NEW YORK, Aug. 4, 2009
Shhh! A Renaissance for Drive-In Movies
With Low-Tech Equipment and Secret, Changing Locations, the Once-Ubiquitous Theaters are Making a Comeback
-
John Young, who arranges drive-in movie screenings in New York, sets up a projector. Young uses simple eqipment and projects the movies on makeshift screens or sides of buildings. Would-be attendees have to follow clues to learn the locations of the screenings. (CBS)
-
Photo Essay Movie Awards Red Carpet Stars arrive for the annual MTV Movie Awards
-
Photo Essay Movie Night With The Stars A dozen actors introduce their classic films to audiences at special screenings
Now, the open-air movie experience is making a comeback, with a 21st century update as CBS News correspondent Daniel Sieberg reports.
John Young admits he's a movie nerd. On summer weekends, he pulls a film projector out of his motorcycle's sidecar, plugs in an old guitar amplifier, and waits for sunset.
It's what Young calls his
"Guerilla Drive-in."
"You're not an audience member so much as you're a participant," he said. "We're 'making' a good time."
Young shows movies on makeshift screens, or the sides of buildings in suburban New York. On a recent night, it was "Back to the Future" for 200 fans - some in costume or driving the movie's signature DeLorean.
Once, there were 4,000 drive-ins where you could sit in your car and enjoy the show. Now there are just under 400 traditional drive-ins.
But at Young's not-quite-official drive-ins, tradition takes a back seat. Just getting a ticket requires an elaborate scavenger hunt.
On his Web site, Young drops clues about the location of a hidden radio transmitter. You then must drive to the area, tune in to the right signal, and decode the secret message.
Only then, are you "in."
"It's like a thousand times more fun than just seeing a movie anywhere else," said Kristin Seidle, a fan of the makeshift drive-ins. "It's elite, kind of. You know, not - not everybody knows about it."
About 2,800 miles away, it's "Top Gun" under the Oakland Bay Bridge. Bryan Kennedy first connected a projector and transmitter to his car battery back in 2005.
"You get the GPS coordinates and you show up and it's just kind of this mystery, and you get there and everyone is watching this movie and you," said Bryan Kennedy, creator of "Mobile Movies." "That's definitely part of the experience."
Back in West Chester, Young says he's not against Netflix, or computer movie downloads.
"But you also want the experience of going out, with people, people that you're talking to and seeing a movie," he said.
Whether Caddyshack at a driving range, or Meatballs at a summer camp, who knew pairing of old-school movies with new-age technology could be so appealing?
© MMIX, CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
More From CBS Evening News
Add a Comment See all 24 Comments
- Theatredesigngroup, just read the FBI warning at the begining of the movie. It states any public performance or duplicating even without monitary gain is a violation of the copyright laws. Napster didnt make any money from people sharing music files did they? Same thing here.
- Reply to this comment
- I just purchased a 20-foot wide screen and have a killer projector (5000 lumens)... I need to find spaces to host events. I think that I may also be one of the only people who brings the 5.1 surround sound experience to the outdoors...
I run out of the Philadelphia (Pennsylvania) Main Line area and would love to find a farm or large piece of private property to do this on a regular basis.
Any questions or suggestions please feel free to contact me at www.TheatreDesignGroup.com or CinemaDesign@Live.com.
All the best...!!!
Darren- - Reply to this comment
- I have been in the business of providing local cities and private parties with a portable drive in for 5 years now. I spend a lot of time and money on good equipment and ALWAYS provide not just a movie but a 2 to 3 hour show for the price. Any public showing or a copyrighted film is, by law, required to be licensed. I pay the license fee to Swank when it is required. Just rolling up into a parking lot and showing a movie you rented from Blockbuster is Illegal. Period. Why do I play by the rules and have to suffer because of these fly by night (pun intended) hacks are committing a crime that takes money out of my pocket and gives a legitimate business like mine a bad name. When I come across a person showing and not paying the license fee?s (Halloween haunted houses are big for this)I report them to the MPAA. Read the FBI warning before the movie and maybe they will learn something.
- Reply to this comment
-
- I disagree, not being a lawyer of course, but if you are not charging how could there be any copyright laws broken...??? And how would showing a movie to a group of strangers (and NOT charging) be any different then playing music at a party...???
And I am in the same business and feel that there are always people willing to pay for events and people that are not. We will never convert the people that do not value the service, however any people speaking positively about the whole (outdoor movie) experience is a great thing...!!!
Best of luck with your endeavors...!!!
www.TheatreDesignGroup.com
- I disagree, not being a lawyer of course, but if you are not charging how could there be any copyright laws broken...??? And how would showing a movie to a group of strangers (and NOT charging) be any different then playing music at a party...???
