booth are pretty bad, and noise from the
projectors, air conditioning, equipment and exhaust fans often make things difficult to hear.


Just as an aside, the Oppenheimer contract required film projectionists to do a complete run-through
of the movie before opening day. I have an established reputation for cueing "tight" change-overs.
When I did my run-through, I did the first several change-overs with the change-over dowsers set
fully open on both projectors. This allowed me to gauge any gap or overlap in my change-over timing,
and adjust my thread-up point accordingly. But, since I know my machines, and my personal reaction
tiime, I was within 2 or 3 frames of a "zero" overlap or "black-gap" even on my first run-through.
(NOBODY does a 'perfectly' timed frame-perfect change-over, except occasionally by sheer luck)

<edited>; Having separate controls for picture and sound changeover can be really useful if,
for example, a print arrives that is missing the original head and tail leaders (and thus is missing
the sound pull-ups on the incoming reel).

I agree with Scott here. All the "Class A" change-over venues I've worked at had separate
switching arrangements which allowed picture & sound to be controlled independently. As
Scott points out, this was especially useful when running older titles with imperfect leaders
or "short" change-over cue marks, and allows one to squeeze in the last word of dialogue
or musical note on the outgoing reel. (Impossible to do with DTS, though)

[John Eickhof]

what you said Jim! the only hazard was not having the correct leader or a replacement leader...then the separate sound c/o was a lifesaver! when i started projecting at Tahoe we played films that were a year or more in release...most the leaders were torn up around 7-8 so i used to thread on 5 and count to 3 after the first cue before starting the motor...rarely did i haver any leader problems...all our booths had seperate sound and picture c/o.

[Thomas Dodd]

All these comments make me want to see it in 5/70 again. Sadly the only location reasonable is AMC Patton Creek in Hoover, AL.
That's where I saw it before with terrible ghosting. Not that I expected much from AMC but this was ridiculous.

The end text of OPPENHEIMER (then the credits roll) was twice the height it should have been because of the ghosting.

[Michael Coate]

We are now into Week 6. Have any of the 70mm and 70mm IMAX runs ended or have all continued to be held over?

[Ian Puffenberger]

We are now into Week 6. Have any of the 70mm and 70mm IMAX runs ended or have all continued to be held over?

I saw what was billed as the final 70mm show at the AFI Silver just outside DC last Sunday. But as it turns out they're running matinees again this weekend, so I guess their run continues. I've seen it three times there and every presentation has been fantastic. The print was pristine after, by my count, ninety-some runs; the brightness, sound, and changeovers were flawless as well. I had the chance to chat with the projectionist, Emily, for about fifteen minutes before the show, which she said was her fiftieth. On the very off-chance that she's a reader or user here, I'd like to congratulate her on a fantastic presentation.

[Victor Liorentas]

We are into our 6th Great week at the Varsity Cinema 8 in Toronto and week 7 is confirmed already! This used to be Cinema 2 originally when Odeon built it in the 70's. It was a 2 projector changeover booth but is now using a platter and Vic 8. Formerly a THX house. Cineplex expanded this venue to 12 screens but this 70mm house is intact.. The lens is ISCO Ultra Star 95mm with a Strong Ultra 80 and 4k lamp. Rick Long Jr (technician extraordinaire) has kept this set up fined tuned beautifully over the years! I am running my 70th show as I type this. It's a spectacular scratch free presentation and I'm so proud to be involved with it.

Something special is in the air with this film. People are trying to get my attention waving from the auditorium during walk out end credits. The booth is low with an almost level projector shooting straight out to the screen through big port windows helping the focus even more. They just want to wave at me, thank me and take pictures. Such a great vibe happening!

[William Kucharski]

Talked to some folks near me.

The projectionist I talked to said that though it's not official yet, they've been told the 5/70 run should be extended through September 7, and BLS has asked for their availability through September 14, though neither is official yet.

Second, apparently the AMC Westminster 24 has heavily damaged their print, to the point that though they are still advertising a 70mm showing, they in fact are showing regular DCP digital instead at this point.

Finally, the manager at the Regal Colorado Mills is the same person who used to be manager at the Regal Continental, and their 70mm projector is in fact the one that used to be installed at the Continental - he brought the projector over to the Colorado Mills theater with him when the Continental was closed.

[Mark Gulbrandsen]

Regal Opry Mills, about 30 a minute drive from me, continues to show their Imax 70mm print. I saw it there on the second week of the run and it looked and sounded great. One thing about that theater is that it seems everyone going there knows which seats are the good ones as they sell out way early... like weeks early... for just about every show. I ended up very close to the center, a little more than half way up the seating area, and all was fine.

[William Kucharski]

Confirmed: New 70mm showtimes at Regal Colorado Mills through September 6.

[Thomas Dodd]

Regal Opry Mills, about 30 a minute drive from me, continues to show their Imax 70mm print. I saw it there on the second week of the run and it looked and sounded great. One thing about that theater is that it seems everyone going there knows which seats are the good ones as they sell out way early... like weeks early... for just about every show. I ended up very close to the center, a little more than half way up the seating area, and all was fine.

Opry Mills Sunday at 10:00 was nearly sold out. Prints still looked great.

This morning I saw 15/70 showtimes through Sun Sep 24.

Strangely Mall of Georgia isn't showing after the 4th (and it's split with The Equalizer 3 starting Friday)