Projectionist Manual compiled and edited by Steve Mahofski
While working as a manager projectionist in Pittsburgh I compiled this manual to help new employees learn the booth.  The full version of this is called "Booth Book."  This version is slightly abridged and is text-only (the original included photographic examples).  NOTE: Obviously I turned to the experts for the majority of this text.  When transferring to text-only I somehow lost all the footnotes.  I attempted to replace them with an actual credit near the material.  If I missed one or two I apoligize in advance.  Please e-mail me at stevemahofski@angelfire.com with corrections or revisions.
FIRST INTERNET EDITION
 
America Goes to the Movies:		
	By Barbara Stones

It  began on April 14, 1894 with the opening of the Holland Brothers' Amusement Arcade at 155 Broadway in New York City.
 Stepping inside the converted shoe store, patrons found two rows of tall wooden cabinets, each with a narrow viewing slot. The ten motorized contraptions were kinetoscopes, the latest invention of Thomas Alva Edison. 
Named after the Greek words for "movement”  and "to watch," the kinetoscopes Illuminated a revolving film strip to create moving images. Each machine offered  still photographs and drawings projected onto a screen.  Inventors began tinkering with Edison's basic design The idea of projected motion pictures made perfect sense from a business standpoint. The use, of a single projector meant low start-up costs to introduce the novelty since only one machine had to be purchased rather than several.   Maintenance costs would also be lower. And the obvious plus was that many people could see projected moving pictures at a time and hence more money could be made. By 1895 inventors and entrepreneurs throughout England, France and Germany were hard at work converting Edison's original technology into projecting machines, a prospect that Edison had unwittingly encouraged by neglecting to secure intentional patents for the kinetescope. 
Edison was convinced the moving pictures were a short-lived fad; so he concentrated instead on selling as many kinetoscopes as possible before the novelty wore off.   The effect of moving pictures was astounding.  Customers had never seen anything like them and were delighted by the startling realism of the tiny moving images.  Word of the new novelty machines spread quickly.
Edison's business partners had become aware of European competition. Seeing a chance to expand their moving picture business beyond peepshow machines, they promptly bought the exclusive marketing rights to a European variation called  the Phantoscope.  On April 23, 1896 the Phantoscope, billed as the Edison Vitascope made its debut at New York City's Koster & Bial's Music Hall- marking the start of the shared motion picture experience in America.
It would be years before the moving pictures evolved from simple, one-shots views to fully-developed stories and years before permanent theatres were built expressly for showing movies beginning with The Nickelodeon on Pittsburgh's Smithfield Street.But on April 23, 1896, in the darkened hall of Herald Square, the public's fascination with moving pictures entered an exciting new phase of shared pleasure.		
Sprocket Wheels guide and move the film. One is always right at the beginning of the film path, before the first loop and the filmgate.  Beneath the filmgate comes the intermittent sprocket, which is the main one.  Another one follows the second loop and occurs before the Sound Head.
Film Gate where the lens housing meets the body of the projector.  The film makes loops before and after the gate. When you open the gate you see the intermittent sprocket, the aperture through which the projection lamp shines through the lens and a pressure plate mounted on springs to hold the film flat .
Guide or Stabilizing Roller at the beginning of the film path.  Prevents film from rubbing against the projector and helps guide the film into the film path. Focus Knob adjusts the lens to correct focus. The Framer controls the pattern of the film as it passes the aperture. Fine Shutter Adjustment is a screw like adjustment that controls the speed of the shutter to eliminate travel ghosts.
  Aperture Plates prevents excessive light from entering the lens and distorting the ratio. 
The oil for the projector is a special weight.  It is much lighter than the Sound Head oil.  Be careful not to mix weights, or use the wrong weight for that matter.  Too thick an oil will gum up the gears and slow down the timing; too thin it will escape through the overflow function.  Don't mix oil weights or allow a foreign substance to become mixed with the oil or the oil can become cloudy.  If that occurs the oil must be changed.  Brenkerts leak.  They all do.  As a result you are constantly adding oil.  This helps prevent the oil from getting dirty.  Nonetheless, projection oil should be changed every six months or when you have a problem.
CHANGING PROJECTOR OIL
Extending from the body of the projector is a pipe.  Loosening the nut on this pipe will release the old oil.
When the old oil is drained, remove the back panel of the projector.  Wipe out the rear of the gears with a paper towel.  Check gears for signs of wear, particularly the shutter (to your left) and the intermittent (to your right).  It can not be stressed too much: The Intermittent is the main part of the projector.  One of the main parts of the intermittent is the Maltese Cross., After inspection squirt oil at the gears.  Replace the back panel.  Pour fresh oil into the oil access at the top of the projector until the level meets the sight line.
At the end of the night open all clamps and remove the filmgate.  Brush off all of the sprocket wheels and check them to make sure none of the teeth are missing or have become hooked.  Close all clamps and wipe out the projector with a towel.  Clean out film gate and allow it to rest on a shelf overnight.  Once a week, this unit should be cleaned out with Formula 409 or Strike Force. 
THE FAILSAFE:

	The arms of the failsafe "tell" the automation whether or not film is running through the projector.  If the arms drop, the automation will shut the system down.  Always check to make sure the arms are up before starting a show
	Once a week the failsafe should be cleaned with contact cleaner.
	When you lace the film, lace it along the OUTSIDE of the failsafe to prevent film scratching.
 	Always have a spare exciter bulb nearby.  Without an exciter there is no sound.  Keep the sound lens, or "optic", clean.  Use rubbing alcohol and a Q-Tip.
	Make sure the beam of light from the optic is hitting the soundtrack dead-on.  If the beam is off to one side it will cause either a hum or "rollerblading."  The lateral guide roller controls this.  To readjust, loosen the set screw in the center.  You may then turn the dial until the beam hits where you want it to.  Then retighten the set screw.  There is also a seperate "up/down" adjustment you can use if the optic fails to pick up the full frequency of sound.
	At the end of the night make sure that you leave the sound drum open overnight.  The pressure of the lateral guide roller can put a dent on the surface of the drum which creates a bumping sound during playback.
	Once a week this unit should be cleaned out with Formula 409 or Strike Force.
 The distortion in the lens that causes it to project straight lines in the form of outward curves is called "barrel" distortion.  The distortion in the lens that causes it to project straight lines in the form of outward curves is called "pillow" distortion.
The lenses are precision instruments.  Handle them carefully.  Do NOT drop them!  If you do, report it as soon as possible to the theatre manager so they may be checked to prevent poor presentation.
When changing from "flat" to "scope" (or vice versa), do so gently.  The lens rings are adjusted so that a minimum of focus adjustment is required at the switch.  Jamming the lens can damage this adjustment.  It could also cause a shift on the "throw setting" on the scope lens which, unless readjusted, will make proper focus impossible.
If you do shift the adjustments they can be readjusted.  "Know your throw."  The "throw" is the distance between the lens and center screen.  If you know the distance you can simply shift your scope lens back to the proper number.
If you damage the lens ring adjustment you can either a) simply use the focus knob to refocus and then report it to the Theatre Manager or B) open the lens holder, loosen the ring and slide the lens back and forth until it is in the proper position.  Close the lens holder, then tighten the ring.  It is easier to adjust scope to match flat.
The lens should be cleaned once a week using the special solution and several sheets of lens tissue.  If the print is shedding, or if the projector leaks oil profusely, you may want to clean it more often.  Often times tissue alone is enough for these extra cleanings.  Do not get fingerprints on the lens.  These can cause "soft spots" on your image and, if left long enough, like any other oil they can actually ruin the lens.
Keep your porthole clean.  Use windex, it doesn't streak as much.
Check your "ap plate."  Dust it out in between shows and make sure it is the correct plate for your ratio.


Projector Maintenance
“A Turn of the Screw”
By Stephen C. Chamberlain
Mgr., Corporate
Communications
Kinotone, A Division of
Arriflex Corporation

ONE THING IN particular which equally applies to all machines is, keep them clean.  This is not much of a task if the head is wiped off each day, and there is nothing more slouchy than a machine head covered with gum, oil and dirt...Don't imagine you are working on a freightcar or a locomotive.  Don't go at it with a four pound hammer, a Stillson Wrench and a cold chisel.  You are working on a delicate piece of machinery.......
Projector maintenance, and books and articles written about projector maintenance, are as old as the exhibition industry itself.  The statement above, which of course refers to projectors, could have been made at any time since the early 1890's.  But it wasn't. it was made in 1910, By F. H. Richardson in his book Motion Picture Handbook for Managers and Operators, (The Moving Picture World, New York).  Things really haven't changed much since then.  While many projection technologies are now microprocessor-based, and projectors themselves incorporate high-tech Xenon light sources, continuous feed platter systems, and lenses of an optical quality not dreamed of even 10 years ago, the projector itself has remained essentially the same.  And so has the need for regular and systematic maintenance.

Projectors

Film industry literature has from the beginning stressed the importance of proper equipment installation, use and maintenance.  The projectors Richardson covered in his landmark book were Edisons, Ltibins, Motiographs, Power's Carneragraphs and more - all now motionless in museums and private collections.  They all, he wrote, required systematic cleaning and lubrication of all moving parts including head, sprockets, rollers, gears and chains.  He further noted that intermittent movements required special cleaning and lubrication, that gates needed regular cleaning and checks throughout the working day, and that part of maintenance was the regular replacement of worn or soft tension springs or lateral guides.  Failure to follow a regular maintenance program, he noted, was eventual machine failure and loss of revenue.
Richardson wasn't alone in this cause.  Publishing contemporaries Henry C. Horstmann and Victor H. Tousley, in their book Motion Picture Operation published in 1914 (Fredrick J. Drake & Co., Chicago), also preached regular projector maintenance to the industry.  They stressed general cleaning, proper adjustment of light source, proper film preparation, screen maintenance, and proper intermittent movement lubrication and adjustment.  Horstmann and Tousley further note in their General Hints section, that proper tools should be on hand, that all lubrication points be checked on a regular basis, and that bearings be checked regularly for play.
Both of these books devoted special sections to sprockets.  They noted, and of course it still holds true today, that sprockets are a source of several possible kinds of trouble, two of which are worth mentioning here: that worn sprockets tear sprocket holes. and that you'll eventually project an unsteady picture due to dirt accumulation.  Sprockets, they noted, eventually wear into a "hook" form which, if not replaced, will eventually tear into your film's sprockets holes.  Dirt accumulation, on the other hand, causes film to ride unevenly.  All three authors concluded that the entire film path, from reels to sprockets and rollers, and from intermittent movement to lens mount must be checked and cleaned daily, with particular attention paid to the sprockets.  Sound familiar?
Lubrication is a type of required maintenance that numberless pages in countless books and manuals have been devoted to.  Projectors today, just as with projectors gone by, must be lubricated according to their model's specifications, and they must be even more frequently checked for lubrication levels.  Some projectors require more extensive lubrication than others, but all must have it.  The key, of course, is to only lubricate those parts which require lubrication-not the sprocket teeth, not the exciter lamp or scanning lens, not the film nor the rear of the projector lens, or anything else unusual.

Light Sources

Light is the heart of motion pictures.  Cameramen manipulate it.  Film labs preserve it.  Projectors project it.  The amount and quality of light hitting the screen, needless to say, has always been of paramount importance to theatres.  From the earliest trade books and magazines, which began publishing in 1906, to those published today, writers have always concentrated on the subject of light - how to create it, how to capture it, and how to project it onto the screen.
By 1916, manufacturers had banded together to form the Society of Motion Picture Engineers (now SMPTE, the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers) to bring a higher level of technology and standardization to the industry.  In addition to standardizing sprocket hole sizes and film speeds, they addressed the problem of standardizing projection light sources.  Their standards were quickly adopted, and led to a boom in new booth technologies that theatres were quick to implement.
Much later, when color film stocks were introduced and required more light to both photograph and project, theatre owners and manufacturers handled the problem with larger, more efficient sources.  The same happened with the introductions of wide screen anamorphic Cinemascope and 3-D.  Today, with Eastman Kodak, the SMPTE and the TAP Program re-examining the very real problem of inadequate light on today's screens, we discover again that we get light on the screen in the same ways they did in 1910 and 1914.
We've seen the virtual demise in recent years of the carbon arc as a projector lightsource, but in 1926 it was the highest quality light you could project.  In the Operating Instructions section of National's Projector Carbon Hand Book (National Carbon Company, Cleveland OH, 1926), they note that "Although subjected in some instances to intense heat, [a projector] will, if properly taken care of, last a long time and give excellent service.  All parts of the machine should be kept clean and well oiled.  Connections should be kept tight, carbon jaws cleaned regularly to prevent corroding, condensers cleaned daily, and not least of all, the proper sizes and grades of projector carbons should be used.
Compare this to the following: "Place the safety sleeve over the lamp whenever working on the open lamphouse To avoid excessive contact resistance at the lamp terminals, check the contact surfaces regularly for corrosion burnt or corroded terminals must be replaced to avoid premature lamp failure The constantly fluctuating temperature inside the lamphouse and the flow of cooling air cause dust to collect on the optical components.  These should be cleaned regularly.  This was taken from Osram's recently published  Guide to Operation, Maintenance and Troubleshooting.  The point of this comparison is obvious.  There has always been just one way to ensure proper light output, just as there has been only one method of projector head maintenance-systematic and thorough.

