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We have been trying to get a print of My Big Fat Greek Wedding for weeks now. This week thay gave it to my closest competitor while telling me that they have no prints available. Now they are saying they want theaters that can gross at least $12,000 in an opening weekend. This doesn't count me out since we have grossed at least that on several films this summer. And we consistently out gross the other theater, even though their ticket prices are higher. They tell me they might have a print next week, but they want upfront money. I haven't had to pay up front money since 1990. I'm not sure that I want to play it a week behind the theater 10 miles away and still pay the advance. Even though we have had numerous requests for it, most of the people say they've already seen and just think we need to play it although some say they will see it again. My question is to how does it do in smaller markets? My town has a population of approx. 15,000 but we draw from an area of about 50,000 people.
In addition we are going to have people coming in all weekend saying they saw in the newspaper that we had it. This in a bi-weekly newspaper that has two theaters advertised in it. People can't seem to distinguish between the two ads, even though my ad is much larger and easier to read than the other theater's. I guess I've ranted long enough. I would like to hear what they are telling other theaters. Is is consistent with what they've told me?

Pretty consistent.They were asking me for $2500 advances,50% all weeks for my small towns.The 2 towns i wanted it in do no warrant these advances.I can't see it grossing more than $1000 in each.Other small towns I played already did $1500-$2000 each week,and played 2-3 weeks

Linda, we were on the "waiting list" for 3 weeks, then on the fourth week we finally got it. Like CharlieBo said, we had to pay a $2500 advance and it is 50% each week. Don't fuss about the advance, they are a small company and that is how they are making additional prints - you will pay that off after the first day or two.
Each sucessive weekend had been better than the previous weekend for us, so that is why the 50% does not decline from week to week. The movie is quite miraculous, especially for the normally slow Sept/Oct time period.
Just raise a HUGE stink with your booker this week, and you will probably get it next week!

In Pennsylvania, all advances and guarantees are prohibited by the Pennsylvania Fair Trade Motion Pictures Act. Yet I haven't heard that anyone has had Greek Wedding denied to them on that ground.

I swore I wasn't going to come off of it, but I just let my print of BFGW go after 15 wks. We got on the wagon early enough that getting a print was no problem (but I use a booker). My best week with it was not much more than half $12k -- granted that week happend in about the 6th week of the run. So, the movie took off after I already had the print. Quite lucky, I guess. I'm running a single screen in a town of 50k. The movie is worth the wait, financially (ck out the thread on the racisum of Greek Wedding on Film-Tech). Just be patient because word-of-mouth is your friend. If the doors don't come off the hinges opening night, don't dispare. Like I said, it was the 6th week when this thing took off for us. Tonight I opened Fast Runner. Many people bought a ticket by saying, "One adult for anything that isn't Greek Wedding."

We've been on the Greek Wedding band wagon since May 10th. This Friday is our 25th week and the film is our biggest hit ever! Of course, being an art house we did a bunch of business with IFC long before MBFGW (anybody remember Memento, Together, The Business of Strangers, and a little flick called Y Tu Mama Tambien?) Needless to say, they knew us.

With MBFGW they are going far beyond their core arthouse base and will most likely not be in many of the theatres they are in again soon. So, in their shoes, I totally understand why they want advances from theatres they've never dealt with.

Good luck!

In my earlier post, I may have spoken too soon.

I am now hearing that IFC is refusing to take dates at certain low grossing first run theatres in Pennsylvania because of the statutory prohibition against advances and guarantees.

How much do you have to pay to get a copy that doesn't have a big green spot just a hair to the left of the center of the picture? So that when they talk or kiss the green spot is right there? The kids in the theater all laugh every time the green spot gets near somebody's nose.

No, this is not at my theater. Seriously- are there any good copies out there? Is there currently a shortage of prints so that the theater where I saw it could not get another copy? I wonder if I book it in January if it will be possible to get a good print?

Beckwith1 wrote: "How much do you have to pay to get a copy that doesn't have a big green spot just a hair to the left of the center of the picture?"

