Do you want a free 70mm intern for your 70mm show?

[Brian Mendelssohn]

if this isn't appropriate, please delete.

I just bought a pair of beautiful Norelco 35/70mm. My projectionist has solid 35mm experience, but alas 70mm non-existent here in Pittsburgh. I'm looking to place my projectionist with someone doing a 70mm show, all expenses paid, so she can go some training on the big stuff. If you have Norelco, that would be preferred. Please hit me up if you are interested! Lets spread the love of 70mm. Lets start a projectionist 70mm certification program.

THanks
Brian
Row House Cinemas

[Ryan Gallagher]

Completely appropriate based on the number of likes so far! We are not Norelco here, but the concept is valuable to send your projectionist out for experience. A sign of a great employer too!

Are they installed and commissioned yet? Having a tech out to help with that is really the principal training opportunity for your existing projectionist(s). The format changeover is really where the bulk of the learning will take place, an experienced 35mm operator already has most of the other skills needed.

Perhaps also consider doing your first 70mm booking as a "free" or donation based event... in an inaugural "soft opening" type screening. If there are first run kinks don't want to have people walking away feeling like their expectations were not met and ticket money not justified. Or do a screening for staff (assuming your print source permits such auxiliary screenings).

[Frank Cox]

When I first got my digital setup I invited some of my friends and a few of my "best customers" to come to a special afternoon screening the day before I reopened the theatre.

I got a good test run out of it, everyone thought the whole thing was really special and wonderful.

[Brian Mendelssohn]

Thanks for the feedback. I'm more looking at this from a professionalism perspective. Having someone learn about inspection, reeling, the show itself, packaging & shipping, logging, and all of the little things that go into respecting the studios and the $20,000 print we are holding on to.

[Ryan Gallagher]

Thanks for the feedback. I'm more looking at this from a professionalism perspective. Having someone learn about inspection, reeling, the show itself, packaging & shipping, logging, and all of the little things that go into respecting the studios and the $20,000 print we are holding on to.

To be fair the same level of care and professionalism should be afforded to both 35 and 70 if they are surviving media, hell even new release prints get absolutely tiny numbers of prints made compared to the film only era. Whether it comes from an archive or not, it is all effectively archival now, though booth practices probably vary wildly with respect to that.

That is why I said if they are comfortable doing 35 in this era, 70 is not all that different. But more experience the better for sure!

[Brian Mendelssohn]

Ryan. That is a fair point about 35mm. Even with all of our training, after last years Art House Convergence where we attended a film panel, we realized there was still so much to learn to do this right, gain the trust of the distributors and archivist, and the audience's trust also.