Sound

1926.  Projectionists up to this point in time did not have to worry about sound system maintenance.  There simply where no sound systems, or none at least that they had any responsibility over.  Live orchestras and choruses; huge, multi-function pipe organs; innovative orchestrations; and perhaps the most common, a single, slightly out-of-tune piano; were all the responsibility of someone else.  After 1926 that all changed.  The responsibility for high quality sound went into the booth, where it remains today.
Sound magnified both the projectionist's job and responsibilities.  Rudolph Michling wrote one of the more significant technical sound books of 1929, Sound Projection, (Mancall Publishing, New York).  In it he detailed the variety of sound systems that faced projectionists: Movietone, RCA Photophone, Bell Lab's sound-on-disc Vitaphone, and such quickly forgotten systems as Royal Amplitone and Bristolphone.  Projectionists also faced three different and incompatible recording technologies: variable area and variable density optical tracks, and 16 inch Vitaphone record discs.
This jungle of technology notwithstanding, Miehling made the same recommendations that have been made in virtually all sound system manuals.  He states that the entire projector mechanism must be kept properly cleaned, lubricated (as excessive wear due to poor maintenance will cause "wow-wows,") but not over lubricated, and that the entire mechanism must be serviced regularly.  Paying particular attention to sound, he noted in particular that oil accidentally sprayed on the film's sound track and/or on the micro-thin optical slit in the projector's sound lens will cause a severe loss of sound quality.  He reviewed new maintenance techniques for sound that are, or should be, standard procedures today: regularly clean the entire film path; clean the sound drum, and check and lubricate its bearings; check and clean the sound lens' optical slit; check the output of the exciter lamp or solar cell and its connections; and regularly check amplifiers, individual speakers, and all connections.  Even with such technological advances as Dolby, THX and Bose sound equipment, these basic maintenance requirements have not changed since the beginnings of motion picture sound.


Summary

Regularly scheduled projection maintenance is clearly the most basic, and most cost efficient form of asset protection each theatre and theatre chain has.  With only one projector now standard equipment for most screens, there is no more vulnerable asset to protect.  You have only one form of protection, one insurance policy; regular maintenance.  Concessions, video games and other attractions aside, your patrons come to your theatres to see and to hear movies.  Either you'll have quality picture and sound for them, or you won't.  Either you'll have customers returning again and again, or you won't.  Your equipment and your presentation are the measure.  And, that basic law of exhibitor economics, your box-office, will be the final arbiter.
SOUND

THE OPTICAL SOUND SYSTEM
The optical sound track that goes along with the image is also printed on the film.  It looks like a squiggle running along one side.  The projector has a second light source, the exciter lamp, located after the gate.  Light from the exciter lamp is focused by the sound lens and beamed onto the film as it goes smoothly around the sound drum.  The sound track printed on the film will pass light through, but the opaque areas next to it will not.  This modulated light beam hits a photo electric cell which generates electric current in response to the light hitting it.
The electric current is sent to a preamplifier where, first, this weak signal is boosted to levels that are less susceptible to degradation and, secondly, where any signal modification that has been applied during recording is reversed.  It is also in the preamplifier that further modifications to the signal are made at your discretion, tone controls, filters, balance and volume, for example.  Once the signal has been shaped by the preamp, it is sent to the power amplifier, which boosts the level many times.  The signal then goes to the loudspeaker.

Directions for using CSX lamps

lamp
CSX (Xenon) lamps are only suitable for connection to direct current.
The emission from CSX lamps includes rays in the short-wave ultraviolet part of the spectrum, against which the skin should be protected.
The lamp has a safety duct, as even in cold conditions there is high pressure inside the lamp.

Lamp housing
The lamp must be used exclusively in a closed sheet steel or aluminum housing permitting adequate cooling.  Most lamps will not ignite if the housing is not properly closed.
The temperature of the lamp caps must not exceed 230 degrees C.  The maximum temperature of the quartz must not be higher than 750 degrees C.

Inserting the lamp
When handling the lamp, please follow the instruction for operation of the equipment!
The protective cover must not be removed from the lamp while the latter is being inserted.
Deviation from the recommended burning positions will cause recrystallisation and thus reduction of the bulb life.  Only one lamp holder may be fixed; the other must be fitted in such a way that the lamp can expand unhindered when in operation.
This is necessary to avoid undue stress in the quartz envelope.
The supply leads must be as flexible as possible and be kept at sufficient distance from the bulb to prevent the magnetic field from affecting the discharge.
Before the lamp housing is closed, remove the protective cover taking the necessary safety precautions (the  use of protective spectacles or mask and strong, leather gloves).
If the quartz has been touched with the hands, it must be cleaned with alcohol before putting the lamp into  use.  This will prevent impurities from burning in.
Next dry the lamp.  To prevent scratches on the quartz, it is advisable to use clean cotton wool or a cotton or paper cloth.
Since the contact pins of the lamps have a special nickel  layer, they must not be polished or sanded.  The contacts to be fitted to these pins must have a clean  and sufficiently wide contact face.  The contact faces must be cleaned regularly to prevent  contact  resistance.

Lamp operation
The  lamp will  not operate if it is connected incorrectly.
The lamp housing must be closed during ignition and operation.  When an auxiliary mirror (reflector) is used, it should be focused correctly against the luminous arc.   Ignition must not take longer than 0.5 seconds, as otherwise extra blackening of the lamp  will occur.  The upper current limit of the control range must on no account be exceeded.
The lower limit, however, may be exceeded until the minimum (quiescent) current is reached.  This may result in arc instability, however.  
Life
The life of the lamp depends to a great extent on the switching frequency.  It is therefore advisable to keep the burning time per switch-on as long as possible.  The life indicated in the documentation refer to a burning time of 60 minutes per switch-on.  When the life indicated in the documentation has been reached, it is advisable to replace the lamp by a new one, since otherwise there is a great risk of envelope fracture occurring, which may cause damage to the optics.

Operations within the lamp housing
Do not open the lamp housing  until the lamp has been switched off for at least 10 minutes.  Ultratech recommends waiting at least 30 minutes.  Fit the protective cover around the lamp as soon as the lamp housing has been opened.
After the operations have been completed, do not forget to remove the protective cover before closing the lamp housing.


Destroying the lamp
Destroy the lamp in the following way: put on protective spectacles and leather gloves, remove the protective cover, wrap the lamp in a thick cloth, lay it on a hard support and smash it with a hammer.
	If the lamphouse fails to ignite, try starting it manually by flicking the lamp switch on the automation.  If that does not work, check the power swiutch on the rear of the lamphouse.  If the lamp still fails to ignite then press the manual ignition button located on the rear of the lamphouse, usually above the power switch.  Then check the plug and circuit breaker.  Finally check the bulb.
	The reflector is a mirror which intensifies and directs the light towards the projector apereture.  There is an adjustment on the back of the lamphouse to shift the reflector so that the light fills the screen.  On a larger lamphouse there is an adjustment for each direction that you might want to turn the reflector.  
	The reflector should be cleaned once monthly while the lamphouse is cool.  Use Windex (any other brand will streak) and a soft lint free cloth.  DO NOT TOUCH THE BULB!  The oil from a fingerprint will eat into the quartz casing as the bulb gets hot and could cause it to explode.  
	Lamps should be run at aproximately 30 amps.  Check the VU meter on the back of the lamphouse.

Cinema Sound: Power Amps
The power amplifier can be compared to the engine of a car.  A car's designers may have decided that their car must go 50, 60, or 70 miles per hour on a freeway. It will need to have the ability to quickly accelerate on demand. It must be capable of operating reliably for 100,000 miles and it must offer a degree of comfort.  To provide this level of total performance, the designers must have "x" amount of power from the engine. In a theatre, the designers will want enough SPL so that the patrons can hear the dialog and sound effects in the movie.  The system will need to reproduce the loud passages and wide dynamic range of the film's audio portion.  The system must operate reliably for long periods of time and it must sound great. 
Fortunately, among the many different types of power ratings, most pro audio amplifier manufacturers have a standardized specification that makes comparison between models a little easier: 2OHz2OkHz, 0.1% distortion at 12OVac with both channels driven. if an amplifier doesn't have this type of rating, or if a tolerance Spec is missing in the frequency response, it may be intentional.  To assure an accurate comparison of amplifier power ratings, it is a good idea to be sure to make an "apples to apples" comparison and to take the above factors into account.

SPECIFICATIONS PEDESTAL AUDIO SYSTEM
PAS 2000

Component Parts:
AMPLIFIER: Two 40 watt all silicon solid-state audio power amplifier.  The amplifier is short circuit proof and protected from overloads by means of internal solid state circuitry.  Fuse protection is provided for internal power supply protection.
EXCITER LAMP SUPPLY: 9 VOLT 4 AMP all silicon solid state exciter lamp power supply, electronically filtered DC power with emergency AC power transfer capabilities.
MONITOR AMPLIFIER: All silicon 3 Watt monitor amplifier with self-contained 4” x 6” speaker.  This amplifier monitors the power amplifier and is controlled by means of a separate volume control.  
CONTROL HOUSING: Contains operating controls for audio power amplifier volume, monitor amplifier volume and auxiliary input (non-sync).  This unit houses all aforesaid component modules and provides for connection to a remote projector.
SPECIFICATIONS

CONTROLS:
Operating Panel

Theatre volume level control

Monitor level control

Monitor power supply fuse 1/2 A  3AG

Monitor amplifier indicator #327 lamp Function switch (non-sync, sync.) 

Exciter Lamp Supply Panel

“DC” to "AC" emergency transfer switch, power off.

Audio Power Amplifier Panel

AC power on-off switch

Control Housing

Photo cell balance controls located on right side of cabinet.


OPERATIONAL THEORETICS
POWER AMPLIFIER: The Audio Power Amplifier is furnished completely adjusted and ready for use.  The input and output terminals are protected against damage due to accidental short circuit or overload conditions in the audio lines, but care should be taken to prevent the application of AC or DC power to these terminals.  The output of the optical pickup (solar cell) is fed through an external 1200 OHM level control potentiometer to the input terminals of the pre-amplifier section by means of shielded cables and function switches. The input transformer matches the. 1200 OHM line and also provides a voltage stepup of ten (10) times input, The pre-amplifier provides an additional five times amplification for a total of 50 times input or 36 db.  The output of the pre-amplifier is then fed into the power amplifier input by means of a jumper strap.  It is normal that a small positive DC voltage appear at the pro-amp output.  The input and output connections are separate chinch tones connectors.
Trimmer controls are provided For attenuating Hi and Low frequency response.  These trimmers are located an the top cover of each amplifier.
The audio signal is coupled to the power amplifier through a capacitor and potentiometer.  The slotted potentiometer shaft is accessible through the front panel of the amplifier module and may be adjusted without removing the covers or front panel.  The power amplifier is a direct coupled operational amplifier design with quasi complementary power output stage.  It contains current and voltage limiting circuits to prevent internal damage due to overdrive overload or short circuit of the output.  The voltage gain of the power amplifier is 50 times, or 34 db for a total system voltage gain of 70 db.  The use of this highly efficient and stable amplifier circuit permits operation from the simple unregulated, full wave capacitor input, bi-polar power supply, which provides approximately plus minus 40 VOC (8OV total).
Although the electronic protection circuits react and recover instantly without damage and without causing the fuse to blow, a power supply malfunction (shorted rectifier, capacitor, etc.) or a system oscillation could cause the fuse to blow.  The pilot lamp will go..off' in this event.  Since a line fuse may blow due to transients or line surge, an attempt should be made to reactivate the amplifier by fuse replacement before attempting more complete servicing procedures.
EXCITER LAMP POWER SUPPLY

The exciter lamp power supply provides 9 volts @ 4A of highly filtered DC power to the projector's exciter lamp.  Since there is only 5MV of AC ripple component on the DC output there is no 60  cycle-modulation generated  from the exciter lamp bulb.  This will also  prevent annoying  60 cycle hum being generated into the power amplifier when the film strip is not  in  the optical track.
The DC output voltage is adjustable by means of a rotary selector switch and a potentiometer which are accessible From the rear of the Exciter Lamp Supply module.  An emergency transfer switch is provided should anything fail in the DC portion of the Supply.  A fuse (6A 3AB) is provided in the front panel to protect the DC supply from short circuit conditions external to the supply. A fuse (2A 3AG)  is provided to protect against short circuits in the.AC operating mode.  The green pilot lamp assembly located on the front panel will indicate output t power in both modes of operation.  This bulb is a #330 midget flange 14 volt and is the only bulb that should be used.

