Clone Wars Theatrical Release Possible?

The problem is digital projectors and all the surrounding costs for installation and maintenance are more then the value of most theaters themselves at this point...Which is why even the biggest multiplexes only have a couple...and those have money backing from the large chain...If a small house got one...it's pretty much all they've got. And that can be expensive, and in a time when theaters are risking a complete boycott by the public because of high ticket prices already...it makes those decisions EXTREMELY difficult.

There have been a couple suggestions for fixes:

1) That the big studios could subsidize the purchasing of digital projectors for theaters. However the dark side is the demand by those studios to not only get the lions share of ticket revenue until the debt is recovered, but to have complete mastery over what will be played on that machine...which is bad if the movie fails and the house needs to switch out to something new the next week.

2) Digital Alliances of small theater houses into associations that could assemble resources to buy the equipment...but this really is creeping corporate takeover. As it stands, there aren't many private theater interests left.

3) Multiple application...this has been most embraced, even by the big movie houses...using the digital to receive TV shows, sporting events, special events via satellite, etc. But the sticker here is the utility of the projector is great...but the multi-function of the theater itself slags behind...instead on an auditorium, you'd need floor space for tables, perhaps a dance floor, or even an arena like setting with seats and a stage with the screen behind. Golden Era theaters, having survived numerous refits, could do this quite well...the multiplex of the last 30 years is not designed for it...the expense to refit is prohibitive...and the loss of seating and thus ticket revenue would be alarming, especially if a "subsidized projector" program started.

So in the end...the real problem isn't that the the industry is being lazy or fighting anything...it's just a symptom of the decline on the industry...the continued dominance of home theater sales and peoples patience against the massive cost of attending the movies. I went to a matinée the other day...4 people..$25...if I wait 4 months...I buy that DVD at the most expensive store for $25 and watch it repeated on my home theater...you can't defeat that, even with digital projection. Which is why many theaters have stopped trying to pretend they provide the ultimate "movie" experience...and instead tell you that it's cultural to "go to the movies"...It's not about what you are seeing...it's about going somewhere neutral with friends, a date, relatives, business associates...and getting a variety of entertainments and not sitting at home.

 

Well George Lucas is on record as saying the demise of the cinema is imminant.

 

cinema is not dead...cinema houses are one foot in.

I suspect in 10 years, theaters will be significantly fewer in number, and will be more like restaurants then anything else...there are samplings of what I speak many places now.

Slapping down money to sit in room with 400 strangers (ha...when was the last time you were in a sold out house?) and watch a jumbo TV with audio I guarantee is a decade older then what you or one of your friends has at home, and not nearly as taken care of...yeah...those days are numbered....and not many numbers remain.

 

Quest is right.

I mean, almost every time I go to the best theater in my area on a weekend night the movie I want to see is sold out. Heck, half the time even the crap movies are sold out, because when people get to a theater they want to see a movie, whether it is the one they came for or not. The speaks volumes about why people go to the theater.

 

Yeah, i think theaters are going to be around a long time. People just want that movie theater experience, you know. Nothng can beat the first ever movie you saw in the theaters. People want the experience.

 

And buying the DVD is something more permanent. I own a home theatre, and I'm quite reluctant to buy a DVD unless I;m sure I'll like the film.

But I will go and see a movie if I'm not sure I'll like it. Though the last bad film I saw was Vanilla Sky.

And anyone who has attended a SW midnight will probably talk about the collective emotion of an audience in a theatre. I think it's sad that it's something we'll hardly ever see again , a SW midnight that is, I was holding out for one for this year.

 

Since Clone Wars is being made specifically for tv I think a full fledge theatrical release would take away from it. A limited digital only theatrical release might be the best option. First it would guarantee that the film would be presented in the best possible quality and second it would please the hardcore fans who want to see Star Wars back on the big screen. A two week run would create a big enough splash for the debut of the series without overshadowing the main event itself on the tv screen.

 

I appreciate Jedimarines perspective immensly. I run a real estate operation, and I have a full appreciation and understanding of the economics involved. And, I agree to, that we will see a decline in movie theatre operations, as the pie is divided up between retailers of home theatre equipment. I have a home theater system that makes most theatres look and sound, stupid.

Though, theatres that will be left standing will be the ones that offer a above and beyond, ultimate, communal experience. I still love going to the movies. I still love making out with a girl, at the movies. I love seeing people I know in the lobby when buying Whoppers and Cherry sours. I love the BIG SCREEN. And, with all technology, the equipment will become more compact, more powerfull, and less expensive over time (flat screen TV's are a prime exmample)Plus, thier have been discussions of studios directly beaming, via satellite, new film releases to theatres. In which case, you could see the studios now owning their own mega-movie houses outright (on leased real estate or not)(Sony, Paramount, 20th Century Fox, etc.)I believe there are still a few more "permeations" of public theatre going still left on the horizon.

I can't wait to see this new Clone Wars theatrical debut. It's a no brainer and I can't wait to debate with you all in August, on the total experience (Hey, were star wars fans!). It probably won't make it to the smaller, coventional theaters, in most towns, but it will again kick up the awareness that this technology is suprerior, and hopefully the more theatres that jump on the band wagon, the equipmentt cost will ultimately come down.