Film Distribution Problems

I wanted to check and see if anybody has had the same problem we have to deal with.

The theatre we are hoping to line up at can not say at all with any certainty that they are even going to get the movie.

It has to do with the distributors, and until the theatre knows they are going to have it, they (and we) are not allowed to advertise it beyond a poster or two.

We are running a charity raffle and costume contest at the largest mall in the region, we have set the draw date for May 15th, because the release date on the 16th is a given at least. We also have permission from the mall owners to line by the theatre for 24 hours prior to the tickets being sold.

What date wil that be? We have no idea. Can we find out? Nope. Its the distributors again.

We are working on a lot of things that don't depend on when the ticket sale date will be, and the theatre is letting us sell raffle tickets regardless of them even getting the film, but its still annoying trying to arrange things like a tent to set up for rain protection, getting food for a bar-b-que etc.

So is this a Canada only thing, or are other FF chapters having this same problem? Has anyone encountered this problem and found a work-around?

Only thing I can say is that the exact same thing happened for EPI.

Confrimation for the theatre came approx May 1, but we were fairly confident because it was announced early April that the charity showing would be held there.

Info regarding advance ticket sales came out approximately April 20.

Yes, to some extent it is a crap shoot. That's part of the thrill.

At least in Chicago, the two theatres (we have two lines) cannot confirm, so no, it's not just a Canada thing.

Seriously, though, if the manager is being so cooperative, it's a good bet that his theatre will get it. As for show times, that will depend on the individual theatre.
Our first showing for EPI was a 10 am show, not a midnight show.

Patience, my young apprentice.....oh, and congrats on having such a helpful theatre manager.

~H~

So we should have a date approx 3 weeks before?

Lets hope.

It's hard to say exactly. (I'm sure you're thrilled at that answer ).

And really, it's not so much a date as a time. The first show will either be Wednesday, May 15 at midnight (which is technically the 16th anyway) or somtime the morning of May 16. If you need to tell people a hard 'date', than May 16th it is.

As for the 24 hours your group has been given, consider this: has the theatre had other midnight showing? Like for LOTR or whatever. If they have in the past, it is likely they will do the same in the future. If the theatre is in a mall, I'm guessing not, but you would know best.

Here's a point: regardless of whether you have a midnight showing (Wednesday/early Thursday) or a morning showing on Thursday, you could use the rain protection/tent during the day on Wednesday. In other words, people will be in line during the day Wednesday, it's just a question of when they start (midnight or like 10 am). Also, bbq on wednesday night for dinner should work no matter what the schedule.

Is that clear? I'm not sure I completely understand your concerns, but I do understand the quandry regarding location .

Hope I've helped and not made things more confusing.

~H~

OK. A bit more background info.

The theatre is in a mall yes, but its an external entrance. Yes, they have had midnight (well 12:01) showings, including Ep I. Its the best theatre in the city. The chances they won't get the movie are almost impossible.

Its the ticket sale date we are stuck with. Episode I, for example. The tickets went on sale one week prior to the first showing. The tickets for May 19, 99 were first sold on May 12 starting at 3 pm.

The line-up was less organized then, but it too was restricted to 24 hours, so nobody was allowed by the mall security to stay overnight in the parking lot until May 11.

We are so far working on the assumption that the ticket sale date will be similar, ie starting about 3 pm on May 8 and tickets on sale May 9. The 24 hour lineup also kicks off our big fund raising raffle.

But its a big assumption.

Maybe this time, the distributors may not allow tickets to be sold until a few days before. Maybe they will allow to pre-sell tickets 2 weeks in advance!

So here we are, planning to run this raffle to raise money for a local charity (we raised over a $1000 last year alone), with the big kick off planned for the 1st ticket sale date, with media coverage and everything.

No date.

We have decided that ticket sale or not we will start the raffle on May 8 anyways. We'll only start the raffle earlier if the sale date turns out to be earlier. The draw will be on May 15. Our costume contest will be at the mall that evening as well prior to the drawing, even if the theatre doesn't have a midnight showing.

Its things like the tent that we want set up for the 24 hour ticket sale lineup. Until the theatre gets word from the distributors on when the sale date can be, we can't book it.

I'm not expecting any real answers here. Its more a place to vent the frustrations of having 99% of our plan all set except for that one date, and it is something we can't control.

At least knowing that everybody else has the same problem helps.

If it makes you feel any better, we here waiting in Seattle don't know if the Cinerama will get AOTC, and we've got two guys in line already.

It's almost guaranteed to get it, cause it's the biggest & best theater in the NW, but it's still a gamble...

First thing to check is if the theater in your area carries films by Fox. Some chains have exclusive or preferential treatment with certain distributors.

John, the theater at the Penn is the only one in the immediate vicinity, is it not? Being a Famous Players: Silver City, it is very very unlikely that it would not have the film.

If the theater that you're choosing is showing Ice Age this weekend, then you know it's able to get Fox films. If it showed Phantom Menace, then you know it probably meets with Lucas' requirements and will be likely to show AotC.

Rob, its not a matter of if the theatre will show the film really.

Its a matter of when the tickets will go on sale. That isn't up to the theatre.

Our line up activities are going to rotate around the ticket sale day. So we have everything planned and in place but no date we can give the press.