TROUBLE SHOOTING GUIDE

SOUND SYSTEM
The first step in trouble shooting is to re-check the following items:
1. Input and output connections relative to installation wiring diagram.
2. Power input voltage is a minimum of 120 VAC at 60 HZ.
3. Operating and function switches in proper position according to Start-Up Instructions in manual.
4. Resistance test mods with ohmmeter at TB-1 and TB-2 in accordance with installation instructions.
5. Audio line shields grounded at one point only which is at proper terminal at TB-2.  Grounding the shield at other than TB-2 will cause GROUND LOOPING.
6. HI and LO side of audio input line UNGROUNDED WITH AMPLIFIERS UNPLUGGED.
7. Speaker lines not shorted to each other or to ground. SPEAKER INPUT NOT GROUNDED.

	SYMPTON...	SERVICE PROCEDURE
Pilot lights not on, monitor lamp or exciter...Check power input wires at TB-2, measure with AC volt meter at TB-1 for a MINIMUM Of 120 VAC so HZ.
Exciter lamp supply not on...Check connectors and slide alignments, check fuse on panel and also at rear of ELS module check Switch position.
Exciter Lamp not on but supply is on...check change-over switch either manual or automation. Measure ELS output with voltmeter at TB-2.  Measure voltage at Exciter lamp socket. Voltage at Exciter Lamp MUST BE 8.5V MINIMUM!
No audio output, Power Amp pilot light off, Monitor lamp on...Check power amp switch position.  Check fuse on power Amp panel.    Replace only WITH RATED SIZE FUSE if blown.  Check connectors and slide alignment. 

No audio output, Power Amp pilot lamp off.  Monitor lamp on... Check audio function switch.  Should be in sync on film position.  Check input and output connector and slide alignment.  Check exciter lamp.  Check audio wiring from solar cell to console cabinet TB-2.
No Theatre audio but good booth audio...Check speaker and connectors for shorts open or ground from TB2.
Low theatre volume with noise, booth and theatre...Check HI & LO audio connectors for reversal. Check for shorted or grounded audio leads or open LO side. Check Solar Cell alignment.  Check Exciter Lamp voltage.  MUST BE  8.5 MINIMUM.
Theatre volume OK no monitor.  Pilot light on or dim...Remove monitor Amp module and substitute with another.   Check monitor speaker.

SINGLE PHASE SILICON POWER SUPPLY FOR THE "XENEX" LAMPHOUSE AND THE "XENEX PUP"


This silicon power supply has been designed to permit installation at the lamphouse, eliminating costly wiring, direct current line losses, projection room heat, and to make possible "on the spot" current adjustment.  Only one single phase line, terminating at the Power Supply, is required as far as electrical wiring is concerned.  The blower type ventilating system made miniaturizing possible, so the power supply can be located over "waste" space at the base of lamphouse pedestal.  Actual usable floor space required is less than one square foot.
The Power supply consists of: a single phase main transformer, two large filter reactors, filter capacitors, an R-2480 Silicon Stack, cooling fan, voltage and current adjustment panel, and relay with 110 Volt energizing coil, Assembled and wired in a metal cabinet measuring: 20" X 20" X 10".
Transformer and chokes are positioned vertically in the right side of the housing.  They are designed to reduce the supply line voltage to the correct value for operation of the power supply elements, and to limit maximum current flow.
The silicon stack is mounted directly behind the fan.  Air flow is directed through the stack, then channeled over both sides of the transformer and choke assembly providing maximum cooling.  The air flow bends at a right angle and exhausts out top of power supply housing.  A 4" flue adapter is provided on the power supply top.  The power supply can be vented to the outside through the lamphouse exhaust system.
A hinged door inside of the housing opens, vertically, to expose the current control panel, relays, silicon stack, and ventilating fan, Located on the control panel are four voltage taps and current adjustment taps, and a relay.



OPERATING THE POWER SUPPLY:

Refer to the general specification sheet.  On the main transformer are four taps on one end of the primary winding which compensate for rough adjustment.  These cover line voltages ranging from 190 to 250 volts, with tap settings at 190, 210, 230 and 250 Volts.  Eight fine adjustment current taps are located on the opposite end of the primary winding.
Movable leads are attached to both the voltage and current adjustment taps.  When the power supply is shipped, the movable current adjustment lead is positioned on the lowest current tap at the extreme left of the terminal board.  The voltage tap is positioned on the 250 volt tap.  These provide the lowest possible output current settings.
Measure the incoming line voltage.  Move the voltage tap to the position nearest your measured line voltage.  EXAMPLE: Incoming line voltage measures 220 Volts.  Set the voltage tap on the 230 Volt position, then move the fine current adjustment tap to the right, step by step, until you obtain the proper operating current.

BE CERTAIN ALL CONNECTIONS ARE CORRECT AND TIGHT!!' REFER TO LAMPHOUSE INSTRUCTIONS FOR OPERATING PROCEDURE.

RIPPLE VOLTAGE:

The single phase supplies are designed to have a ripple voltage lower than the minimum required by Xenon Lamp manufacturers.  Heavy duty chokes and electrolytic capacitors, in a cascaded filter network, are contained in the output circuit to reduce ripple and aid ignition.

THE VENTILATING FAN MOTOR:

The single bearing fan motor requires no maintenance.  It is oiled for life.



R-2480 SILICON STACK

The SILICON STACK has a peak inverse rating sufficiently high to accept all operating conditions.  The diodes are further protected by ceramic disc capacitors, in parallel with each diode, to absorb any high voltage transients which might develop from the high voltage Xenon Lamp Igniter.

CAUTION!!        CAUTION!!            CAUTION!!
UNDER NO CONDITION SHOULD THE POWER SUPPLY BE ENERGIZED WITHOUT A LAMP LOAD.
ALL OF OUR XENON LAMPHOUSES ARE DESIGNED WITH SUFFICIENT VENTILATION SO THAT THE TEMPERATURE AT THE XENON LAMP SEALS DOES NOT EXCEED 1500 C. LAMP MANUFACTURERS GENERALLY ALLOW A MAXIMUM SEAL OPERATING TEMPERATURE OF 230 0 C.
FOR THIS REASON WE DO NOT FEEL THAT IT IS NECESSARY TO KEEP THE VENTILATING BLOWERS, IN THE LAMPHOUSE, OPERATING AFTER THE XENON LAMP HAS BEEN TURNED OFF.
OPERATING THE POWER SUPPLY WITHOUT A LAMP LOAD EXPOSES THE ELECTROLYTIC CAPACITORS, USED IN THE FILTER NETWORK, TO A HIGH OPEN CIRCUIT D.C. VOLTAGE.  THUS, LEAVING THE RECTIFIER ON WITH THE LAMP TURNED OFF MAY RESULT IN FAILURE OF THE FILTER CAPACITORS.
AT THE END OF ANY PERFORMANCE, WE SUGGEST THAT YOU SIMPLY SHUT THE ENTIRE EQUIPMENT DOWN AND ALLOW THE XENON LAMP TO COOL WITHOUT FORCED VENTILATION.  WE FEEL THAT THE LAMP COOLING CYCLE WILL BE MORE UNIFORM IN THIS MANNER.
THE THEATRE ENVIRONMENT:

PROJECTION LENSES:
PAST PRESENT AND FUTURE

An Optics Pioneer Surveys the Post- War History of Modern Lens Technologies.

by Glenn Berggren
Cine-Systems Engineer
Hollywood, California

The arrival of SMPTE RP-40 resolution test film drove the old designs out, because lens quality could at last be accurately measured.

Simply put, in 1953, the lens business was not ready for widescreen. The better lenses, such as the Bausch & Lomb (B & L) , and the Kollmorgen BX241, 6 element Super Snap-lite were the best available when widescreen arrived.  Standards for optical quality (resolution) did not last for lenses. Every theatre owner bought what he could get.  Kollmorgen used to claim that in 1954, the demand for its best lenses was so high and good lenses were so scarce that Kollmorgen worked "around the clock" to keep up with demand.	
 The new anti-reflection lens coatirigs (mag-fluoride) were a plus which only became available after World War II. The gains provided by the shift from uncoated to coated lenses was as a quick 25% or more boost in the light of a projected image, with even greater gains in picture contrast.  But the lenses themselves remained virtually the same.  What had not been considered across a whole industry was the fact that when the image was "stretched" into widescreen, that the "stretch marks" showed as color fringing and out-of-focus fuzz!  With the death of the pre-widescreen projection ratio, the old designs became an industry plague for 25 years because they could not focus uniformly all over the screen!
What was needed for widescreen was a superior 7 element, f/2.4 lens, with a slightly curved field to make CinemaScope "near perfect.' But by 1958, the lens industry had become sensitized by the light-starved Drive-In business, and it moved from f/2.4 to f/2.0 designs, then on to f/l.9, f/1.8, f/1.7 and even f/1.6 lenses, all in a few short years.  The 20th Century Fox engineer responsible for the projection side of CinemaScope said that they were never able to exceed 40 LP/mm on test film in 1953, using the B & L f/2.0-6 element lenses.  By the time CinemaScope became a success, that f/2.0 B & L series had been replaced by the new 6 element B & L f/1.8 Super Cinephor lens, which had even greater focus problems.  Kollmogen answered this by putting the 7 element f/1.7 series (2" to 4") on the market in mid-1954 along with the existing f/1.9 series which had 2" to 10" focal lengths.  B & L countered focus problems by closing down the entrance "window,' which led to a deterioration of screen light distribution. If 20th Century Fox had created the "right' projection lenses in 1954, they could have saved millions of dollars on their development of CinemaScope 55, a format which was eventually dropped, and they would have changed the entire course of projection.
 In 1976, 1 was asked to join the Schneider Optical company of West Germany in order to help plan and market the ISCO projection lenses.  Utilizing the research from the 1967-1974 VistaVision development program, I pressed ISCO to create a new generation of lenses solving CinemaScope problems, light problems, inner cement problems, and contrast problems.  At first they resisted, but they finally made new-design 75mm samples (tested for a month in late 1977 at Radio City Music Hall), and other focal lengths were added.  These new designs were considered such a radical change in lens technology that they quickly won wide acceptance- and even an Academy Technical Award-all in less than 2 years!
With data to specify the curve in the lens design so that it was now the same for all focal lengths, the new ISCO Ultra lenses eliminated center-to-corner focus problems in movie theatres, providing better focus, better resolution and better image contrast, with no inner cement to burn-brown.  And with the aperture reduced to f/2.0 from the usual f/l.8 or faster, these lenses would hold focus better than any previous high-quality lens design.  This was a major advantage for the Multiplex, which uses fewer projectionists to attend to a larger number of screens via the running of the film off a platter.  The ISCO Ultra lenses could hold focus for the whole show.
 In late 1982, the combined Schneider Optical and ISCO Optical in Germany went into bankruptcy, and after court action, arrived at the end of 1982 as separate companies, the ISCO portion of which made a distribution deal with Optical Radiation. It was time to consider another step of progress, and by 1985 the Ultra-Star lens series was on the way, with higher optical quality, extra-short lenses, certain lenses designed especially for 70mm film, etc.
The Utra-Star lenses received an Academy Technical Award in 1979.  At that point ISCO had twice won what were the only Academy Technical Awards for new projection lenses given in the previous 35 years.  The newest lenses had the highest MTF (resolution & contrast) at dead center and the sides of the picture ever created by projection lenses.  In addition, there were designs in the zone between 35mm and 48mm focal lengths that never existed before, plus lenses for 70mm film that were not compromises between 35mm use and 70mm use, and which were established at focal lengths which would "fit" properly for most theatres using constant height pictures.  A 93mm lens for 70mm film that matched the picture height of a 75mrn lens for anamorphic CineniaScope and a 48.5rmn lens for the 1.85 again provided the right picture height to "fit." There was also a series of integrated anamorphic lenses with small diameters to fit the now-commen turrets in use in automatic projection.  
Projector Problems

A problem mixed in with all these technological breakthroughs was that foreign made lenses often did not fit the American-made 35mm projectors in movie theatres.  The support castings and gate designs often caused either annoying interference, or were designed in such a way that the lens could not be used at all.  In the 1977 Lens Standard, the overall shape of projection lenses was altered to conform to "fit-all" specifications, and another industry-wide problem disappeared.
After the technical confusion, focus problems, cement problems, thread problems, projector-fit problems and more which plagued exhibition between 1953 and 1978, the German lens designs created between 1978 and 1990 to fit the American theatre industry were seemingly becoming foolproof But as screens became wider and auditoriums shorter, the whole evolving "projection system" began to present new problems.  In screen images of 19' x 45' in short auditoriums where 55mm CinemaScope lens and 4000 xenon watt bulbs were required, theatres often either could not focus or light up the screen properly, or else had both problems.  Even though today's lenses are of a much higher optical quality, the surface temperature of projected film can cause film flutter to show on the screen as soft focus, and the small elements in a 55mm lens for 4000 watt xenon lamphouses are less light-efficient than the larger elements of 85mm lenses were!  Another "barrier” to solve!

What Next?

