Less is more for the Cinépolis Luxury Cinemas in San Diego, where Christie Managed Services has implemented cost effective boothless projection systems, powered by low-maintenance Christie digital cinema projectors, the most powerful and most trusted name for exhibitors joining the digital revolution. Boothless systems eliminate the need for traditional projectionist booth space and require no human operator.
Located in the Del Mar Highlands Town Center in Carmel Valley, Cinépolis Luxury Cinemas features two traditional auditoriums and six with boothless projection systems, seating up to 74 guests, 3D and surround sound technologies, reserved seating options, and high back reclining leather chairs for the ultimate in viewing comfort. Designed and installed by Christie Managed Services as part of a complete customized solution, the boothless systems free up space for an additional row of seating that would normally have been taken up by the projection booths. Christie provided an all-inclusive, turnkey solution for a special lift system that enables the Christie CP2220 DLP Cinema® projectors to be positioned out of the way during normal operation and lowered for maintenance. The Managed Services Team at Christie also installed the audio system, screens, processing equipments, lighting, drapes, library management systems, playback and projection systems, in addition to designing and deploying the boothless capability. Recently, an additional six auditoriums were installed with Christie boothless projection systems at the Cinépolis Luxury Cinemas La Costa location in Carlsbad.
“While we are South America’s largest theater chain, this is our first entry into the U.S. market, and it was critical that every aspect of our patrons’ movie-viewing experience was as perfect as possible,” said Carlos Wellman, managing director of Cinépolis Luxury Cinemas. “We selected Christie because they bring more than 80 years in the exhibition industry, and perfectly understand the old-world traditions of the finest movie houses and the next generation of digital technology to meet the sophisticated demands of today’s moviegoers.”
Matthew Heyman, a Cinépolis consultant on this project added, “Christie’s boothless lifts create the space for Cinépolis to transform its theaters into a unique movie-going experience. These boothless concepts, like the ones Christie designs and installs, are transforming the digital cinema environment.”
“Exhibitors are looking for solutions that enable them to reduce construction costs, while offering the design flexibility to transform older facilities to the look and feel of the luxury cinema,” explained Sean James, vice president of Managed Services for Christie. “Our customers need the benefit of technology without the complexity of integration or the burden of support to accomplish their design and cost reduction goals. We designed and built boothless systems that provide the right environment for the projector and isolate the audience from the noise and heat the projector and server generate while allowing the projection booth to be removed.”
Christie Managed Services provides end-to-end solutions for projection and audio in the cinema environment as well as digital signage solutions for theater lobbies. It also offers service packages that provide exhibitors with support that range from 24/7/365 remote monitoring and technical phone support to on-site preventative maintenance/emergency service and fast, local access to spare parts centrally coordinated from Christie’s Network Operations Center.
Cinépolis patrons agree that the theater chain got everything right. They rave about the ultra-comfortable high-back recliners and ushers that serve food and alcohol right at their seats in the 21+ theaters. The recliners also have buttons to call for additional service, and special menus are offered to match the theme of the movie.
CinemaCon attendees can view a video that includes the boothless concept at the Christie booth #2111, and speak with a representative of the Christie Managed Services team.
