Film Journal July 2018

TRADE TALK
continued
tant that lets users purchase
movie tickets using just their
voice. Users can purchase
tickets on any compatible device
with the Google Assistant,
including smart speakers
like the Google Home,
Android phones, televisions,
headphones and more. Fandango
ticketing is scheduled
to launch on the Google
Assistant for iOS devices by
the end of the year.
THX CERTIFIES
200 CINEMARK SITES
THX Ltd. And Cinemark
Holdings, Inc. announced
that over 200 Cinemark
private-label premium-largeformat
XD auditoriums in
the United States and Latin
America are now THX
Certified.
THX works closely with
exhibitor partners to meet
THX Certified Cinema specifications,
focusing on auditorium
architecture, acoustics,
audio and projection equipment
calibration and speaker
configuration. Recertification
is conducted annually by a
THX technician to ensure
the cinema continues to
meet THX certification requirements
year after year.
MALCO ANNOUNCES
ANNUAL KIDS FEST
Malco Theatres is letting
“kids help kids” through
their 2018 Kids Summer Film
Fest. Over the years, the
festival has raised thousands
of dollars for various children’s
charities. This year’s
beneficiaries include Le
Bonheur Children’s Hospital
(Memphis, TN), Arkansas
Children’s Hospital (Little
Rock, AR), Kosair Children’s
Hospital (Owensboro, KY),
Monroe E. Carroll Children’s
Hospital at Vanderbilt,
Batson Children’s Hospital
(Jackson, MS) and Children’s
Hospital in New Orleans.
Each Tuesday and
Wednesday from June 5
thru August 1, participating
Malco locations will offer
G and PG-rated movies
at a specially discounted
price. Moviegoers will be
treated to such favorites as
The Chronicles of Narnia, The
Princess Bride, Trolls, Horton
Hears a Who and Ferdinand
for only $2 per ticket.
MOVIE TAVERN
LAUNCHES NEW MENU
New Orleans-based
Movie Tavern launched a
new chef-inspired menu,
available now at the majority
of locations nationwide.
Dar Hackbarth,
director of marketing and
communications at Movie
Tavern parent Southern
Theatres, explained, “One
of the nation’s top chefs has
joined us in a collaborative
partnership, and the result
is more than two-dozen
exceptional new entrees,
garden picks, starters
and desserts. We’ve also
enhanced a few of our
customer favorites.”
Guests can select from
a variety of new starters
and entrees to enjoy from
their seats or in the bar
area while waiting for films
to begin. New locations,
such as Little Rock, AR and
Trexlertown, PA—which
is set to open late summer
2018—also feature a new bar
concept called “The Tavern,”
complete with comfortable
couch seating, a fireplace and
traditional bar games like
darts and shuffleboard. The
cinema-eatery also expanded
its local craft beer selection
in each market, including a
42-oz. commemorative tankard
with discounted refills.
VISTA NAMES CUSSMANN
TO EUROPE SALES ROLE
Leading cinema-management
software company
Vista Entertainment Solutions
named Till Cussmann
senior VP of sales for EMEA
and general manager, Europe.
For a decade, Cussmann
was deeply involved in the
digital conversion of movie
theatres as well as the technical
conception and implementation
of infrastructure
for new venues. Previously,
as senior VP of CinemaNext
and its predecessor dcinex,
he was responsible for the
overall product and customer-support
strategy and geographical
expansion to more
than 20 countries.
WILL ROGERS MOURNS
CHARLES DUNN
The Will Rogers Motion
Picture Pioneers Foundation
announced the passing of
Charles W. Dunn, 80, on
April 27. He was the father
of longtime Foundation
board member Greg Dunn.
Employed for over 40
years in the entertainment
industry, Charles Dunn
worked with several movie
theatre companies including
AMC, Redstone Theaters,
Crown Amusements and
Goodrich Theaters. He was
a manager and later district
manager and worked in Dallas,
Omaha and Cincinnati,
but always considered Jefferson
City, MO his home.
While in Jefferson City,
Dunn managed the Bridge
Drive-In in Cedar City, the
Downtown Capitol Theater,
and opened the Ramada 4
Theaters, Capital 4 Theater
in the Mall and Capital 8
Theaters. He retired as district
manager of the central
Missouri Goodrich theaters
in 2003.
TOHO HIBIYA INSTALLS
JBL SPEAKERS
Xebex, Inc. recently installed
a JBL by Harman cinema
audio system at Tokyo’s
TOHO Cinemas Hibiya. With
13 screens and more than
2,800 seats, TOHO Cinemas
Hibiya is the first cinema
complex in the Ginza/Hibiya
area. Xebex selected JBL
Professional 9350 sculpted
surround speakers for their
superior coverage.
GOFILEX AND MPS
PLAN TO UNITE NETWORKS
Gofilex and Motion Picture
Solutions (MPS)—specialists in
theatrical film servicing and digital
content distribution—signed
financial agreements to further
the strategic alliance of MPS’
700-site LANsat estate with
Gofilex’s pan-European network
of more than 1,400 sites.
The agreements will
see the two companies’
distribution networks unite
to service distributors and
exhibitors in more than
2,000 locations throughout
Europe and beyond.
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