If all goes according to plan, the familiar ticking whir of traditional projectors will soon be silenced at the Hippodrome Theatre.
On Monday, the theater launched an online campaign via www.kickstarter.com to raise $15,000 for a new digital projection system in response to the movie industry’s transition to a digital format.
Studios nationwide will discontinue the use of 35-millimeter film reels starting in 2014. Cinemas that cannot accommodate the change will no longer receive a wide selection of movies.
“Hollywood’s basically said, ‘You go digital, or you go dark,’” said Hippodrome Cinema Director Alisha Kinman. “‘If you don’t make this change, you’re not going to get the selection of films that we have.’”
While larger theaters have the funds to change immediately, Kinman said the challenge for local, independent theaters like the Hippodrome are small staffs and low budgets.
“You can’t really afford a $40,000 projector just out of pocket,” Kinman said. “I mean, that’s unrealistic.”
The Hippodrome will use $25,000 in grants for the transition, but intends to fund the rest using the Kickstarter website. Within about 24 hours of announcing the project, it had received about $1,000 in pledges.
However, Kickstarter cancels all pledges for projects that do not reach their funding goal within a specified time frame, which ends Sept. 20.
Ryan Wolf, a 27-year-old analytical chemistry graduate student, frequently sees shows at the Hippodrome and said he plans to donate online.
“I don’t want it to go away. They need help, and I’m in a position financially to support them,” he said. “So I will.”
