The Return of Drive-In Theaters-- Part 3: The Problem With Netflix and Digital Distribution

These days, movie venues must contend with the rise of Netflix and other streaming sites.  And, of course, those who people who say they'll wait until the film comes out and they can watch it on their 75-inch HDTV.  (But I say there is absolutely no comparison between a 75-inch screen and the BIG SCREEN in the theater.)

But, nearly a decade ago, they also had to deal with anothern technological upheaval -- the switch from film to digital distribution.  To show new releases, owners had to switch to digital projection systems.  And, that was a pricer upgrade.

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The article listed several well-known drive-ins across the country:

WELLFLEET DRIVE-IN on Massachusetts' Cape Cod.  Carries on the early tradition of being a comperehensive entertainment center.  In addition to its outdoor screen, the 1957 venue has an 18-hole miniature golf course that dates from 1961, an ice cream bar and even a four-screen indoor movie theater.

It is one of the few drive-ins that still offer sound through traditional stereo speakers that attach to the inside of the car window.  (They do, however, also sound via the FM radio.)

--CootGital

NIU Alumnus Finds SS Eastland Disaster Film

From the Summer 2015 Northern Illinois Alumni Magazine "Film Find Brings Historic Tragedy to Life" by Colleen Leonard.

NIU alumnus Alex Revzan, '14, made headlines around the United States this year with his discovery of a rare film of the SS Eastland disaster which claimed 844 lives in 1915 when it capsized in the Chicago River.

Revzan found the film just days after two other clips surfaced, the first-known archived footage of the tragedy.  But Revzan's film provides even more graphic views as it shows victims being rescued from the ship's hull and the Chicago River.

At the beginning of his discovered film, a young woman in a white dress is pulled from the hull and put on a pier.

Mr. Revzan started searching after he had heard about the first two clips on WTTW, PBS' "Chicago Tonight."  When it was mentioned that there might be other films of the disaster, he put his research skills to use.  he searched online at the British Pathe film archive.  After going through hundreds of clips, he found what appeared to be that of the Eastland.  ted Wachholz, executive director and chief historian of the Eastland Disaster Historical Society, confirmed it.

Alex Revzan says he hopes his find will help him in his job hunt a she graduated in December with a master's degree in history.

A Nice Foot In the Door.  --Cooter

Filming in Wilmington, North Carolina

From the Jukly 30, 2014, Wilmington (NC) Star-News "Film".

Some folks don't know it, but Wilmington is and has been a major center for filming of both movies and TV shows in  the country.  Part of this is due to some very nice monetary incentives offered by the state.

In 2013, the film industry spent $244 million in North Carolina with more than 30 qualifying productions receiving just over $61 million from the incentive program.  The year before the numbers were $334 million and $83 million in tax credits.

This year, the new budget calls for just $10 million tax credit for the first six months of 2015 because of budgetary problems.

I found this list of interest showing some productions filmed around the Wilmington area in recent years, how much they spent (first) and how much in tax credits (second) they received:

FILM PRODUCTIONS

Iron Man 3: $81 million/ $20 million
We're the Millers:  $21 million/ 5.2 million
The Conjuring:  $16 million/ $4.2 million
Tammy:  $14 million/  $3.6 million

TV PRODUCTIONS

Sleepy Hollow (pilot episode):  $7 million/  $1.8 million
Under the Dome (season one):  $33 million/  $8.3 million
Eastbound and Down (final season):  $20 million/  $5.2 million
Revolution:  (season one):  $57 million/  $14.2 million

Keep the Film Rolling.  --Cooter