Boxoffice Pro - October 2019

ELIZABETH FRANK
they don’t feel like they’re ready for
them, or even if they don’t look perfect
on paper.
I think that’s right. I think that individual
passion and initiative go a long,
long way. Being sensitive and receptive
to ideas throughout the organization is
important. And then giving people the
opportunity to run with those ideas and
for corporate leaders to both resource
the ideas and to mentor the individual. I
think that gets us all very, very far as an
organization to being inclusive.
I’m sure you’ve had moments early in
your career when you thought, “Oh my
God, I’m not ready for this. What am I
doing?” I assume everyone has.
Oh, for sure.
But you were given those opportunities,
and now look where you are.
You have to be chasing something that
you believe in. I think that’s where we
see people succeed the most. You can see
occasionally the contrary, where someone
takes on the new project because they
think it’s going to advance their career,
whether or not they think the project is
particularly important. I think that putting
ambition ahead of purpose can work
against people.
What is the part of your job that you
are most passionate about?
I am most passionate about the team
building of it, both within my groups
but also across the company. The second
thing I’m most excited about is the opportunity
we have to connect filmmakers
with their fans, building a much bigger
business along the way. The third thing
that I’m passionate about is using the
data and insights that we have to figure
out new and better ways to go about a
business that’s existed for a hundred years
and yet still has new things to be found
and to be done.
Are there any particular mentors that
you had early on in your career who
stand out to you now?
There’s someone I worked with when
I was first out of college who was a
huge proponent of, “There’s no dumb
question.” If it’s not clear to you, don’t
assume it’s clear to anybody. So no
matter what your role is, if you’re in
the room and don’t understand, have
the confidence to ask. I think that was
really good advice, and it was especially
good advice to give to someone who
was junior and who was only going to
be able to ask questions as opposed to
answer them.
For any industry, that’s fitting advice,
but especially in something like film
exhibition, where outside-the-box
thinking is so important.
I worked for someone who was very
focused on competitors. Her perspective
was, “There is something you can learn
from everyone.” As you think about the
market around you, always be on the
lookout for good ideas. As an exhibition
industry, one of the things that make us
the strongest industry is that we’re really
good at learning from each other.
How would you evaluate the progress
that women have made in the
exhibition business since you joined
AMC in 2010?
I can’t speak to the whole industry. I
can tell you that AMC has a phenomenal
group of female executives and rising
stars and theater managers whom it’s an
honor to work with, and it’s exciting to
watch their careers progress over that
time period.
I think it is important to AMC
that we’re providing opportunities for
everyone to develop and advance their
careers. We appreciate that in the past,
not everybody had the same opportunities
or felt as comfortable sharing their
unique circumstances.
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