Thursday, March 12, 1998 | 9:36 a.m.
Coming soon to a theater near you ... Well, maybe the theater itself:
Cinetransformer, a prototype movie theater on wheels, is housed in a 54- foot-long trailer. It boasts 100 comfy seats, a snack bar, restrooms, a 71-by-142-inch screen, a 1,000 watt sound system and high definition video projector.
It's being test marketed throughout Mexico and other Latin American countries, and possibly in the United States within the next couple of years. The idea, its makers say, is to bring the movie-going experience to small towns without a cinema to call its own.
"It would go to one city one day, one city another day and then it would come back," as on a circuit, explained Cinetransformer spokeswoman Lisa Clark.
The bright yellow trailer was on display earlier this week at the ShoWest movie theater industry trade show, which wraps up today at Bally's hotel-casino.
"Maybe when 'Godzilla' comes out (later this year) in Mexico City," Clark said, "they would try to have it opening up (in a Cinetransformer) in smaller towns at the same time. That way people that wouldn't normally have a chance to see the film would be able to."
If you weren't already accustomed to all of the bells and whistles of the neighborhood megaplex, you wouldn't think the thoughtfully decorated and comfortably air conditioned Cinetransformer had missed a beat -- except maybe at the box office window: Tickets in test markets have hovered around $2 per flick.
"Godzilla," the sci-fi movie monster that smashed Tokyo to bits during the '60s and is poised for a big screen comeback this year, was a looming presence at this year's Showest, which attracted a slew of theater owners and product exhibitors from around the globe.
Sweet treats
Hershey, the company famous for its chocolate Kisses and other goodies, was in attendance to hawk its own "Godzilla" marketing plan. Look for boxes of its three most popular movie munchies -- Twizzlers, Milk Duds and Reeses Pieces -- to feature the green guy, as well as $20 in coupon savings on their products, as well as those of Kodak and Sprint.
"There is some product placement in the movie," Hershey spokesperson Don Lear explained. But it may not be as prominently featured as, say, Reeses Pieces were in "E.T."
They didn't know, he said, that the movie would be such a hit, or that the candy would become popular as a result. "You think you'll do alright and it catches a wave and boom! You just hope."
Look for this year's sleeper hit not on screen, but at the concession stands. Dippin' Dots, a funky ice cream treat, has received a thumb's up at theaters and amusement parks in the Midwest and Southern U.S. (it's currently sold in Las Vegas at the Fashion Show Mall and seasonally at Wet 'n' Wild.)
At first glance, Dippin' Dots looks a lot like a bag full of tiny styrofoam packing balls. But these freezing cold, creamy beads (about $3 a pouch), which come in eight flavors -- chocolate beats banana split and peanut butter chip as the hands-down favorite in most locales -- melt in your mouth.
"Hopefully the local mangers will see us" at the show and want to put Dippin' Dots in Las Vegas theaters, said Terry Reeves, corporate communications spokesman for the Kentucky-based company. The ice cream will be available at the Meadows Mall this summer.
If it's something warm you crave while watching icy waters rush the Titanic for the umpteenth time, Godiva has got you covered.
The decadent chocolate maker recently introduced a line of flavored and special roast coffees in theaters in the Northeast and Midwest, and were at ShoWest in hopes of adding more chains to its roster.
"I think it's been a really good reaction," spokeswoman Beth Brown said about the coffee, which retails for about $1.75 a cup. The company's famous chocolate bars ($2.50 each) are also available in theaters.
Godiva's luxurious reputation complements the movie-going experience, Brown explained. "If you're going to have a chocolate bar or some coffee, have something that's great (while you) sit there and really enjoy it."
Innovative Ideas
The CPB/WGBH National Center for Accessible Media is working to make movie watching more enjoyable for deaf, hearing-impaired, blind and sight-impaired patrons with its Rear Window Captioning System and DVS Theatrical audio description system.
Why didn't anyone think of this before? The captioning system device consists of an adjustable transparent acrylic panel which attaches to the seat's cupholder to clearly reflect the captions streaming across a reader board on the theater's rear wall.
The DVS system provides narrative description -- actions, settings, scene changes -- via a headset. It made its debut last December during a "Titanic" screening in Boston. About a dozen specialty and IMAX theaters nationwide have already installed the systems, which cost about $15,000.
"We're hoping to bring that price down," project manager Judith Navoy said, explaining that costs will vary depending on theater size and other factors. "The response is just incredible. Now, it's a matter of getting it into other theaters."
That's what the makers of the Localizer are saying, too. With any luck, the acrylic sound domes will soon be suspended from ceilings above theater kiosks and multimedia displays.
Want to preview the latest movie soundtrack in the lobby before the flick starts? Step into the Localizer's radius and listen without annoying those around you -- namely the kid who just sold you a box of Junior Mints.
"What usually happens with kiosks that just have speakers, the sound blares out and employees, they get sick of hearing the same repetitive thing, so they sabotage it," Andrew Levin, sales director of Chicago-based Brown Innovations, explained. "They try to turn it off or turn it down. But with the dome, you don't have to worry about that."
Why? Because at its perimeter, the sound, which is emitted by a speaker inside, drops by 14 decibels.
"The person using it totally gets into the experience, the image and the sound are like unified," he said, "and you don't have to worry about the employees or other customers trying to turn the machine off."
Worry instead about whether or not they're putting enough butter on your popcorn.
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