With the continued accent on short-wide auditoriums, many theatre exhibitors have moved toward using curved screens to improve screen-light efficiency (the same reason curved screens were used by CincmaScope in 1953, and Showscan in 1984, and so on).  As the whole industry moves slowly toward curved screens, there will be a need for new kinds of lenses and changes will be needed in projector and lamphouse designs, too.  In short, the future moviehouse needs higher performance combined with performance  adjustability.
My whole point is this: that the path of progress in projection lenses from 1953 to 1978 was technically illogical, thereby causing industry-wide headaches.  The new ISCO lens of 1978, and the refined industry standards that came along with it, should have happened 15 years earlier, when the technology, coatings and computer design programs first became available, and our current second generation of improved lenses should have already occurred by 1978.  Perhaps we are ready to embark on a new phase of projection lenses.  If so, it's a development that's long overdue.

PLATTER NOTES:

PLATTER LACING: Into centerpiece (brain) gate, behind center roller, 'in one ear and out the other' with film resting on the roller.  From the brain to the top platter roller, down to bottom roller - film soundtrack always towards you - then from turn guide roller to the projector.  Lace through the projector and failsafe back through to base roller through the Variac to the top roller on the platter's side to the individual platter roller, to the ring.

SOUNDTRACK DOWN: Running soundtrack down protects the emulsion side of the film from ALL platter rollers.  This prevents 1) emulsion scratches (the green ones); and 2) static formation on polyester-based film.

MOVING OF PRINTS: Extreme caution must be used when moving a print from one platter to another.  Moving a loose print can cause surface (black) scratches and speckles.  And that's if the move is succssessful.  If the film is dropped it may take several hours to put back together and ruin the print.  Therefore make sure film clamps fit on the print tightly and that the print has rewound tightly.  If either case does not hold true THEN DO NOT MOVE WITH CLAMPS!  Break down the film onto large reels and then make it back up on the desuired platter.  This takes longer than clamp movement, but much less time than picking the film up off the floor.  The prevention of film damage is also a key consideration to use.

MAKE UP & BREAK DOWN: To make up a show first make sure that all reels are heads up.  Remove the individual header leaders and wind them so that the first frame of the reel is on top so that they are easier to re-attatch at breakdown.  If the print is new, leave two frames on the leader for identification purposes.  Attatch reels together making certain the film goes soundtrack to soundtrack.  Never go faster than half speed - its bad for the platter and bad for the film.  If the print is used, make sure that there are no extra cues on the film.  Place a cue on the film rating on the side of the film opposite soundtrack.  Leave reel tails on the reels.  Careful organization at make up will make an easier breakdown.  When breaking down cut off the frames at the reel changes and re-attach to the head and tail leaders with a single clear splice.  When breaking down always ask yourself, "Is this the way I'd like to receive this print?"
 
Trouble Shooting Platter Brains
by Kelly B. Smith, AMC Field Engineer

In today's advanced projection booths, the platter system has become the industry standard.  Although this efficient method of transporting film has few flaws, it can create havoc when the film is not properly secured and balanced on the platter.  If the film should wrap around the platter centerpiece, it can actually "strangle" this mechanism, making it dysfunctional and causing severe film splitting and breakage.
Film wrapping usually occurs because of platter disks rotating in an erratic manner or through human error when loading and securing the film.
Because film wraps can be time consuming to repair, the program interruption for the audience frequently exceeds 15 minutes.  Of course, this type of "down time" is highly undesirable from the standpoint of audience satisfaction. 
The chart helps to identify different types of wraps and suggests both the causes and the remedies.  Although most wraps fall into these categories, some may not.  In a situation where no category match can be made, observe non-platter related influences when trying to locate a cause.



The tail end of film slips off the edge of the platter disk and begins to wrap around the disk support arm and spindle.  The film will eventually wrap so tight that it breaks.

TO CORRECT.  Separate the tail wrap from the rest of the print (may already be separated because of film break).  Begin unraveling the film in a clockwise direction.  Once the film has been removed, reattach to print, Watch for tears and creases.

1. Tail is not properly secured with stopper or print tuck                             1. Secure print with stopper or print tuck. (most often on longer prints).
2. Fan or air vent blowing on platter disk.                                            Direct air should not blow onto platter.

Film is wrapped tightly around centerpiece in a counter-clockwise direction due to platter turning too quickly.
TO CORRECT:  Spin the platter by hand in a clockwise direction until the film has backed itself off the centerpiece.  While doing this, push the film against inner circumference of the print.  This allows the film more room as it is being unwrapped.  The motor can be disengaged so that the platter will spin easily.
			PREVENTATIVE MAINTENANCE
1. Feed arm on centerpiece sticking while in high feed position. Refer to manual to learn workings of platter support arm. make sure that the filter moves freely. See that set-screw on filter is tight.
2. Platter system or disk not level	Use a level to maximize overall adjustment on all platter disks, using 	the leg adjustment on the platter stand.
3. Faulty or misadjusted speed control card	Refer to maiual to adjust platter speed.
4. Brain feed servopot out of adjustment (ORC). Adjust according to manual.
5. Centerpiece tension spring missing (Christie). Replace spring.
6. LED filter assembly loose inside spindle (Christie).	Refer to manual and check for loose set-screw.
7. Feed arm spring missing (ORC). Replace spring.

A considerable number of backlashes occur while threading.  It is not uncommon for the operator to pull the film too quickly through ,he centerpiece causing the feed arm to stick.  This type of backlashing can be avoided by pulling the film only as quickly as the centerpiece moves.  Always check the centerpiece after threading to be sure that the film is not backlashing (wrappring).

Film is wrapped tightly around the centerpiece, or “brain” in a clockwise direction due to planer turning too slovay or not at all. TO CORRECT.  Spin the platter by hand in a counter-clockwise direction until the.film has backed itself off of the centerpiece.
				PREVENTATIVE MAINTENANCE
1. LED filter assembly loose inside spindle (Christie).	Refer to manual and check for loose set-scew.
2. Faulty drive motor or one in need of new brushes. 	Make sure power is off before attempting repair. Refer to manual for instructions on removing motor. Test motor by exchanging with motor from another platter disk. If the motor is determined to be dysfunctional, 	replace. Brushes are easily replaced: refer to manual for proper 	installation.
3. When centerpiece is removable, the assembly may not be properly seated. 	Make sure removable centerpiece is firmly seated. into spindle
4. LED intensity incorrectly adjusted. Refer to manual to adjust.
5. Speed control card fuse blown or circuit breaker popped. Fuse must be replaced or circuit-breaker reset. On some older ORC platters. the circuit-breaker must be replaced if it pops: refer to the platter manual.
6. Feed arm on centerpiece sticking while in low-feed position. Check filter assembly to make sure it moves freely (Christie); center	piece may need to have spring adjusted or replaced (ORC).
7. Platter system or disk not level. Use a level  to maximize overall adjustment on all platter disks. using 	the leg adjustment on the platter stand.
8. Faulty or mis-adjusted speed control card. Refer to manual to adjust planer speed; speed control card will need to be replaced if it is faulty.
9. Centerpiece feed servepot out of adjustment. Check servepot spring; refer to manual to adjust or replace.

Print is thrown from the platter disk or left hanging off the edge with the centerpiece acting as a hock.

TO CORRECT.  If the print is hanging from edge of platter, position it on platter in as concentric a manner as possible.  If the print has fallen to the floor, try to separate the print into small sections that are still together Label the sections with tape. working from the center outward.  Follow the same' numbering used for reel bands, i.e., 1H, 1T, 2H, 2T, etc.  Feed the sections back together, onto  platter.
				PREVENTATIVE MEASURE
	1. Print not properly centered on disk when loaded, possibly after being moved by hand.	Manually center on platter so that the film weight is as evenly distributed as possible around the centerpiece.
2. Feed arm on centerpiece sticking while in middle feed position. Refer to the manual to learn workings of platter suppor, arm. Make sure the filter moves freely. See that set screw on filter is tight.
3. Platter system or disk not level. .	Use a level to maximize overall adjustment on all platter disks. Using the leg adjustment on the platter stand. It is nearly impossible to get all disks perfectly level, so work toward the best average possible.
4. Faulty or misadjusted speed control card. 	Refer to manual to adjust platter speed. To determine if the speed control card is faulty, test a card from another platter in the erratic one. If the problem is in the speed control card, it must be replaced.         	
5. Brain feed servopot out of adjustment (ORC).  Adjust according to manual.
6. Centerpiece tension spring missing (Christie).  Replace spring.
7. Print built up too tightly so that when the ring is pulled, a bulge occurs causing an uneven feed surface.  Manually work film through bulge while film feeds into brain.
8. Loose or worn out drive wheel.  Platter will not keep constant speed with platter disk. Refer to the manual. Make sure power is turned off when repairing.

NOTE: A 'pulsing' platter is one that repeatedly speeds up and then slows down.  Over a period of time. this irregular rhythm will cause a print to slide around until it is thrown.  'Pulsing' is easy to detect by simply listening.  A pulsing motor will make a repetitive sound as it speeds up and slows down.

IMPORTANT: Film condition has not been listed in any of the charted problems, but it is worth considering.  Problems with the platter centerpiece can be compounded, if not created, by poor print condition.  Torn sprockets, dirt and oil on the film, poor splices, and creases can all impede the progress of the film through the centerpiece as well as disrupting the smooth operation of the components with which the film comes in contact.

Reprinted courtesy Eastman Kodak Company. 

NOTICE TO PROJECTIONIST

INFORMATION ON POLYESTER BASE FILM

WITH THE EXTREME WEATHER CONDITIONS THAT EXIST THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY, THERE ARE SITUATIONS REGARDING POLYESTER BASED FILM THAT HAVE BEEN BROUGHT TO THE ATTENTION OF NATIONAL FILM SERVICE THAT THEY WOULD LIKE TO SHARE WITH YOU.  THIS ARTICLE IS INTENDED TO FAMILIARIZE YOU WITH THIS NEW TYPE OF FILM BASE FOR THEATRICAL RELEASE PRINTS. ALTHOUGH TRIACETATE (SAFETY) AND POLYESTER FILMS ARE SIMILAR IN MANY WAYS THERE ARE SOME MAJOR DIFFERENCES WHICH WILL AFFECT YOUR OPERATION.

STATIC ELECTRICITY

LOW HUMIDITY IS THE MOST CRITICAL CAUSE OF STATIC ELECTRICITY. STATIC ELECTRICITY IS A MAJOR CAUSE OF BRAIN WRAPS. HOW CAN YOU PREVENT STATIC ELECTRICITY?  CONTROL AND MONITOR THE HUMIDITY LEVELS IN PROJECTION ROOMS.  RELATIVE HUMIDITY LEVELS SHOULD BE BETWEEN 50 AND 60 PERCENT.  INSTALL STATIC ELECTRICITY ELIMINATORS IF THEY ARE NOT ALREADY ON YOUR EQUIPMENT.  VERIFY THAT YOUR PLATTER ASSEMBLIES ARE PROPERLY GROUNDED, AVOID EXCESS HUMIDITY LEVELS

DO NOT LUBRICATE THE FILM

POLYESTER FILM IS THINNER THAN TRIACETATE FILM. POLYESTER RUNS SMOOTHER, AND MORE QUIETLY THROUGH THE PROJECTION EQUIPMENT.  LUBRICANTS CAUSE STREAKING AND CAN CAUSE DAMAGE TO THE EMULSION.  LUBRICATED FILM IS STICKY AND ATTRACTS  DUST.

FOCUS

IF TRIACETATE AND POLYESTER ARE ASSEMBLED TOGETHER ON ONE REEL, A DRIFT OF FOCUS WILL OCCUR DUE TO FILM THICKNESS.  THIS IS USUALLY THE TRAILER RING LEADING INTO THE FIRST REEL.  VERIFY YOUR FOCUS ON THE POLYESTER.

TAPE SPLICES ONLY

POLYESTER FILM CAN NOT BE ASSEMBLED USING CEMENT SPLICES.  THE TAPE YOU USE FOR TRIACETATE WILL WORK ON POLYESTER.


THERE ARE OTHER DIFFERENCES THAT YOU WILL ENCOUNTER WHEN USING POLYESTER BASE FILM, BUT THESE ARE THE MAJOR ONES.



TROUBLE SHOOTER GUIDE FOR COMMON PROJECTOR PROBLEMS:

Travel Ghost (Bleeding Bright image Areas into Adjacent Dark image Areas, or Vice Versa).
Incorrectly timed shutter.  On a Brinkert, the shutter blades are aligned across at frame shift.

Film Loop Slippage.  Loss of Loops.
Incorrectly seated pad roller.  Too wide a gap between roller and sprocket.  Adjust to allow no more than double thickness of film to pass without lifting pad roller from sprocket.

Film Clatter at Gate.
Excessive gate tension or lack of lubrication.  Reduce tension until noise disappears or until vertical unsteadiness is apparant.  If no setting helps, check film lubrication.  See: SCREEN.

Noisy Sprockets.
Excessive feed or hold back tension.  Hooked or burred sprocket teeth.  Reduce reel tension to reduce noise.  If sprocket is damaged, replace.

Transverse (Hashmark or Venitian Blind) Scratches on Film.
Film rubbing against badly misaligned roller flanges.  Align incoming and outgoing rollers on projector when using platter systems.

