WORTH WATCHING

1

Having been a projectionist for 8 years myself, as part of the newer generation of 'kids', I certainly feel the pain in this documentary. I understand completely why this is happening, but it is sad to see it. I was an 'inbetweener' projectionist. Not and elder like Ridwaan, and not a part time unqualified kid either. I respected that equipment, the technology and the art of quality projection. Damn, I will miss those times.

Rick on Oct 19, 2012

2

Left my job as a projectionist just before the theatre fully converted to digital. At least with 35mm you could SEE what the problem was. And I'm still convinced that film has richer colours. Feel bad for those little theatres forced to convert or close.

Couch on Oct 19, 2012

3

Thanks for sharing this Alex, what an interesting idea for a documentary short. I have always thought that as a film fan, the most important aspect is the quality of the movies themselves. But the issue of projection directly impacts our moviegoing experience. Over the years, I have seen so many movies with framing or focus issues, etc. Sometimes I think that this isn't possibly what the director wanted his film to look like on the screen... A skilled projectionist is a filmmaker's best friend, and though they may survive in art house cinema for a bit longer, they are all but gone from the multiplexes now. The AMC where I live is nearly all digital. There have several problems recently at my theater with the digital projection, and whenever there is an issue the employees have trouble diagnosing/fixing it. Even IMAX, which was once (and still is to a lesser extent) the pinnacle of quality, has accepted digital projection because it allowed a larger and more cost-effective expansion of their brand. There is a full-length documentary called "Side by Side" (which I highly recommend) that looks at the film vs. digital debate - it deals more with the image capture side of things, but exhibition is included in the discussion.

John on Oct 19, 2012

4

very nice - i enjoyed listening to this man share his passion for the projectors.

beevis on Oct 20, 2012

5

That was great! In the cinema's where I am, it seems they just press a button and leave, sometimes the sound cut out and it took so long for someone to come to the booth that they had to stop the movie and refund the tickets. It's like the vinyl/cd/mp3 debate, vinyl still has the best depth of sound, but mp3's are cheaper to make. I think if you filks liked this, then you would probably enjoy some of the films over on this Vimeo Channel: http://vimeo.com/channels/thosewhomake It has a lot of really interesting and well shot/edited films about people who make stuff with their hands, meant to post a link before. See what yers reckon.

Carpola on Oct 20, 2012