15
PRODUCTE, CONSUM, COMUNICACIÓ: EL NOU PUNT DE VENDA,
1998
The mega-movie: a new American phenomenonWith the recent opening
of a brand new and gigantic multi-screen theater in the suburbs of Detroit
(Michigan), a new trend in the entertainment business is heralded. Boasting no
less than 20 different auditoriums, seats for 6,000 people, parking for 5,000
vehicles, state-of-the-art digital sound systems, and an unmistakable
theme-park design, the Star Southfield complex represents what the movie
business in the United States believes the future of this form of entertainment
will be like.
According to some
analysts, such large scale projects are simply a response to consumer demand.
Just as individual stores gave way to shopping centers and superstores, or
neighborhood groceries to supermarkets and giant divjount food stores, the
small movie theater has been supplanted first by the multiplex and now the
megaplex. Gigantic entertainment complexes such as the Star Southfield, with a
huilt area of more than 50,000 square meters, offer an answer to the profile of
the typical movie-goer, and because of its unique entertainment environment, is
also an invitation to those who do not go the movies as often. At Star
Southfield spectators are greeted by a monumental Art Deco inspired building
and then pass through three main spaces before they reach the theaters. First
there is a Hollywood style studio entrance in the form of a fabulous gate.
People then find themselves in an area reminiscent of a sound stage which
contains the food concessions, serving a variety of fast food options, and
marked at the center by a giant erupting popcorn bucket, an icon of the movie
experience for the American public. Several kiosks sell movie-related
merchandise, in a space decorated with real movie props. There is also a
service booth, with a full time concierge, who can do everything from calling a
taxi to making an airline reservation. Behind the fast food area there is
another gathering space featuring reconstructions and installations of
Detroit's architectural landmarks, mostly of no-longer existing theaters. These
elements form a visual and spatial collage and function as a main circulation
lobby for the main theaters.
Finally, patrons reach
the theaters themselves. With stadium-like seating, which eliminates sight-line
problems and offering comfortable, wider-than-average seats, there is a choice
of theaters from the two largest, accommodating more than 700 spectators each,
to four of the smallest, seating 96 people each. All of these theaters
incorporate the latest digital THX sound technology which can deliver, with
impeccable fidelity, from the most astonishing sound effect in an action movie
to the subtlest murmur of an intimate scene. Considerable expense and many
design considerations were devoted to image and sound quality, comfort, convenience,
and decoration in the theaters.
Much of the design
concept in the Star Southfield megaplex is in direct response to consumer
trends and to the reality of the movie exhibition industry across the United
States, where a surprising 75% of the net profit does not come from ticket
sales but rather from food concessions. Going to the movies is no longer just
paying for the price of the ticket. While people traditionally could go for a
drink or appetizer before the film and for dinner afterwards, the trend in
North America is to build <<single destination>> megaplexes, where
people are tempted to spend several hours inside and consume not just food but
also merchandise. Or to do what 60% of spectators do on Saturdays ar another
mega-complex in Dallas, Texas: watch another movie.
Attracting business is
fundamentally important for the exhibition industry which faces direct
competition from video rental chains. Many consumers have substantially reduced
the habit of going to the movies for several reasons, including a bad
experience or the inconvenience of having to drive a long distance, or even the
trouble of finding where to park. Mega projects like this one are aimed
precisely at this kind of public, and the expectation of the project developers
is to increase the evenings of movie-going from two or three times a year to
seven or eight. Sony Retail Entertainment, headquartered in New York, observed
with attention such patterns and, in association with the Star theater chain,
decided to make a determined move in response. Star was already running several
succesful theaters in the Detroit area, placing a determined effort on aspects
of comfort, cleanliness, and courteous service. Annual rieket sales in theaters
owned by the Star chain were growing by an impressive 25% a year and Sony
Entertainment took notice of that. Star Southfield is now the largest theater
complex owned by the Sony-Loews chain, a division of
Sony Entertainment.
Sony Entertainment hired
the architectural firm Rockwell Group, responsible for the worldwide and highly
successful Planet Hollywood concept, to develop this project. The Rockwell
Group designed whar is typically a themed environment, whose attempt is to
recapture the excitement of movie theaters in the early part of this century.
The building, which as an Art Deco sculptural quality, projects a presence
distinctively different from the bland, box-like, suburban movie complex.
According to David Rockwell, the architect who heads the design group, and Jim
Loeks, who heads Star Theaters, «it has to be worth the price of the ticket
just to walk into the building".
Apparently, the wave of
themed environments has swept across many businesses these days, and movie
theaters are no exception. At a cost of more than 40 million dollars, this
Disney-like movie environment is a very costly development. But Sony
Entertainment is confident and already planning several similar projects in
other parts of the United States. If the success of the opening weekend at Star
Southfield, where 40,000 spectators bought tickets, is any indication of public
enthusiasm for this type of entertainment experience, the future looks bright.
Time will tell if these theme environments will have to be entirely redesigned
every five years to keep the public interested, or if the issues of comfort and
efficiency will prove the fundamental reasons for customer approval. One thing
is certain, the film show is no longer the only reason why people go to the
movies; and those who understand that are revolutionizing the movie exhibition
industry in North America.
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Sobre l'autor
SERGIO CORREA DE JESÚS
Consultor de disseny, professor de
l'Escola de Disseny Elisava, exprofessor agregat de la Universitat Carnegie
Mellon (USA).
Professor del Departament de Disseny a la Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh,
Pennsilv à nia.
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