Longitudinal Scratches.
Protuding component in projector gate. (Check for burred edges on aperture plate)
Upper and Lower fire rollers. (Check for non-rotating rollers due to flat spots.  Clean clogged rollers and lubricate sparingly.)
Sound Drum Drag. (Check lubrication.  If surface is highly polished, check with your service representative.  Replacement may be needed.)
Film riding on roller flanges. (Adjust film to ride smoothly.  Institute operational procedure to check rollers prior to show starts.)
(The original of this document included Kodak's Troubleshooting Chart - since it was a chart it transferred to text only out of sequence so I deleted it.  I highly reccomend this chart, particularly if you are using older equipment.  Try to get a copy.)
screen

The reflective or translucent material onto whose surface motion pictures are projected.  The standard shape of the cinema screen was set in 1906 at an aspect ratio (width in relation to height) of 4 : 3, or 1.33: 1. Over the years, filmmakers have experimented with a variety of screen sizes and shapes, and in the 50s, with the advent of the wide screen, a broad range of shapes was introduced,with aspect ratios of up to 2.55 : 1. It is sometimes necessary to join several sheets of material together to form a large screen.  The screens are perforated to allow the transmission into the auditorium of sound from loudspeakers placed behind the screens.
The great majority of cinema screens are opaque rather than translucent.  The light rays from the projector fall upon the reflective opaque surface and are reflected and made visible to the spectators.  The most common variety of opaque screen is the white matte, which provides uniform brightness from any angle.  Other varieties are the aluminum screen, which tends to increase brightness but also contrast and graininess, and the beaded screen, which reflects in narrow angle and is therefore suitable for use only in narrow auditoriums.
Translucent screens are used with back projection systems.  They are rarely installed in motion picture theaters and their use is limited mainly to small display and demonstration projection units. (Katz's Film Encyclopedia)
Change is always with us and it is evident in motion picture theater design.There has been a significant evolution in theater configuration: screens are larger, lens focal lengths are shorter, and seating is tending toward the stadium stepped tiers.  Exhibitors are faced with new problems that have been created by steep projection down angles, lenses with half the focal length of those commonly used just ten years ago and screens that have tripled in area.
In general, there are three types of screens and two types of screen materials.  The two types of screen materials are matte and gain. (Both types may be either with or without perforations).  The matte type must be installed as a flat screen so it will not cross-reflect.  Gain screens are directional (light reflects mirror-like).  Mounting them flat with short lenses creates low efficiency and a "moving" hot spot will be evident.
The three screen shapes are flat, single-curve, and the compound-curve Torus screen.  The flat screen must be matte (a gain of 1.0) to avoid a hot spot.  With careful design, a one-curve gain screen will aim some of the directional light toward the audience.  Most of the light will appear as a horizontal hot band in which lost light is reflected towards the ceiling and floor.  With a compound-curve gain Torus screen, all of the light from the entire screen surface will be aimed at the audience.
 In today's theater design, there is a tendency toward larger screens and shorter projection distances.  The use of shorter focal length lenses means that the angles to the sides and corners have become extremely steep.  The gain performance in the corners is well below 1.O. This does not contribute to screen-light efficiency and leaves an obvious hot spot.  Even in the case of single-curve screens, (because of the steep angles of the short focal length lenses), the top 40% and bottom 40% of the screen will not utilize the efficient portions of the gain curve.  The one-curve screen will have the hot  band across the middle and the gain at the top and bottom of the screen will be less than 1.0 also.
The compound-curve screen gathers all the primary reflected light rays, causing them to reflect to the large center area of the auditorium.  This cannot be done with a flat screen, and even a single-curve screen performs with extremely low efficiency.  Only the compound-curve Torus screen can efficiently capture the majority of the primary reflected light rays and place them where they belong. The careful design of the   screen surface will significantly improve picture quality, color saturation, and contrast. Since lower wattage bulbs can be employed, there will be less heat on the film. Lower wattage bulbs will also reduce the cost of operations. 
With conventional sloped (1:12 ratio) auditorium floors, the center screen light projected from the second floor booth will be aimed toward the middle of the seating area. With the newer stadium designs, the screen is aimed upward toward the central seating area. If not, the seats in the middle of the auditorium looking at either a flat or single-curve screen will see most of the light at the top of the screen and there will be noticeably reduced light at the bottom.
The usual flat screen, in a vertical position, will aim the light downward and off toward the side-walls.  A single-curve screen will have a horizontal hot band at the top.  The center screen primary rays would aim downward to be seen only by those in the front few rows.  Most exhibitors do not tip the screens to aim upward.  Even if they do, only the hot-spot or hot-band would adjust to the center of the screen.  The compound-curve Torus screen, derived from the Sigma computer shaping program, is forced to aim upward toward the audience.  The Torus screen "hot spot" is the entire screen surface.
For newer theaters with stadium seating and big screens (17' x 40' and larger), the compound-curve Torus screen is the practical answer for an improved image.  It provides superior picture quality and overall light efficiency.  In larger installations, a Torus easily pays for itself in a few years simply in xenon bulb cost savings.
The years between 1978 and 1992 have seen substantial progress in the development of lenses for 35mm film projection.  These new lenses with their finer focus capability have provided an important boost to image quality.  But shorter projection distances and wider auditoriums have created other problems.  Some exhibitors have tried to solve the problems by using gain screens.  It is generally believed that gain is a good thing and it will aid light-return efficiency.  The problem is that gain screens are highly directional and the gain can have a negative effect on light distribution.
Since 1993, the typical large screen has tripled in area from 17 x 40 feet to 30 x 71 feet.  In order to deliver superior images, this larger size has created a demand for optimum light efficiency.  To achieve this performance level, large screen pictures require sophisticated screen shapes and higher gain.  The result will be significantly improved picture quality.
The use of contemporary shorter focal length lenses also has increased the angles to screen corners.  Simply put, for instance, the 95mm lens used on a flat screen with an assumed gain of 1.5 reveals the functioning corner gain to be about  0.96, not 1.5. If a 2.0 gain screen were used, it would be worse.  Calculations show that the light at the comers gets progressively worse as the lens focal length becomes shorter.
The human eye sees best with sufficient light.  Optimum light provides enhanced color saturation and greater contrast.  The audience can see the in-depth picture on a Torus screen because the entire image is bright enough to be seen over the entire screen surface-not just at a bright center spot.  Every square inch has uniform light right to the corners of the picture.  The Torus compound-curve screen, at a given gain, provides nearly double the efficiency over any other screen shape.  A Torus screen is a visible, efficient, high-fidelity image.  There are more than 400 Torus screens in theaters today.
The trend of the past fifteen years has seen theaters evolve from small auditoriums with sloped floors and long focal length lenses to larger auditoriums with stadium seating and short lenses.  In the planning process the screen factor has been lost and ignored.  What worked for Radio City Music Hall with its huge flat screen and long lenses does not work in a new twenty-screen multiplex.  Radio City Music Hall has a large 29'x 68' screen image and uses 120mm lenses, yet it has difficulty reaching full screen light.  In a modern stadium auditorium with the same screen size- but lenses of half the focal length (60mm)-the light, even with a  single-curve screen, will be reflected to the floor.  The solution to the problem is a screen where every square inch, corners included, has been computer shaped so that all light is aimed and reflected back up to the main seating area.  Imagine 150,000 tiny mirrors on a 2 I' x 50' screen all aimed at the middle seat.  It will be bright. (7)
     Glenn Berggen, Gerald Nash, “Screens, Lenses, Gain and Curves: A Look At Torus Screens,” Kodak’s Film Notes for Reel People, 20th Anniversary Edition, Fall 1997

Criteria and Standards
For
Presentation Quality and Theatre Performance
For Indoor Theatres

Purpose

At present, there are no comprehensive guidelines for the exhibition of motion pictures.  Organizations such as SMPTE, ASHRAE, and AES have created standards for specific technical aspects of presentation, but technical presentation is just a portion of the moviegoing experience.  To assist the industry in standardizing the quality of motion picture presentation and theatre performance, TAP is proposing the following standards for adoption by the industry.
These standards are not being proposed for the purpose of evaluating theatres nor as a condition for membership in NATO.

About The Standards

The standards are divided into three areas-Print Condition, Technical Aspects of Presentation (Viewing Conditions/Image Quality and Sound Quality), and Theatre Maintenance and Operations.  They have been created with an emphasis on providing audiences with the best possible presentation quality and moviegoing experience.
The standards state the optimum conditions in given categories and, therefore, represent goals.  In some instances, the optimum has been compromised to accommodate the safety of patrons.  In instances where standards may conflict with state and/or local codes (such as zoning, building, fire, safety, and health codes), the codes should always take precedence and be adheared to.
The Standards

I. Print Condition

New release prints, both 35mm and 70mm, should be exhibited for the first seven days of release with no more than 'very minor' cumulative print damage and black dirt accumulation.  During the next fourteen days of release, cumulative print damage and black dirt accumulation should not exceed “minor." See Glossary of Terms below for definitions relating to print damage and black dirt accumulation.

Glossary of Terms Related To
Print Damage and Black Dirt Accumulation

Cumalative Print Damage: indudes scratching, splices, and sound-track damage.
a. None = No scratches, splices, or sound-track damage to date.
b. Very minor = A scratch or a few scratches appearing for no more than a few seconds that are hardly noticeable and not distracting.
c. Minor = Scratches appearing for a few seconds that are only noticeable if looking for them specifically and not distracting.  Splice(s) with no loss of visual or sound continuity.  Sound-track damage present for a few seconds that is not distracting.
d. Notable = Scratches appearing for more than a few seconds that can be noticed by any viewer and are mildly distracting.  Splice(s) with some loss of continuity.  Sound-track damage present for more than a few seconds that is mildly distracting.
e. Significant = Continuous scratches that would more than likely be noticed by all viewers and are distracting.  A large accumulation of mildly distracting scratches can also be significant.  Splice(s) with substantial loss of continuity.  Sound-track damage present for long durations that is distracting (usually to the point of necessitating a replacement for the damaged reels.)

Black Dirt Accumulation

a. None = No accumulation of dirt.
b. Very minor = A few black specks on the image appearing randomly.  Hardly noticeable to the viewer.
c. Minor = Some accumulation of black specks on the image.  Noticeable but not distracting to the viewer.
d. Notable = moderate accumulation of black specks on the image.  Noticeable and mildly distracting to the viewer.
e. Significant = Heavy accumulation of black specks on the image.  Very noticeable and distracting to the viewer.

II Technical Aspects of Presentation Viewing Conditions and image Quality:
Screen illumination
Screen luminance at the center of the screen should be 16 fL ±2 fL.  Screen luminance at the edges of the screen (5% in from each edge) should not be less than 75% and not more than 85% of that at the center.  The distribution of screen illumination should be symmetrical about the geometric center of the screen, and no portion of the illuminated area should be less than 10 fL.
Reference:	American National Standard ANSI/SMPTE 196m-1986

Screen condition
Motion picture theatre screens should be free of rips, tears, discoloration, or other blemishes.  Any seams in a screen, either vertical or horizontal, should not be obtrusive when an image is projected.

Reflected and Stray light on screen
Screen luminance of a blank screen (no projected image or light) when the theatre is operating normally (auditorium lights set for presentation) should be free of reflected and stray light.  Reflected light on the screen may obscure image contrast.  Room surfaces should not reflect significant light onto the screen.  Surfaces of objects behind the screen should not reflect light onto the seating area.
Exit signs, regardless of placement, should not cast stray light on the screen (which may mean shielding signs where necessary).  Doors should be arranged so that direct light from adjacent spaces or out-of-doors cannot shine directly on the screen.

Reference:Estes, "Effects of Stray Light,' SMPTE journal

Light sources within field of view
The luminance of light sources within the field of view, such as exit signs or decorative lights, should not be distracting.  It is recommended that exit signs be placed somewhere other than the wall where the screen is located.  Where the placement and illumination of exit signs are mandated by state and local building and fire codes, one should adhere to the codes.
One should avoid placing shiny objects in places where they can reflect screen fight to the seating area.  Glossy finishes should not be used in the front parts of the auditorium as they can cause glare.

Image focus
Resolution (focus) is the apparent sharpness determined by the ability of a system to reproduce a specified number of equally spaced black lines and white spaces in groups which are at right angles to each other.  The following should apply:
Center resolution: greater than or equal to 68 Unes/nun.
Side resolution: greater than or equal to 56 lines/mm.  Corner resolution: greater than 40 lines/nun.
This requirement applies to all formats, including those requiring use of anamorpmc or other focal length adapters.
Reference:	SMPTE EG 5-1982

Shutter Ghost  (image streaking)
Shutter ghost (travel ghost) is the streak or blur that occurs to an image resulting from any vertical motion of film in the gate as the projector shutter opens.  With high contrast images, no shutter ghost should be visible on any part of the screen at any time.