- Hi comment thread!
Well, the last thing I expected was to be controversial! Thanks for all the vigorous correction, just_me123. Anyhow, lemme answer here:
"Aren't you illegal?"
Nope, I license my movies from Swank Motion Pictures, who handles "non-theatrical distribution" of these movies with the studios. The movies cost about $150.00 to rent, including the license. I am clear and up-front with the audience about how much it costs, and I pass the hat, asking folks to contribute something appropriate to their station in life. The contribution is _optional_. So far, we've always just about broken even.
And yes, I do get permission (and participation) of the folks where we show movies. We wouldn't want to be somewhere where they don't want us, and we usually get to tell stories about GREAT local spots that deserve more attention. For instance, when we showed "The Train" on the side of the West Chester Railroad's diesel locomotive -- there's a great group of train enthusiasts there, and we enjoyed telling all our friends about the cool things they are doing.
"Why do you hate REAL drive-ins, you hipster upstart!?"
No way, man, I _love_ drive-ins. I'm not trying to steal audience or thunder from anyone! Nobody doesn't like drive-ins.
"Why a different place every time?"
For fun; it's more interesting that way. And drummerrg is 100% right, it's USUALLY outdoors. It was raining the night we showed "Meatballs", so we went under the tin roof of the open-air canoe barn. But that's not to say we wouldn't go indoors if there was a fun place to show a movie. I'm really looking forward to showing "Bill and Ted" in a sporting good store :)
For more info about our Guerilla Drive-In in West Chester, PA, come check us out on the web at guerilla drive in dot com. There are other groups all over the country, too. We don't take ourselves too seriously, and we have a good time. Come out and join us!
--John - Reply to this comment
- For all those crying, "Illegal!"...What John Young is doing is all on the up & up...the licensing is included in the rental of the film. The locations are all chosen with the full cooperation of the land owner/local government. Relax & enjoy the show!
- Reply to this comment
- Daniel Seiberg is confused.
These gorilla movie exhibitions are just that, gorilla exhibitions. The only way they resemble drive-ins is that they are sometimes, and I stress that, sometimes done outdoors. The shot of the summer camp where they were showing movies looked to be indoors so what does that have to do with drive-ins? What does that have to do with gorilla film exhibition? Summer camps have shown movies, in one format or another, for years.
It's his wrap up that's totally goofed like he just didn't know what he was reporting:
"... who knew pairing of old-school movies with new-age technology could be so appealing?"
Lets see, John Young in NY was showing 16mm movies on a 16mm projector. Bryan Kennedy, on the other hand, was running digital projection where no film was involved.
Had Young been using a DLP projector the concluding sentence would make sense but since he's using an all but dead format you can't call it new technology. Perhaps Seiberg was only refering to the transmitter to get the invite and if so makes his wrap more confusing.
There are at least three other packages to report contained in this one package:
A. Gorilla film exhibitions, what this report tried to be but to me fell short due to confused reporting. Bringing in the drive-in aspect IMHO is irrelevent and the format thing is actually a huge deal.
B. The resurgence of the drive-in. There are new drive-in theaters that have opened in recent years that are doing quite well. The one near here when it first opened was only seasonal during the summer but quickly went to staying open year round and added a second screen to boot.
C. 16mm film collectors. Some go portable and show movies anywhere, from retirement homes to renting theaters for private showings. Others build elaborate theaters in their homes and do actual change-overs from one reel to another with dowsers like movie theaters of the past. Others will have projectors with huge reel capacity to accomodate an entire feature. Some have elaborate sound systems.
There's the buying and selling of prints. That can mean a single print, one collector to another, to purchases of entire libraries consisting of features, documentaries, educational films, shorts, or what-have-you. Some collectors specialize what films they collect such as animation or certain genre' features.
There's the aquisition of projectors, lenses, and other parts. Materials for screens, equipment maintenence and repair.
There's are online forums for 16mm collectors where discussion of all of this takes place. It's a small but vibrant community who refuse to let what used to be a way of life fall by the wayside. The 16mm collectors are purists and contend there's nothing like watching actual film.
Now, there's a human interest story. That's a good kicker. - Reply to this comment
- Why is CBS News glorifying something that is illegal? Real theatres have to pay hefty licensing fees to the film studios to show movies to the public. These guerrilla theatres are stealing.
- Reply to this comment
- Another watered-down version of the REEL thing.
I agree with stardust, Contact the UDITOA CBS.
