What the digital cinema "theater" should bE
If you want to start a business based on this model please do... I'll be doing it just because anyway ^_^
Ok the key to this type of the theater is too maximize communication and community amongst filmgoers... two things we see less off in this new digital world and that people are hungry for... also its utilizing "consumer" level equipment for exhibition... the human factor is the most important thing here...
The layout of the theater will be a lot like a school... small classroom sized rooms... 10 - 15 of these rooms with a lcd or similar type display near each door...
Now there was something great about going into the Mom and Pop video rental place and asking about what to watch... think "genius bar" here like in the Apple stores... so at the front desk of this theater is a "film genius" a person who knows film well... not mainstream shit he's paid to promote... a real person... So you pay your admission which is based on time not how many films you watch... So X price for 2 hours XX price for 4 hours and so on... could even have a monthly subscription fee for unlimited time etc...
So you walk in pay for your time and tell the film genius you want to watch a say... Japanese schoolgirl Zombie film.... He recommends X film... you agree to watch it and he accesses the media server... So there is a simple media or file server... nothing too fancy here which has a database of films on it... a database which can be added to easily... AND which tracks how many times X film is played which then pays out the content creator... So the films will be licensed to only pay out when they are played so there is no huge overhead and if producers dont agree to the deal fuck them... get films from people like me who are realistic about the future of film...
anyway... So the film genius programs the film and tells the patrons..."it will start in room 1 in 5 minutes" So then the lcd screen outside the room says "X film playing in 5 minutes" So this way anyone wandering around or just coming in can perhaps wander over and check it out as well... this is to increase experimentation and variety...to increase community and communication...
The "theater" uses consumer level DLP projectors which are quite nice and cheap today as are small 5.1 speaker systems... The projector is connected to a node computer or whatever to play the film from the server... seating and decor is much like a coffee shop with dim lighting as there is a cafe inside the theater... ALSO there will be headphone jacks OR an FM transmission of the audio so patrons will have the option to block out the sound of conversation which will be encouraged and which is impossible in theaters now... this also opens up the possibility for multiple soundtracks/ languages etc...
So someone else comes in and a film is put on in room 2... the people in room 1 think the film sucks so they wander over to the people waiting for room 2 and talk to them about the film they requested... they all go into room 2... since room 1 is empty the film is stopped so that something else can play in it... or people can just hang out in there drinking coffee or what ever...
So the goal is to keep costs LOW by using consumer level equipment and to not pay ridiculous fees to license films no one really wants to watch... would probably resemble video on demand licensing deals...
There are a million other ways you could go with this...to make it a more exciting experience and to monetize it WITHOUT selling out what a theater should be about. So obviously the mainstream would want nothing to do with it... thats fine ^_^
By the time I release my next film there will be theaters like this in place... I will be setting one up here in my city... maybe not to full functionality as described above BUT a venue with a projector, sound system, computer to play the films, people and me as the film geek to recommend films ^_^ thats all a theater really is... I hope to help build a network of these nano-cinema's so that we can all do torrentrical releases that make their way into a theatrical release as well. Thats an easy way to distribute the films right?
The technology is there to make this happen... its the rights management and tech specs that is not "up to snuff" for the mainstream film industry... DCP?! cmon?! fuck them!... they are too slow and too stiff to survive... there's enough people like me making alternative things that people want to see and theres more and more everyday and the quality is rising... and I am flexible because I realize it is an HONOR if someone wants to watch your film in any way, shape or form and we filmmakers need to respect that if we are to survive in this new world. So I will be making this happen in my town... why don't you make one in your town?
If you want to see my next film in a "theatrical" setting you might just have to ^_^Brought to you by professional weirdo M dot Strange.