Vertical (jump) and Horizontal unsteadiness (weave)
Jump is the vertical motion of the projected image.
Weave is the horizontal motion of the projected image.
The following should apply:
jump:	less than 0. 20%
Weave:	less than 0.25%
Reference:	SMPTE RP 105-1981

masking (condition, placement)
Theatres should have masking cloth or drapery, and it should be in good condition without rips or tears.  If operable, it should adjust to at least the Flat (1.85: 1) and the Scope (2.35:1) aspect ratios.  Left and right side masking, when in place, should create parallel edges for the image.  The top and bottom masking, when in place, should also create parallel edges for the image.  Projected images should fill the screen and no blank screen surfaces should be visible.
If masking covers loudspeakers, the portion of the masking in front of the loudspeakers should be acoustically transparent.  The edges of masking should be parallel and consistent with the correct projectable image dimensions.

Screen image size and viewing angle distortion
A motion-picture image should be as large as possible within the dimensions of the auditorium and be presented to an audience at certain angles to maximize impact and minimize discomfort.  The image angle (the horizontal field of vision) from the most distant seat should be no less than 26', with 36' recommended.
Seating should be arranged so that it provides all patrons a comfortable field of view.  The viewing angle distortion should be less than 45'.  Viewing angle distortion is defined by iso-deformation lines described in the reference.
Reference:	SMPTE Engineering Guideline 18

Sight lines and floor pitch
Sight lines, floor pitch, seat back tilt, and viewer comfort all interact.  Auditorium floors should be constructed so that all seats have unobstructed sight lines to the screen and provide comfortable fields of view. (See #9, Screen image size and viewing angle distortion.)
Reference:	SMPTE Engineering Guideline 18

Screen image
The desired condition is to project precisely the following image dimensions:

	35nun Flat image (1.85:1):	0.447 x 0.825"
35nun Scope image (2-35:1):	0.700 x 0.839"
70mm image (2.2: 1):	0.870 x 1.912"
The screen image should have	sharp edges, and the corners should be square (90'right angles). 
Cropping more than 5% of the projectable image is undesirable.

Image geometry (skewing,geometric distortion, keystoning, etc.)
Geometry of the projected image is most noticeable on titles, especially moving titles, on architectural shots having straight parallel lines, or on the horizon.  Too great a distortion in display is undesirable.
Reference:	SMPTE Engineering Guideline 18

Framing
Framing must be highly accurate in the 35mm Scope (2.35: 1) and 70mm (2.2: 1) formats because white lines caused by negative splices may sometimes be visible if the framing is off more than a few percent.  Framing errors on non-black-masked prints in the 35mm Flat (1.85:1) format cause composition errors. The image should	be framed so that the top and bottom masking are within 3% of the picture height from the frame lines.


Splice quality / changeover quality between reels
Splices and changeovers between reels of a print may be noticeable, but should not interrupt continuity or be distracting to audiences.  Distractions include interruptions to the image such as jumping, loss of continuity, or the brief appearance of opaque splices (black horizontal flashes).  Interruptions to the sound may include silence, a loud pop, clicking, or thump.

Interruptions in feature
Features should be presented without interruption.  Theatre management has an obligation to respond quickly to interruptions in a feature.  This should include a method or procedure for quickly determining, addressing, and informing audiences about the source of interruptions.  In the event of a prolonged interruption (more than five minutes), theatre management should make an announcement to the audience about the nature of the problem and give an estimate as to how long it will take to resume the show.
If there is an intermission in a feature, this should be indicated at the boxoffice along with the duration of the intermission.  When appropriate during the feature, the word intermission should appear on the screen along with the duration of the intermission.

Sound Quality:

Sound format
All motion picture theatres should be equipped to properly reproduce standard 35mm stereo variable-area optical sound tracks.

Level (loudness)
Each channel of a theatre's sound system should play at a sound pressure level of 85 dBC at a standard fader setting.  This is measured for each channel using a Sound Pressure Level Meter when pink noise is injected into the sound system.  Operators should play features at the standard fader setting (as set forth on the sound system manufacturers' specifications).  Overly loud trailers may need compensation downwards, but every effort should be made to play features at standard fader settings.
Reference:	The standardized dubbing stage sound pressure level (SPL) of 85 dBC

Frequency range and balance
Frequency range is the limit from low bass to high treble over which the sound system works.  Balance over the range is the adjustment of the sound system so that it reproduces all frequencies from bass to treble according to the reference standards.
The A-chain (projector and preamphfier) and B-chain (equalizers, power amplifiers, loudspeakers, and room acoustics) frequency response should meet the reference standards.
Reference: 35mm: SMPTE 214 

Wow and flutter
Wow and flutter are speed variations in sound reproduction and are audible as a wavering pitch.  Wow and flutter should not be audible to audiences.
Reference:	Audio Engineering Society Standard AES 5

Stereo coverage
If the conditions under screen image (see #9, Screen image size and viewing angle distortion) are met and the screen loudspeakers are mounted just inside the masking for the format in use, stereo should be perceived throughout the auditorium.

Maximum undistorted sound pressure level
The maximum sound pressure level in the 70mm format should be greater than 105 dB in any one channel without power amplifier overload, called clipping.  In the 35mm format, maximum unchpped sound pressure level should be greater than 97 dB.

Surround system
The surround loudspeaker array coverage should be uniform within ±2dB over the seating area.  The requirements for screen loudspeakers (see #3, Frequency range and balance) should apply to the array of surround speakers as much as possible.  The maximum undistorted sound pressure level (see #6, Maximum undistorted sound pressure level) should also apply to the array of surround loudspeakers. 

 Acoustics (reverberation and echos)
Reverberation and echos are destructive to dialogue intelligibility and should be minimized in theatres.  Reverberation will vary depending upon the room volume, and is naturally longer in larger room volumes.  The acceptable range for reverberation should be from 0.5 to 2 seconds, never exceeding 2 seconds.

Background noise (HVAC, lobby, employees, sound system)
Background noise such as noise from the HVAC system or sound system should not interfere with the sound quality in auditoriums.  No sound system problems such as hum, hiss, crackle, pops, etc., should be audible to audiences.  Hinges on auditorium doors and seats should not create noise.  Maximum background noise should not exceed NC-30 or be lower than NC-25.
Reference:	American Society of Heating, Refrigeration, and Air Conditioning Engineers Guide, SMPTE RP-141

Sound "bleed-through"
Sound from adjacent auditoriums is expected to be the most common intrusive noise, and it should be minimized so that it does not interfere with the sound quality.  All intrusive noises should be less than NC-30, and no pure tones from adjacent auditoriums should be audible. (See #9, Background noise.)

III. Theatre Maintenance & Operations

Marquee & Attraction panels and Exterior signs
Theatres should have the means to identify the feature(s) currently showing (marquees/attraction panels, boxoffice signs, etc.). Where applicable, the marquees/attraction panels should be lit at night so that titles are legible in the dark.  It is recommended that the rating(s) of the feature(s) be indicated.
For all exterior signs (including marquees/attraction panels, boxoffice signs, one-sheet frames, etc.) all words and titles should be spelled correctly.  The letters of all words, titles, and phrases should be the same color, size and style.

Parking facility
A parking facility is desirable for all theatres.  Where parking is mandated by state and local zoning and building codes, adhere to the codes.
Parking should be adequately lit for safety and so patrons can easily identify their vehicles at night.  Parking facilities should be free of debris.

 Boxoffice
Theatre boxoffices should be located near the front entrance of a theatre complex where applicable.  Boxoffices should have signs indicating the feature(s), showtime(s), rating(s), and admission price(s).  The conditions under Attraction panel/Exterior signs (see #1, Marquees/Attraction panels and exterior signs) should apply to boxoffice signs.  Boxoffices for multiplexes should have signs that indicate where tickets are purchased for the different features.
The sidewalk in front of the boxoffice and theatre entrance should be free of obstructions, hazards of any type, and debris.
Lines of ticket holders should be supervised by a theatre employee, be clearly distinguished from the line to buy tickets, and not obstruct the boxoffice or theatre entrance.

 Lobby
Refreshment stands should be located in the theatre lobby, and the sale of all refreshments should take place here during presentation.  Lobbies should provide easy access to the auditorium(s), the refreshment stand, and the restrooms.  Lobbies should have the means to display promotional materials (standees, one-sheets, etc.). They should also have an adequate number of trash containers.
Restrooms
Theatre complexes should have restroom facilities for both men and women that are easily accessible from the lobby.  Restrooms should be clean, well lit, and free of offensive odor.  They should have running water and be supplied at all times with toilet paper, soap, and should also have some means for patrons to dry their hands.  Restrooms should be monitored periodically by theatre management.  Adhere to state and local health and sanitation codes.

Refresbment Stand (cleanliness, organization, efficiency)
Refreshment stands should be located in the theatre lobby.  Refreshment stands should be designed and adequately staffed to minimize the wait of patrons.  Patrons should be served as quickly as possible within five minutes of approaching the refreshment stand.  All counters should be free of debris and not wet or sticky.  Condiments, napkins, and straws should be easily accessible.  All drinks served should have lids.
Where the National Association of Concessionaires (NAC) has set guidelines for service or quality of product, adhere to these guidelines.

Auditorium Identification
Auditoriums in a multiplex should be identified at the entrance.  It is recommended that they be identified with the feature title.  AR titles should be spelled correctly.  The letter of tides should be coordinated and have a neat appearance.

Auditorium (maintenance, cleanliness, temperature)
Many variables such as temperature, humidity, and drafts affect the comfort of motion picture audiences.  The temperature in auditoriums should be comfortable; heat to a minimum of 68' and cool to 76'.
The aisles should be free of obstructions, hazards of any type, and debris.  The floor between the rows of seats should be clean and dry.  It is recommended that all large debris be picked up and spills be mopped up between shows.
Auditoriums should be monitored by theatre staff during all presentations.

Auditotlum lighting
Auditoriums should have lights (wall, ceiling or both) that illuminate the interior.  In addition, there should be lights (on the floor or on the aisle seats of the rows) that illuminate the aisles.
The interior lighting of an auditorium (house lights) should be sufficiently reduced during feature presentation so as not to interfere (cast a glare, cause loss of contrast, etc.) with the projected image on the screen. (See page 2, #3.) House lights should be dimmed before the image is projected onto the screen, and may be raised to an acceptable level during the end credits for the safety of exiting patrons.  Aisle lights should remain on during the presentation to assist patrons entering and exiting the auditorium.

  Seats
Auditorium seats should be arranged in parallel rows facing the screen and follow the conditions detailed under Screen image size and viewing angle distortion. (See page 3, #9.) Seats should be in good condition with no broken arm rests, seat backs, or bottom cushions.  Seats should have a minimum width of 20 inches.  Space between rows of seats should be as great as possible but not less than 36 inches for fixed-back seats, and no less than 38 inches for rocker seats.
For auditoriums with more than 250 seats, prime seating should not be sacrificed for aisles (i.e.: aisles in the center of the seating area).

Theatre staff
Theatre employees should be courteous, efficient, knowledgeable, and clean and neat in their appearance.  They should also be easily identifiable as theatre employees.  There should be an adequate number at the refreshment stand so that patrons do not wait more than five minutes for service.  There should be employees in the lobby to direct patrons to the correct auditoriums and to assist with questions.  Theatre managers should be easily identifiable and accessible.
 Showtimes
Theatres should begin the presentation (when the first moving image is projected onto the screen) no earlier than the advertised showtime and no later than five minutes after the advertised showtime.  Showtimes advertised in newspaper ads should be correct and match those on a theatre's recorded phone message.
A theatre's recorded phone message should give correct information, be clear and easily understood, and contain a number to call for further information (by-pass number).

Emergencies
All theatres should have an established and documented method for paging patrons in hfe-threatening emergencies as well as established and documented procedures for handling any incident which potentially threatens the safety of the audience and/or staff.  This should include a proper program for the safe evacuation of the theatre as worked out between management and local safety officials.

C 1989 Lucasfilm Ltd Tm TAP and Theatre Alignment Program are service marks of Lucasfilm Ltd.
5

EMERGENCY PROCEDURES

It is good policy that all theater management personnel should conduct a weekly inspection of the theater's emergency systems and procedures to insure the safe and efficient response to all emergency situations.
EMERGENCY PROCEDURES - 
All management personnel should at all times be aware of the following, and should be sure to familiarize all projection operators and service staff as well.
a.	Any problem which may be a potential hazard to either a customer's or an employee's safety must be reported immediately to the manager on duty.
b.	Location and proper use of fire extinguishers throughout the theater complex.
c.	The location of all exits and emergency stairwells for patron evacuation procedures in the event of building evacuation.
d.	In the event of a fire or other emergency, the manager on duty will call the local police and fire department.  If the manager is out of the theater, an employee should be instructed to do the same.
e.	All employees will be trained for patron evacuation by the use of an emergency theater floor plan.  Each employee will be given the responsibility to evacuate patrons and employees in an orderly manner.

EMERGENCY PHONE NUMBERS -
Each theater should be aware of all emergency numbers.  These numbers should be posted by each Company telephone.  The listed numbers should include police and fire departments, ambulance and hospital closest to the theater.

