EVENTS: RED HOT HOLIDAY BALL, PUSH/NTID COLLAB 20 FILM: “HITCHCOCK,” “THE OTHER SON” 30 RESTAURANT REVIEW: ROYAL INDIA
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URBAN JOURNAL: FEE FAUX OUTRAGE
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CROSSWORD 43
sister sparrow
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richard buckner
DECEMBER 12-18, 2012 Free
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madrigalia
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dj energon
Greater Rochester’s Alternative Newsweekly
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pujol
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c’est bon
Vol 42 No 14
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AND MORE MUSIC, PAGE 14
News. Music. Life.
It would be nice if the theater was downtown. But not at any price.” NEWS, PAGE 4
What about the bikes? NEWS, PAGE 5
A crisis for youth in crisis. NEWS, PAGE 6
Blackfriars’ “It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play.” THEATER REVIEW, PAGE 20
A very filthy Christmas: John Waters is coming to town. INTERVIEW, PAGE 26
FEATURE | BY ERIC REZSNYAK | PAGE 10 | ILLUSTRATION BY MATT DETURCK
Dodging the digital bullet The way you watch movies has changed, and you probably haven’t even noticed. For more than 100 years film has been synonymous with motion pictures. But if you see a new movie in a big-screen chain theater today, what you’re seeing is likely being projected digitally, the information embedded in a hard drive and beamed on to the screen by a very expensive, very complicated piece of equipment. The shift to digital has its perks. But the major reason why movie theaters are switching — being forced, some say — to digital projection comes down
to money. Most of the major theater chains have already embraced the switch to digital projectors. But given that the formats require totally new machines, which can cost anywhere from $60,000 to $150,000 per screen, that leaves smaller independent cinemas with a real financial burden. In Rochester, The Little, Dryden Theatre, and The Cinema are all in the process of making the leap to digital. But even as they prepare for this major shift, area film professionals debate digital’s impact on artistry, archiving, and business.