(Guest post by WWTW reader Ron Tognetti)
The question of how dissatisfied many of us are with the movie going experience triggered interest in a movie fan club-type resolution, where a club would be able to rent a theater for an exclusive showing of a current feature.
To put meat on the bones of this idea, I’ve focused on chains as opposed to indie art house operations like Landmark Theatres. Indie houses may be worth a second look, but I’m not sure that they would/could consistently screen first run, well-hyped features that most of us would be curious about.
I’ve compared information about private screenings (auditorium rentals) from the web sites of AMC, Harkins and Regal (UA) I spoke with a rep in UA’s Group Sales/Private screening group, and it seems like the chains all have very similar if not identical practices:
- Private screenings are just that: a prime evening, daytime or matinee screening of first-run features. Some films are bound by agreements which prevent the theater from using them in private screenings. Private screenings generally are not packaged as film/concession packages, although it’s usually implied that concession discounts could be worked out with individual theater management.
- Some chains like UA/Regal may limit a club’s private screening to specific auditoriums, depending on the popularity of a feature and the size of the ‘private’ audience (so, a small club plus guests could view a feature in the 77-seat auditorium at UA’s Greenwood Plaza, if it wasn’t the biggest draw the theater had going, or you may have to rent a 100 – 200 seat auditorium in order to view a hit. Kinda confusing, but there’s more clarity below.)
- PSAs, promos, commercials, ad nauseum would not be screened (so say the chaps at UA/Regal), but previews (trailers) will be part of private screenings, since they are an integral part of the feature as shipped to the theater.
- Arrangements and agreements need to be set up at least one week in advance (UA/Regal again). Faxes seem to be a preferred way to do this part of the business, but UA’s Group Sales team emphasizes use of their 800 number. No recurring arrangements can be set up (UA and AMC): each request is processed the same way, with the same lead time requirement.
- The Bottom Line: auditorium rentals are based on ticket prices and an administrative fee (UA as the example here.) Daytime and matinee tix were quoted at $8 per, evenings $10. The seating capacity is the multiplier, and the administrative fee is fixed at $250. So, reading from left to right, a feature screened in the evening at the 77 seat Greenwood Plaza with admin fee comes to $1020.- (77 x 10 +250)
- A hypothetical 30-member film club could do 6 of these gigs a year (assuming no price increases, and no overhead on the club’s end) if they regularly collected $17 a month from one another. That means a total of $6,120 collected for the year, popcorn and juju bees extra.
I’m not sure what type of business/partnership structure a club like this would need, and how that structure would collect and account for all payments to the chain or theater, but that’s another discussion. Maybe a PayPal account could be the most useful means to process payments?
Addenda: A 30-member club on its own wouldn’t fill a 77 seat theater, but members could bring guests or family (stripped of their cell phones!). Those club members looking to impress a date or reward a spouse or friend could help fill the place, add to the social aspect of it and reduce the ‘cost’ of their tickets to a price close to what they’d have spent on their guest/date if they’d gone to a general public admission screening.
Maybe that other person digs the concept and joins the club. What’s better than a growing phenomena?
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{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
An interesting concept, mainly for people who already belong to some type of social organization where you can put together parties of 30 or so.
The “problem” with the internet is that it works globally, not locally. Finding 30 local movie fans who hate commercials and noise enough to form a club would be a problem, particularly for an anti-social type like myself.
OTOH, perhaps this could be pitched to the local cineplex who could form their own “clubs” via their parent companies. I mean Regal theaters, for example, has it’s own card, presumably with the e mail addys of the people who have them. It would be easy to put together some type of “movie club”.
It would take some doing, and often people RSVP for events and never show up. But it’s an option for movie fans tired of the status quo. And I posted this because reader Ron was kind enough to do some digging about the subject. Perhaps his hard work will inspire others … or even spark a club or two.
I decided to look up what the local chain theater does in the way of renting out. This is strictly from the website, I haven’t actually talked to a live, (or dead ), human about it.
They rent out but only on weekdays, during the day. Unless they are specifically restricted from showing a first run film as a rental you can see first run films or any other film,new or old depending on it’s availiability.
I’d never actually thought about old films but it sure would be great to see a film on the big screen that I’d only ever seen on television.
There’s a $250 admin fee but all other dollar amounts are event specific.
I really dig this idea. Not sure if I would want to be in charge of putting something like this together, however, if someone else in my area (Northern Colorado) starts something like this, I am very interested.
A good place to start trying to find members would be with the Meetup.com movie clubs. There’s an active one in Fort Collins.
k – My research and outline were developed as a response to interest from fans of WWTW in the Denver/Front Range area, thus the relevance of the UA Greenwood Plaza example. I’m not inclined to try to pitch an un-tested idea to a movie chain. The idea needs to become a working, useful, successful experience before it becomes anything else (if, indeed, it even needs to expand.)
Heidi – I’m going to contact at least a couple of Denver film clubs up on Meetup.com – good suggestion!
At this point, I’d say any fans that hear about this should simply pledge to give it one try and commit the $17, RSVP the number of bodies, and be ready to go! I’ll pay the fee and guarantee 3, possibly 5 bodies for the first screening.
OK – I can see another problem, even for a single trial event: escrowing funds for the screening, since funds for rent and the admin fee would have to come from a single source in order for a chain like UA to reserve the theater.
It boils down to trust I imagine; I still think Paypal can accomodate that type of scenario, if delegation and trust are there.