EMERGENCY LIGHTING SYSTEM -
 A weekly inspection of the emergency lighting system must be done.  The system must be tested as required by individual units.  Check the water levels of the batteries and run the system to make sure the lights are all in working order.  Verify that all the exit signs are lit.  The person inspecting the unit must sign indicating that they have properly checked the system.  The inspection report must be posted near the emergency system or in the manager's office if the theater has individual light units.  Keep generators free of debris or better yet gate the area off. 

FIRE EXTINGUISHERS -
 Routinely check the gauge on each fire extinguisher to verify that it is fully charged and in proper working condition.  If it indicates "re-charge," call the service company or the Home Office immediately.  Also, each fire extinguisher located in the theater complex must be inspected and tagged annually by an authorized dealer.

EXIT SIGNS -
 Check daily that all exit signs are lit while operating on AC current.  Replace any burned out bulbs immediately.

PANIC HARDWARE - 
All door hardware including panic devices, hinges, and door closures must be in proper working condition.  Each door must be individually opened and allowed to automatically close.  The doors should open easily with minimal effort, close and latch automatically.  Any problems should be, repaired immediately.
It is of critical importance that ALL theater entrances/exit doors be unlocked, unchained or unbarred by any device at ALL times when the theater is open to the public.  Shortcuts, even chaining or locking one door just a few minutes before the last feature ends, can have consequences in the event of an emergency. ALL DOORS MUST BE 'OPEN-AISLE' AT ALL TIMES.

FIRST AID KIT - 
The Federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) requires that basic first aid supplies should be available and maintained on a regular basis.  As a common practice, all supplies should be kept together in a transferable container.  All employees should be aware of its location.  Supplies should include band-aids, sterile gauze pads, sterile cotton balls, adhesive tape, antiseptic or hydrogen peroxide, tongue blade, scissors, etc.  If your kit includes aspirin, do not dispense this to a patron.

CONTACT 
THE PROPER SUPERVISORY PERSONNEL IMMEDIATELY IN THE EVENT OF ANY ACCIDENT OR EMERGENCY.

PROPER ACCIDENT, DAMAGE REPORTS, ETC.  MUST BE COMPLETED AND
SUBMITTED AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.


FIRST AID FOR EYE EMERGENCIES
Chemical Burns
Eye damage from chemical burns may be extremely serious, as from alkalis or caustic acids; or less severe, as from chemical "irritants."

In all cases of eye contact with chemicals:

DO flood the eye with water immediately, continuously and gently, for at least 15 minutes.
Hold head under faucet or pour water into the eye using any clean container.  Keep eye open as widely as possible during flooding. DO NOT use an eye cup.
DO NOT bandage the eye.

SPRAY CANS are an increasing source of chemical eye injury, compounded by the force of contact.  Whether containing caustics or "irritants," they must be carefully used and kept away from children.

Specks in the Eye

DO lift upper eyelid outward and down over the lower lid.
DO let tears wash out speck or particle.
DO -it it doesn't wash out-keep eye closed,
bandage lightly and see a doctor.
DO NOT rub the eye.

Blows to the Eye
DO apply cold compresses immediately, for 15 minutes; again each hour as needed to reduce pain and swelling.

DO in case of discoloration or "black eye." which could mean internal damage to the eye-see a doctor.
Cuts and Punctures of Eye or Eye Lid:
DO bandage lightly and see a doctor at once. DO NOT wash out eye with water.
DO NOT try to remove an object stuck in the eye.
PITTSBURGH BLIND ASSOCIATION
300 South Craig Street - Pittsburgh, PA 
 (412) 682-5600
A United Way Agency dedicated to preventing blindness

OTHER ARTICLES OF NOTE:

Article from Baseline's Encyclopedia of Film

During the silent era, the only sound that accompanied motion pictures was live.  Mammoth picture palaces used orchestras, complete with several members whose sole job was to provide sound effects.  Even the smallest neighborhood house had a hardworking piano player plunking out a musical accompaniment.
Since the earliest days of filmed entertainment, however, inventors had experimented with ways of marrying pictures and recorded sound.  In 1889, W.K.L. Dickson demonstrated the Kinetophonograph, a device that synchronized sound produced by a phonograph with images projected from film, to his employer, Thomas Edison.  For various reasons, the Dickson/Edison system was never successfully developed.

AT&T's Vitaphone

It took one of the world's largest corporations, American Telephone & Telegraph, to develop a workable system of synchronizing a phonograph with a movie projector.  And it was a small Hollywood company, Warner Bros., that decided to adopt AT&T's system.  In 1926 Warner Bros. leased the system from AT&T subsidiary Western Electric and, on August 6 of that year, premiered the marvel it called Vitaphone.  The show, at the "Refrigerated Warner Theater' in New York, included sound shorts sung on film-by such stars as Metropolitan Opera tenor Giovanni Martinelli, as well as the lavish silent feature, DON JUAN (1926), accompanied by recorded sound instead of the usual live orchestra.
Up to this point, the Vitaphone process had been seen simply as an alternative means of providing musical accompaniment in movie theaters.  The next big step came when Warner began to insert Vitaphoned sequences into its feature films.  The year 1927 saw the premiere of the THE JAZZ SINGER, in which star Al Jolson not only performed Vitaphone-recorded songs, but spoke directly both to the audience and to his screen mother.
Despite its fabled reputation, THE JAZZ SINGER was not an instant hit.  In fact, it was only when the film (together with accompanying Vitaphone shorts) moved outside New York City into the American heartland that the public began to take more than a passing interest.  Extended runs in Charlotte, North Carolina, Reading, Pennsylvania, and Baltimore, Maryland, among other cities, caught the attention of film industry leaders.  The major studios had initially resisted the advent of sound, largely because the projected costs of converting to the new technology were staggering.  The eventual success of THE JAZZ SINGER, however, and of LIGHTS OF NEW YORK (1928), the first all-dialogue film, forced them to think again.

Sound-On-Film Technology

During those first days of sound Warner Bros. had only one true competitor, the Fox Film Corporation.  Rather than using the sound-on-disc system that fuelled Warner's early success, Fox elected to use an alternative, sound-on-film method, which would eventually become the industry standard.  The key figure in the development of sound-on-film technology was Lee De Forest.  Improving on the work of European pioneers Eugene Lauste and Josef Engel, Joseph Massole and Hans Vogt, De Forest developed a system that used a photoelectric cell to convert sound waves into light waves and then record them onto the edge of a filmstrip.  This "optical track" could be retranslated into sound by a special projector.  De Forest also pioneered a vacuum tube that revolutionized the process of amplification.
In 1926 William Fox signed with AT&T to use a sound-on-film system very similar to De Forest's in order to improve his company's newsreel business.  Like the brothers Warner, William Fox was initially skeptical about the possibilities of feature-length talkies; but the veteran showman reasoned that newsreels with sound would appeal to the public more than their silent counterparts.
On April 30, 1927, five months before the opening of THE JAZZ SINGER, Fox Film presented its first sound newsreels, under the name Fox Movietone, at the 5,000-seat Roxy Theater on New York's Times Square.  Less than a month later, Fox stumbled across the publicity coup of the decade when it presented the only sound footage of the take-off and triumphant return of aviator Charles Lindbergh.  The enormous popularity of Lindbergh's feat undoubtedly contributed to Fox's success with sound newsreels, and the company's cameramen were soon combing the globe in search of stories "with a voice."
The major movie companies, led by Paramount, did not want to be left behind.  A committee of experts was appointed and spent over a year studying options and drawing up plans to anticipate all potential problems.  After nearly six months of haggling, in May 1928 AT&T licensed Paramount, MGM, and United Artists to use its sound-on-film technology; the other major companies soon followed suit, and the rush to produce and sell talkies began in earnest.
Transition to Sound

The speed of the transition to sound took almost everyone by surprise; within a matter of a few years Hollywood had ceased producing silent films altogether.  Hundreds of perplexing technical problems were resolved, marketing and distribution strategies were reworked, soundproof studios (sound stages) were constructed, and nearly 20,000 theaters were wired for sound.  Smaller producers who could not afford the costs of conversion were either taken over by larger concerns or went out of business.  Because Hollywood so dominated the film business throughout the world, no foreign film industry dared resist the new technology, and by 1935 sound on film had become the international standard.
The diffusion of films with sound proceeded logically and systematically.  In September 1928, at the beginning of the annual movie season, Paramount, MGM, and the other major studios released "scored features” previously completed silent films to which recorded musical tracks had subsequently been added.  Theater owners immediately dismissed resident orchestras, freeing funds to help pay for the necessary wiring.  Musicians' unions protested, but by 1930 only a handful of theaters in America's largest cities still maintained a house orchestra and organist.  The industry, which had been suffering a slump in the mid-1920s, saw a 50 percent increase in box-office receipts between 1927 and 1930.
The coming of sound had a wide range of effects on the kinds of movies produced by Hollywood.  A number of silent stars found their careers at an end due to the weakness of their voices; stage writers and performers, as well as existing plays, were imported from the world of theater, often resulting in "canned" versions of Broadway hits.  Cameras had to be encased in soundproof boxes (blimps), making camera movement extremely difficult and resulting in a static scene structure determined by the placement of microphones.  The creative possibilities of editing were severely curtailed by the fact that sound and vision were recorded simultaneously.  The late 1920s and 1930s, however, saw the development of new techniques that conquered some of these problems: these included the process of "mixing" the sound recorded by multiple microphones and of "dubbing" or adding sound to scenes that had been shot silently (a practice that continues today, particularly in Italy).
New Technologies

Since the 1930s, improvements in sound technology have been gradually if less dramatically introduced.  After World War II came magnetic tape, enabling sound to be recorded and edited more simply and with higher quality.  Magnetic tape opened up huge creative possibilities, allowing separate tracks to be devoted to dialogue, effects, music, etc., which could then be mixed and blended in the studio to create a unique aural environment for each film.  The advent of wide-screen processes in the 1950s allowed stereophonic sound technology to be put to creative use: stereo tracks could be used to make particular pieces of dialogue and other noises emanate from specific parts of the screen so as to coincide with a relevant visual image. (This technique could only be fully exploited in large, urban theaters that had been able to make the expensive conversion to stereo sound.) Later, Ray Dolby's noise reduction process helped produce a cleaner sound, eliminating unwanted background hiss.
Although sound is currently recorded, dubbed, and mixed using magnetic tape, it is still, for the most part, transferred to an optical track on the release print of the film distributed to theaters.  Since only a few venues have been able to afford the conversion to tape-based magnetic sound systems, most still rely on a variant of the technology developed by De Forest in the late 1920s.  In 1989, Eastman Kodak announced the development of a process allowing digitally recorded sound to be printed directly onto the optical track of release prints; this will supposedly enable theaters to produce compact disc-quality sound with only relatively minor modifications to existing projection equipment.


 
 X-Rated Cinema

In September 1987, just as X-rated cinema was leaving theatres and becoming almost exclusively video, Cinema Blue Magazine interviewed one of the genre's founders Anthony Spinelli.  Spinelli started out “legit” as a producer at United Artists.  One of his features there, “One Potato, Two Potato,” was particularly acclaimed (Maltin rates it 3.5 stars out of 4).
CINEMA BLUE: The first thing we'd like to ask is how you got started making X-rated films?
ANTHONY SPINELLI: I was starving!  I needed work!
CB: So out of the blue you said, “I think I'll produce a porno movie?”
AS: No, I'd been involved with theatre and film and acting practically all my life.  It's all I ever wanted to do.  I've been acting from the time I was 5 years old.  I'm from Cleveland, Ohio and my father loved the theatre.  He'd take my brother and me to the theatre all the time.  My father sent us to school to study acting at the Cleveland Playhouse, which is very famous.  It was an incredible place.  We learned a lot there.  In 1958 or so I produced a picture for United Artists; a western called GUN FEVER.  Then, in 1964, I produced ONE POTATO, TWO POTATO which did very well and which won some awards.  It was a story about interracial marriage and our leading lady (Barbara Barrie) won Best Actress at the Cannes Film Festival.
Then… I couldn't get any work after that!  So one day I went into a theatre in Hollywood.  There were a bunch of X's on the marquee and I didn't know what they meant.  Before I could get in to see the films I had to sign a disclaimer stating that nobody had coerced me into seeing it!  This was the late sixties, before DEEP THROAT and before porn became chic.  So I saw this 16mm adult film and I thought to myself that it couldn't have cost more than a few thousand dollars to make- it was just one room and some simple exteriors.  I went home and wrote a 13-page script, raised six thousand dollars with some friends and we made a 16mm film called DIARY OF A NYMPH.  And that was my introduction to the X-rated field!
CB: We're not familiar with that title…Was the first one a big hit?
AS: Well, in those days what you did was take your film and travel around the country selling prints to the theatres.  New York was a big stop- you'd always hit New York first.  And you'd carry about twenty prints in a suitcase.  Then you'd go to Chicago, Detroit, and all the major cities.  Make a little profit, go home and make the next one.
CB: You've certainly come a long way from then!  How do you develop such interesting characters and stories?
AS: I can't think of making a picture without a plot.  That may sound corny to some people in this business but I can't think of any other way to do it right!
CB: What would you say is the main thing that is wrong with adult films?
AS: There are too many amateurs involved in making X-rated films for a fast buck.  Especially with video.  It's easy for untalented people to get involved, call themselves producers or directors, because video can be done very cheaply.  Video is fine if you spend the money on it, but too many amateurs are making too much cheap product.  The pros are still here- Gerry Damiano, Cecil Howard, Fred Lincoln, Henri Pachard, Chuck Vincent- all my contemporaries are still making good films and videos.  Some of the new people, like Candida Royalle, are also making good movies.
Who's the best?  Gerald Damiano!  I tell everyone who's never seen a porn film to watch THE DEVIL IN MISS JONES (the original) first!

