If no body buys a ticket to a movie theater, do they still play that movie?

Question

Just curious, i dont know.

Answer 1

i would think so because what if someone walks into the movie later, the movie will already be playing and since they came late it would not be far for them to get to see the movie from the beginning

Answer 2

I've seen it done many different ways. The most "professional" way is the way Jess explained it above. The projectionist would just turn the projector's lamp off (that's a savings of 2,000 to 3,000 watts right there) and let the film run through in case those "weird" people come in who only want to see the last half, or walk in 20 minutes late. That way, the movie is in the right place.

The other way is to not start the movie at all. This was usually done with very long or late-starting movies so that the projectionist wouldn't have to wait for the film to run through to the end. Something like a 10pm Lord of the Rings is where this practice would come into play. The bad part is that under contract, if a ticket is sold you MUST run the movie and if someone shows up at 10:30, you've just added a half-hour to the running time. (But the people are probably happy they didn't miss anything!)

The third and most unprofessional way I have seen this handled is that if nobody shows up at the EXACT starting time, no further tickets are sold and the customer is given an excuse like, "the projector is down" or "the film broke" or "our projectionist just quit on us." That's usually the floor staff's way of trying to get out early by not selling tickets to late shows. If you encounter something like this, it might be best to contact a manager or the company's corporate office.
Not to mention, as a projectionist I would feel offended if the staff uses excuses like the ones above since it directly reflects negatively on my work.

Answer 3

Even if no body buys a ticket they still have to run the show,because u will have a sign saying that the movie is a hit and running full house.The image of the stars has to be maintained.And someone might walk into the theatre(lovers or newly married couples) looking for privacy.(it is cheaper than a hotel or restaurant).
THE SHOW MUST GO ON.

Answer 4

If the auditorium is empty, the projectionist turns off the light but the movie continues through the machine so if someone does enter, he's at the proper place. Or that's how it was done in the day when projectionists ran the operation. I'm not sure there's a person in the booth these days--maybe a computer does it.

Answer 5

yes they still play it. in case somebody buys a ticket late they still have the right to see the movie. and the other guy was right its a contract thing.

Answer 6

I would think that they wouldn't. Just because it wastes the manpower of the guy running the movie and electricity, but I'm not sure. Good question, though.

Answer 7

I guess no... b'coz it may cost theatre unecessarrily.... any ways they would be running movie to make money ..... so if no tickets have been sold ... why would they play the movie...??

i think they wouldn't ...

Answer 8

If no one is in the forest does the falling tree make a noise?

Yes, they play it. It's a contractual thing....

Answer 9

yep, one morning i realized i'd left my debit card in the theatre from the night before. when i went back to get it, "Casino Royale" was playing in the theatre. no one was in the room, but it was scheduled to play, so they played it.

Answer 10

no thats why flicka was short run it costs to much to run it when noone buys tickets