I now know what the BS in CBS stands for. - Reply to this comment
- I remember seeing "Apocalypse Now" when it was first released in 1979... I also saw "Star Wars" in '77 at the local drive-in.Food City grocery store now stands where the drive-in was located. One time we even snuck in a couple of guys in the trunk to see a movie! Ah, those crazy teen age days are long gone, but the memnories...Drive ins are great; if you have a chance to take the family, because alot of them are family friendly,go and enjoy yourselves. They're are some that tune in to an FM frequency and you hear everything in stereo,wheather your in your car or in a chair with a portable radio beside you.
- Reply to this comment
- Not everyone in NYC has a car (though it seems like it). There are no drive in theaters in NYC proper. This is a cool alternative.
- Reply to this comment
- Why the Shhh? Why the changing locations? Would it be because what this guy does might be illegal? Would it be because he may not have a public performance license to show these copyrighted movies?
This isn't a drive-in!! This is a guy with a 16mm film projector mounted to the side car of a motorcycle, showing bad movies on the side of a Wal-Mart.
As a real drive-in theatre owner, it's embarrasing to see the national news media do stories like this, when there are almost 400 remaining permanently built "legitimate" drive-in theatres across the country. It would be nice to see the news media contact the United Drive-In Theatre Owners Association to accurately get the statistical data about drive-in theatres, as opposed to saying that they've "gone the way of tail fins and fuzzy dice". Our REAL drive-in theatres are thriving NOT dying off. - Reply to this comment
- My wife and I go to Choctaw Casino in Durant Oklahoma. Their hotel has an 'Oasis' which consists of a series of pools, hot tubs, water slide, etc. On Friday and Saturday nights, the have a 'Dive In' movie, shown on a large, inflatable screen. In addition to the 'Oasis' guests, many of the hotel gusets can open their windows and watch,too. Neat!
- Reply to this comment
- HA! HA! If I Go On Any More, I'll Start Crying!!
- Reply to this comment
- Don't know if you guys are from the East Coast or not. I was born & raised on Long Island, N.Y. I also remember very well A.M. Radio with Favorite D.J.'s like "cousin Brucie"(Bruce Morrow),Ron Lundy, & Scott Muni. Loved to Listen to those guys at Jones Beach with my Girlfriend!
- Reply to this comment
- Yes It Is!!!
- Reply to this comment
- I too remember those times, life was good. America was America - people helping their neighbors, respecting each other, not this all about me mentality that exists today. Drive-in movies were great. We have two within an hour and a half driving distance (used to have three within our home town). I am surprised its taken this long for drive-in movies to start a comeback. I've taken my kids to the drive-in now for about 5 years and they think it is absolutely the coolest thing. I recently bought a DVD projector that hooks up to a dvd player or computer and allows you to show movies on a screen or, like I use, a king-sized white bedsheet. We've had a few "drive-in" movies at home this summer and they are big hits. Nostalgia is good.
- Reply to this comment
- Oh, to be young again & go back to the 1950's & early 1960's! Drive -In movies,Doo Wop & early Rock & Roll, TV's with only three network channels & only 2-3 local channels. No Cable TV, No Internet, No Cell Phones. Your Mom running the house Like a Swiss Watch, & she was always there for you! Your Dad working his butt off & getting paid every friday. Your Mom's home cooking! Eating Fish every Friday if you we're Catholic. No Play Dates! You could hang out with your best friend all day just as Long as you checked back in with your Mom & Dad at Lunch & Supper! You & Your Parents & your Brothers & Sisters all sitting down at the Supper table at the same time & having jokes & good conversation along with your Mom's Good Cooking! Everybody Respected the President & Wished him well,regardless of his Political Party, because he was OUR President! No Right Wing or Left Wing. No Liberals or Conservatives. Just Republicans & Democrats who actually Liked & Respected one another, because we we're ALL AMERICANS!
- Reply to this comment
-
- Yeah, I remember that stuff.
I also remember segregated schools, neighborhoods, clubs, rest rooms, and swimming pools.
I remember, as a small child, waking up terrified in the middle of the night because a truck was roaring past our house, and I thought it was a Soviet plane about to drop a hydrogen bomb and obliterate us.
I remember political liberals being called Communists, Reds, fellow-travelers, and [N-word]-lovers. (Watching the mob scenes at "town hall" meetings this summer brings this right back.)
I remember when being gay was considered (at best) a form of mental illness, and by most people was regarded as the most disgusting form of depravity.
There were good things about the 50s -- like, rich people paid taxes and didn't whine about it -- but it was not a Golden Age.
- Yeah, I remember that stuff.
Mike Huckabee on GOP "rock stars," 2012, health care reform and more.
