Chris Nolan Saving Movie Theaters

[Run&Gun]

Nolan himself answers you in his article...

"Maybe, like me, you thought you were going to the movies for surround sound, or Goobers, or soda and popcorn, or movie stars. But we weren’t. We were there for each other."

Obviously that is Nolan’s own personal view and opinion, but still very romantic and nostalgic(which I’d expect). Me, personally, I rarely go to the movies for the social aspect of it. At least not in the last decade. To me, it’s not a social experience like going out to eat or to a bar or the like with friends where you are there to talk and socialize and interact with one another. You don’t want someone talking to you and distracting you from the movie or others talking to each other and breaking your concentration. At least I don’t. If someone wants a social interaction and experience, there are lots of other better places one can go.

[John Brawley]

Obviously that is Nolan’s own personal view and opinion, but still very romantic and nostalgic(which I’d expect). Me, personally, I rarely go to the movies for the social aspect of it. At least not in the last decade. To me, it’s not a social experience like going out to eat or to a bar or the like with friends where you are there to talk and socialize and interact with one another. You don’t want someone talking to you and distracting you from the movie or others talking to each other and breaking your concentration. At least I don’t. If someone wants a social interaction and experience, there are lots of other better places one can go.

Of course being "social" in a cinema isn't the idea.

But if I go to a cinema, I usually go with a friend or friends and I usually have dinner or a supper / drink / coffee before after and talk about the movie and do other "socialising" around the experience of sharing the passive experince of watching a movie together.

JB

[Jim Feeley]

I wonder if movie theaters will become like symphonies and opera companies, money-losing/non-profit entities that are supported through grants and patrons. I totally did our local symphonies. But from the world-class San Francisco Symphony down to the really good regional and local symphonies, none are in the black AFAIK (and their pleadings for donations back up that position).

That might be no big deal for those of us who live in film-mad areas like I do. But outside major metro areas and college towns, it might be a tough business to maintain, even as a nonprofit.

[fboonzaier]

This is off topic, but I rarely go to movie theatres now, for a not as yet mentioned reason, which is, I intend to hold onto my hearing till the end of my lifetime if possible...and the "theatre experience" has become damaging, even with my custom earplugs I had made many years ago. When I take my 8 year old daughter now, she gets hearing protection too! So, for me, I prefer controlling the experience...I have a modest screen...and sound, but I watch films in the way I want. In the same way as many years ago I stopped listening to my sound system and started listening to the music instead, I have adjusted to this new viewing experience. If the cinematography and content of the film warrants the experience to me I still go, but the sound issue is huge for me, as it's almost as important to me as the image quality or the design.

[Cary Knoop]

I wonder if movie theaters will become like symphonies and opera companies, money-losing/non-profit entities that are supported through grants and patrons.

That's mostly for the Arts (with a capital A)!
Now some movies I think apply to the "Arts" as well, but many are simply commercial ventures.

[John Brawley]

But outside major metro areas and college towns, it might be a tough business to maintain, even as a nonprofit.

In Melbourne, where I grew up they opened quite a few years ago (2002), the Australian Center For The Moving Image, or ACMI.

It was started as a kind of notion of a gallery space aimed at the moving image. It was a radical idea in it's day, essentially the first museum and gallery space devoted to moving images. They screen films that would be "uneconomical" in a normal teatrical market and like many of Australia's most important galleries, would happily run at a loss, because the culture is seen as more important than it's commercial proposition.

At first everyone thought it would be a failure and a giant waste of money. It's still criticised because strangely, the "people" are happy to see the national gallery of Victoria (same state) as an important institution that should be free and open to all even though it runs at a loss, while for some reason "cinema" is perceived as a strictly commercial enterprise, not to be valued in the same way other "art" is valued.

