Let’s chat about the movie selection process for the Washita Theatre. One of the most common questions we are asked is “Why didn’t you show …………….? Why aren’t you playing all new movies?”
Most people do not realize that there are a lot of rules and regulations concerning procuring the rights to show a movie. One of the rules that hinders us the most is that if you only have one screen at a theater, you must dedicate that screen entirely to a particular movie for a required amount of time on first-run movies. (first-run movies are movies that are available only in theaters; i.e. just released from the studios.)
For example, let’s take a look at Avatar: The Way of Water. Many people requested this movie. However, the requirement for this movie during it’s first-run timeframe was a four week run. So, the Washita Theatre would have had to show this movie for four straight weeks. Most people watch the movies during the first two weekend showings. That could mean that we lose our audience for weeks three and four! We can’t keep the doors open without an audience.
Another problem with certain big-budget movies is the cost to procure the rights from the studio. A film with a huge budget like Avatar: The Way of Water may cost triple the fee of a smaller budget movie. These fees can run into the thousands on some movies. Now, on the other hand, we can sometimes get these big budget movies after they have been showing for a while at other theaters for a discounted price. We always take a look at that option as well.
We love first-run movies! Unfortunately, the numbers don’t always work for our theater.
We can contract to show older movies (our “Throwback” movies) as a one night showing. This means we can offer four different Throwback movies during a weekend instead of having to repeat them for multiple showings to fulfill our contracts with the studios. The fees for these movies are fairly low, but we still do have to pay a fee for the rights to show them. It is highly illegal to show a movie without securing the rights to play it publicly. Many of our customers don’t understand why we can’t just play any movie that can be found on DVD. The movies have to be available to be purchased from the studios. They don’t offer rights to every movie ever made.
We are proud to provide the best possible small town movie theater experience to our community. We love our customers and always welcome suggestions or questions.
See you at the movies!!