 
 Color cinematography
Article from Katz's Film Encyclopedia

The search for a color effect in films began in the earliest days of cinema.  Experimentation proceeded along three basic courses: the development (1) of hand-painted films, tinted or toned; (2) of additive color systems; (3) of subtractive color systems.  The earliest and simplest method of applying color to film was by tinting or toning.  Tinting consists in applying one or more colors to individual frames of a film, usually by hand after exposure; toning consists in bathing an entire film or sections of a film in a color solution.  In tinting, different colors may appear on the same image; in toning the entire frame has the same color value.
Hand-painted films were made as early as 1894 and were in wide use by 1910.  In the original print of the 1903 THE GREAT TRAIN ROBBERY the gunshot blast at the conclusion of the film was tinted red.  D.W. Griffith tinted sequences of many of his famous films, including THE BIRTH OF A NATION (1915) and INTOLERANCE (1916).  Sergei Eisenstein used tinting sparingly in POTEMKIN (1925) and other films of the mid 20s.  Among the early tinting processes, the French-developed Pathe color was the most accurate and reliable.  It was used widely in films of all nations until the advent of sound.  Tinting and toning were dropped temporarily in the late 20s when they were found to interfere with sound-track reproduction.  Their use was resumed after a special tinted stock was introduced late in 1929.  Tinting and toning are still occasionally used in films.
Of the two true-color-reproduction systems, additive and subtractive, the additive color process was the first to be explored and developed, mainly because it made possible the recording and projection of color on black-and-white stock.  The various additive systems entailed the use of color filters on both the photography and projection apparatus, while subtractive systems also depend on dyed emulsions on the film stock.
The theoretical principle of color photography was recognized as early as 1785, but the earliest patents for color film were not registered until late in the 19th century.  Primitive additive color processes employed a variety of methods and devices, none of which was very successful.  The first practicable and commercially successful color system was Kinemacolor, patented in England in 1906 by George Albert Smith and exploited by Smith and Charles Urban through their Natural Colour Kinematograph Company.  After experimenting with several short films, they produced the first major color film, THE DURBAR AT DELHI (1911).
Kinemacolor was a two-color additive process utilizing black-and-white film and red-orange and blue-green filters.  The film was shot and projected at 32 frames per second, twice the normal speed, so that the red-orange and blue-green images alternated.  A rotating color wheel in front of the projector and the phenomenon of persistence of vision combined to bring the colors together.  The result was not altogether unpleasing, but the system had several drawbacks, not the least of which were eye strain, rapid wear and tear of film, and the sudden drifting of colors from one part of the frame to another.  Competing two-color additive systems, like the French Gaumont Color and the American Prizma Color, had similar drawbacks.  Early attempts with three-color additive processes, although they rendered truer color reproduction, presented even graver technical problems and were soon abandoned.
In 1915 two Americans, Herbert T. Kalmus and Daniel F. Comstock, began experimenting with an additive two-color process they called Technicolor, utilizing a camera with two apertures, each equipped with its own color filter, one red and one green.  The system was more advanced than most of the period but often produced unwanted color fringes and halos during projection.  In the early 20s, Technicolor, now a corporation came up with a two-color subtractive system.  The print consisted of two thin layers of film welded together after being exposed and dyed, one with red-orange, the other blue-green.  The first color film made by this method was TOLL OF THE SEA (1922).  Although research and experimentation with additive color systems continued through the mid-40s, the subtractive process was well in the lead with the film industry by the late 20s.  In addition to Douglas Fairbanks' celebrated THE PIRATE (1926), some other features and many shorts were made in two-color Technicolor or similar processes.
During the switch to sound, Hollywood studios used Technicolor as an added attraction for many of their musical films, and many other films included color sequences.  But the limited effect of the two-color system did not justify the extra expense, and after the initial novelty had worn off, 1932 made hardly any Hollywood films made in color.  At that critical point Technicolor announced a truly advanced color system, a three-color process that was to dominate the industry for many years to come, made possible by the invention of a special beam-splitter camera equipped with two 45-degree prisms in the form of a cube.  In operation, light from a photographed object entering the camera through a single lens is deflected by the prisms and is absorbed by negatives sensitive to each of the primary photographic colors -green, blue, and red.  The three negatives are each printed as a positive relief image called a "matrix," from which the final release print is made.
The first film to be made with the three-strip camera and the three-color printing technique was the famous short subject LA CUCARACHA (1933), and the first feature film produced in three-color Technicolor was Rouben Mamoulian's BECKY SHARP (1935).  The new process was universally hailed for its pleasing natural effect, and color returned to the American screen.  Technicolor reached a peak of prestige with the release of GONE  WITH THE WIND (1939).  In the early 40s, Technicolor simplified its process with the introduction of the monopack (one film) system, which made it possible to shoot Technicolor films with ordinary motion picture cameras.
The percentage of American and European films made in Technicolor or in any other of the other rapidly growing number of three-color processes increased every year.  By the early 50s, at least in Hollywood, color was the rule rather than the exception in film production.  The advent of various wide-screen processes in the 50s was accompanied by the development of the color systems incorporating an anamorphic lens.  The best known of these is Technicolor's Technirama.  Among the major trade names for three-color systems are the American Eastman Color; the German, then Russian, Agfacolor (and its derivative Sovcolor); the Italian Ferraniacolor; and the Belgian-French Gevacolor.
Color cinematography entails problems of economical, technical, and aesthetic nature.  Color film stock is almost twice as expensive as black and white, and so is the cost of developing and printing.  In addition, color photography of exteriors is subject to variations in the intensity and tone of natural light during different hours of the day and during periods of sunshine and cloudiness.  This limits the effective number of days or hours of the day during which more or less consistent color photography can be obtained.  The slightest variation in color may present a problem of "matching" when two or more shots, taken at different times, are spliced in editing.  However, color cinematography has come a long way since its crude early days, and the quality of today's color film stock has greatly reduced such difficulties.
For many years, color was used primarily as a gimmick and few attempts were made to explore its aesthetic capacities.  Early colors were often loud and gaudy, emphasizing the novelty of the process over black and white rather than its uniqueness.  But gradually, as the technical problems were ironed out, attention shifted to the artistic use of color.  In the 40s, Powell and Pressburger splashed colors luxuriously on such British films as BLACK NARCISSUS and THE RED SHOES.  In the 50s, color was being used judiciously in such films as Huston's MOULIN ROUGE in the West and Kinugasa's GATE OF HELL in the East.  And the 60s saw Antonioni paint inanimate objects to obtain desired color effects in THE RED DESERT.  Since 1968 color cinematography has been the rule, with a few exceptions (notably by Woody Allen “MANHATTAN”) for artistic effect.

Technicolor
Definition from James Monaco's Film Glossary

The first successful color film system.  Although two-color Technicolor using the dye transfer process applied to two separate pieces of film existed in the 1920s, BECKY SHARP (1935) was the first full three-color Technicolor feature to use the solarization of the subtractive primaries (cyan, yellow, magenta) to achieve the full range of color we associate with the process.  In 1942, Technicolor Corporation introduced the "Monopack" system, which made color filming flexible, but it was not until the late 1960s that color became the norm and black-and-white the exception.  By that time, the Technicolor technology had been superseded by Eastman Color, yet Technicolor continued to survive as a process because it used dye-transfer technology and therefore gave better color values and a much longer lasting print than did Eastman's straight chemical process.  Since the late 1970s Technicolor has been moribund.  The only plant that still processes Technicolor is in China. 


 
 Anamorphic lens
Article from Baseline's Encyclopedia of Film

An anamorphic lens is one that condenses the width of an image during filming and then expands it during projection to create a wide-screen effect.  Although the standard aspect ratio for feature films was originally 1.33:1, and is now 1.85:1, anamorphic lenses produce a 2.35:1 image.
Invented by Henri Christien (1879-1956) during World War I for use in tank periscopes, the anamorphic lens was first used to photograph a motion picture by Claude Autant-Lara, for his short CONSTRUIRE UN FEU (1926).  In 1952, in an attempt to win back its audience from television, 20th Century-Fox acquired the rights to the system, developed it further, and the following year introduced CinemaScope.  THE ROBE (1953) was Hollywood's first CinemaScope production, and within several years similar anamorphic systems, including WarnerScope and Superscope, were employed by other producers.  The anamorphic process was perfected in 1961 with Panavision, although experiments with it have continued, particularly in relation to larger-format films.  In his desert epic LAWRENCE OF ARABIA (1962), David Lean produced a 2.75:1 aspect ratio by using the anamorphic process on 70mm, instead of standard 35mm, film. 

 
Management Responsibilities/duties and Policies (based upon information given to me by Cinematropolis Theatres of Pittsburgh)
A theatre manager or assistant manager is responsible for the day to day operations of their theatre.  The following list of responsibilities is not inclusive, and maybe added to from time to time, for particular locations, or added responsibilities.

Responsibilities/Duties:
Scheduling employees to cover special shows and daily operations while maintaining the specified labor percentage for the theatre.
Main office approval for changes on management shifts and days off.
Keeping accurate payroll records, which are to be taxed to the main office on, specified days.
A Pick up and distribution of theatre payroll.
Cross train employees for best utilization.
Instruct employees on safety procedures.
Interview, hire, train, review and terminate employees when needed.
Keep employee files up to date and correct.
Notify upper management and file an incident report when either a patron or an employee sustains an injury.  Rectify customer complaints in a timely manor.
Keeping the theatre safe, clean and comfortable for all.
Keeping entrances and exits free from debris, snow and ice.
Correctly operating the heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems located in the building.  Keeping the theatre secured at all times including stock rooms, stock items, manager's office and safe, cash drawers, projection booth, behind screen and basement areas.
Correctly advertising features, show times, posters and other advertising.
Completing nightly box office reports correctly and completely, include per cap, signing your name and faxing to the main office every night.
Completing a weekly concession inventory report correctly and completely.
Ordering of concession, projection booth and cleaning supplies with approval from the main office.
Daily cash deposits are to be made.  Ask local police station for an escort.
Visits to the bank to pick up completed deposit bags, stock coinage, verify deposits and complete general banking for the theatre.
General maintenance of the theatre, concession equipment, projection equipment, seats and etceteras, within manager's ability.
Correct operation of projection equipment and presentation of film.
Keeping film clean and covered when not projected.
Keeping projection booth clean at all times.
Maintaining a film and projection problem log to include all maintenance completed on the equipment.
Attending managers meetings when called or informed by fax by the main office.  Approximately three days notice will be given for a meeting.
Picking up posters supplies, payroll, and film is essential to the operation of theatre.  No compensation for travel expenses will be paid.
Maintaining a list of all personnel and service people/companies that hold keys for the theatre.
Meeting and granting access to meter readers, delivery services, service people, and construction workers as needed-
Maintaining an up to date emergency phone list posted by each phone.
Ability to work closely with diverse groups of people, including Company employees at all levels,
customers, vendors, suppliers and other outside professionals with whom the Company deals with on a regular basis.
Ability to write business letters and correspondence in an professional manner.
Excellent telephone manners, voice, and skills.
Knowledge of personnel record keeping procedures and requirements.
Ability to accurately maintain a petty cash ftmd.
Excellent interpersonal skills.
Excellent organizational skills.
Ability to pay attention to detail.
Excellent listening skills,
Ability to work on multiple tasks simultaneously.
Excellent problem solving skills.
Ability to recognize and follow priorities.
Ability to work independently and with little direct supervision.
Excellent math skills and accuracy for maintaining box office reports, inventories, petty cash and bank drawers.

Occasional visits to outside professionals in their offices.
Corporate Policies:
Creating a friendly and comfortable atmosphere for customers.
Starting shows on schedule.
Presentation of all fihn to the highest possible standard.
Maintain a clean and inviting concession stand and theatre.
Maintain a PA Class A Projectionist License.
Promoting the company and theatres in their local areas.
Promoting new films and film series offered at the theatre.  
Keeping employees motivated.
Administering corporate policies or corporate decisions that are given verbally or in the form of a memo by the CEO, COO, or Assistant Director.
Managers are responsible for the entire operation of their theatre.  At no time should the manager demand or expect any corporate officer or home office staff to complete his/her duties,
Managers are held accountable for their decisions and actions.
Managers must have a high degree of integrity and honesty for dealing with company cash and other negotiable instruments.


The company I was working for when this was developed did not find it of use since they destroyed every copy they had of it upon my departure.  Hopefully you will find it helpful.  Please e-mail comments to stevemahofski@angelfire.com
Thanks,
Steve
May 6, 1998