There's
plenty more so surf away!
2.
The price is the same for each movie, so why do you need to know
what movie I want to see? Can I buy a ticket and change my mind
and just go into another movie?

First, we have to keep track of how many seats are available for
each showing so we know when to stop selling (remember Fahrenheit
9/11?) Second, we pay for the films based on a percentage of the
gross, and the distributors insist on accuracy for some strange
reason. So if you change your mind just let us know and we will
exchange your ticket.
3.
Why can't I bring my own food into the theater?

It's
simply a matter of business. Each year the film distributors take
a larger percentage of ticket sales. This means that, in turn, our
concession sales must become an increasingly important part of our
revenues. Quite frankly, there is a direct correlation between our
profitability and our concession revenues. We do our best to make
the popcorn fresh, serve real butter and offer a variety of drinks
and candy. We hope you'll partake, but if not we simply ask that
you not bring in outside food or drink.
4.
I love the films you show! Who picks them?

We
have a professional film booker whose job it is to select the films
we play with our input. He's been doing this for a very long time,
sees all the movies and knows the business inside and out. He's
a big part of our success.
5.
I hate the films you show! Who picks them?

See
above
6.
Some movies stay for a long time, some only a week. What's up with
that?

Perhaps
the biggest misconception about our business is that we get to play
whatever movie we want, when we want and for how long we want. Unfortunately
it's not as simple as selecting a pay per view event on cable television.
Each film is a separate contract with the distributor negotiated
by our booker. One of the terms is the length of time we are required
to play the film. Generally, the big Hollywood films insist on longer
commitments than the smaller independent films. In the end, some
combination of that contract and the amount of business a film is
doing determines what stays and what goes. Also, with only three
screens we need more rapid changeover to keep our programming fresh.
7.
I'm sometimes surprised that there are films that don't play at
the Triplex, both Hollywood releases as well as independents. Why
is that?

There
are a lot of movies released and with only three screens there are
many we'll simply never get around to. And frankly, the shelf life
is very short for most films. Either you get them while their hot
or they're yesterday's news. The long commitments insisted on by
distributors coupled with our few screens in a small community mean
we have to be very selective. On the independent side, some of these
niche films don't draw enough of an audience even for us.
8.
Do you Take Credit Cards?

Yes, MasterCard and Visa only.
9.
I'm thinking about opening a movie theater. Any advice?

Yes.
go to bigscreenbiz.com
and read all the forums. You will get a real education there on
all phases of the business. Read and ask questions, they will be
very helpful.