Sounds like a case of heat damage, from "hot spotting" the lamp. A new print should be requested, but the theatre that did the damage would likely be charged for the print, so maybe that's why they keep playing the damaged print:
http://www.kodak.com/US/en/motion/newsletters/pytlak/fall97.shtml
http://www.kodak.com/US/en/motion/newsletters/pytlak/winter97.shtml

Another possibility is that the green spot is an emulsion-side "loop scratch", caused when the loop above or below the gate was threaded too large, such that the emulsion of the film got scratched in the same spot of the frame each time the loop hit a rough spot in the projector. Again, a type of damage that the theatre would be charged for if found out.

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John P. Pytlak, Senior Technical Specialist
Worldwide Technical Services
Entertainment Imaging
Research Labs, Building 69, Room 7525A
Eastman Kodak Company
Rochester, NY 14650-1922
Telephone: 585-477-5325 Cell: 585-781-4036 Fax: 585-722-7243
E-Mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Website: http://www.kodak.com/go/motion

[This message has been edited by John Pytlak (edited November 07, 2002).]

Last time I checked, which was last week, they were still tight on prints of MBFGW. Look for the situation to ease up with the openings of Harry Potter and James Bond on multiples in the next couple of weeks. By the way, January might be to late for MBFGW - it's video date was slated for December - but since it's still in the top 10 maybe the video date has been delayed. But I'd check it out before waiting that long.

Yesterday I called the distributor asking about MBFGW for my theatre (intermediate run)for Thanksgiving. It is still playing in every multi/mega-plex in this area. I was told that there is little chance that it will be available for Thanksgiving. I then said that I might as well wait for Christmas, as that would be excellent playing time and would make for a great wrap-up for the year. I was then told not to count on it for Christmas either. This is getting rediculous. I know the picture is going to hit $200,000,000 by years end, but I haven't had to wait nearly that long for any of the other blockbusters that even grossed more. I have a first run booking account that hasn't even played the picture yet, and probably won't. It is a tri-plex in a small town, and I have been told it is too low of a grossing theatre for them to take. Well excuse me, but almost all the majors service this little account on national release regardless of what it grosses. IFC now has one picture doing mega business and they think that they are a major player. What will become of them after this picture is finally finished? Does anyone remember a picture called "Dirty Dancing" and the distributor Vestron? Not long after Dirty Dancing finished it's run Vestron faded into oblivion... never to be heard of again.

On average, it costs a distributor about $350 US per week to supply a print to a theatre (cost of print and shipping prorated over the typical run of a film). Would making additional prints more than recoup this cost if they played the film during the holiday season in theatres like yours?

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John P. Pytlak, Senior Technical Specialist
Worldwide Technical Services
Entertainment Imaging
Research Labs, Building 69, Room 7525A
Eastman Kodak Company
Rochester, NY 14650-1922
Telephone: 585-477-5325 Cell: 585-781-4036 Fax: 585-722-7243
E-Mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Website: http://www.kodak.com/go/motion

I played this movie when it first came out. Nobody had heard of it and nobody came. It was one of my worst weekends. Now everybody wants to see it and wants me to bring it back. My screen won't be available until after the first of the year. I hope they don't release it to video before then.

I am with you Burney. That is why I went to see it at another theater. My screen will not become available to play it until January. I will then insist that it be mixed with a kids film so that I might have to wait longer from the sounds of it. BTW - the theater where I saw my green spotted version wasn't aware that the film was damaged - so they say John: my spouse thinks that it was sprocket hole damage by my explanation.

Sprocket tooth damage ("roping") near the CENTER of the image would be highly unusual. More likely a "loop scratch" from your description.

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John P. Pytlak, Senior Technical Specialist
Worldwide Technical Services
Entertainment Imaging
Research Labs, Building 69, Room 7525A
Eastman Kodak Company
Rochester, NY 14650-1922
Telephone: 585-477-5325 Cell: 585-781-4036 Fax: 585-722-7243
E-Mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Website: http://www.kodak.com/go/motion