It's coming up on 20 years since it opened and they are just going through a renovation at the moment (good timing) https://www.acmi.net.au/whatson/

Here's a recent program
https://www.acmi.net.au/ideas/read/a...retrospective/

Also, many film festivals in Australia, a geographically HUGE continent with a very small population that is spread wide and far, do "travelling" film festivals. They take the program from something like Sydney International Film Festival and take it on the road to small country towns all over the country. It's incredibly popular. Unlike a symphony orchestra or opera, there setup is minimal in terms of infrastructure and manpower.
https://www.sff.org.au/tff/

This is all moving towards a discussion of screen CULTURE. Not just the commercial proposition, but underlying cultural proposition. It depends on us as individuals. I think that's what Nolan is reminding us about. Watching those films in a cinema is an important part of screen culture. Dare I say it, the arts.

I so often see discussions on these forums where every single discussion is viewed through the prism of business. Can I make money with this piece of equipment. Can I grow my business. Obviously this is show BUSINESS and it has to be sustainable but I sure don't take jobs based on earning money. I'd never have gone into filmmaking if it was to make money because it's a terrible business. Or maybe I'm just terrible at it.

I've always thought that if I want to MAKE movies, then I should SEE movies. If I want to SEE movies then I should SEE them as the filmmakers intended, which most of the time, is in a CINEMA.

I think of filmaking as a language of it's own. Each shot is a word. Each scene is a sentence or words, with the editing providing the punctuation. Each film is a novel. If I wanted to be able "write" those words, then the more I hear those words spoken by others, the more literate, the more visually literate I can be, the better I'll be able to write my own shots.

JB

[Jim Feeley]

That's mostly for the Arts (with a capital A)!
Now some movies I think apply to the "Arts" as well, but many are simply commercial ventures.

Totally agree. But in general I think fewer and fewer theaters, commercial or otherwise, will be profitable ventures. The movie theater closest to me is being turned into a climbing gym. There are still plenty of screens around here, but how many will we have in say five years? I think a whole lot of places will end up like Anarene, Texas.

[James0b57]

This is off topic, but I rarely go to movie theatres now, for a not as yet mentioned reason, which is, I intend to hold onto my hearing till the end of my lifetime if possible...and the "theatre experience" has become damaging, even with my custom earplugs I had made many years ago. When I take my 8 year old daughter now, she gets hearing protection too! So, for me, I prefer controlling the experience...I have a modest screen...and sound, but I watch films in the way I want. In the same way as many years ago I stopped listening to my sound system and started listening to the music instead, I have adjusted to this new viewing experience. If the cinematography and content of the film warrants the experience to me I still go, but the sound issue is huge for me, as it's almost as important to me as the image quality or the design.

I was at an iMax theater, and met a def couple on a date. I knew enough signs and had some paper and they mentioned how they enjoyed the feeling of the sound. It was then i realized how loud theaters have gotten!

So, i totally see where you’re coming from!

Your children are fortunate!

[James0b57]

Obviously that is Nolan’s own personal view and opinion, but still very romantic and nostalgic(which I’d expect). Me, personally, I rarely go to the movies for the social aspect of it. At least not in the last decade. To me, it’s not a social experience like going out to eat or to a bar or the like with friends where you are there to talk and socialize and interact with one another. You don’t want someone talking to you and distracting you from the movie or others talking to each other and breaking your concentration. At least I don’t. If someone wants a social interaction and experience, there are lots of other better places one can go.

If you are ever in Charlotte area, try to find a performance by Ethan Uslan. I know he used to play piano live for silent films down near the Diamond. He is an incredible ragtime piano player. And the. Getting to watch a Buster Keaton film with live music is a wonderful and rare experience.

[fboonzaier]

I was at an iMax theater, and met a def couple on a date. I knew enough signs and had some paper and they mentioned how they enjoyed the feeling of the sound. It was then i realized how loud theaters have gotten!

So, i totally see where you’re coming from!

Your children are fortunate!

It comes from years of music concerts!...I remember when Talking Heads broke up going to see David Byrne touring solo, and the sound was mixed to perfection!...really the way you would do in your own living room with the ultimate system except there's the band on stage to electrify the audience. It's always just a question of how any evevent is "curated" for want of a better term!