"Black spot" flashing in movie theaters

[cbailey78]

Have you ever noticed in movie theaters that you might see a black spot that flashes on the upper right corner of the screen every 20-30 minutes?

[AtmaWeapon]

Fight club reference?

[biggiy05]

Fight club reference?

Another random rant?

Don't recall seeing a black spot in the theater.

[Limzo]

Have you ever noticed in movie theaters that you might see a black spot that flashes on the upper right corner of the screen every 20-30 minutes?
OH! That is to tell the people running the film over at the projector to put another reel of the film in. Nothing special, really. :)

[{DSG}DarkRaven]

OH! That is to tell the people running the film over at the projector to put another reel of the film in. Nothing special, really. :)

Ah. That makes sense, I guess. You've worked in a projection booth before, no doubt? Or know someone who has? I've never noticed the specific spot and timing coincidence that has been spoken of, but had you not replied, I was going to suggest that it was probably just the usual random film glitches that occur on analog projectors. Frame errors, dust, etc.

[Rijuhn]

I remembering watching something on TV where someone explained that as being a cigarette burn which signifies a change in the reel. Something like that to help the people put the movie together properly.

[Cloral]

What you're seeing is called a "cue mark" or "cigarette burn". It aids the projectionist in timing when to switch between reels. Or at least it used to when theaters used 2-projection setups to switch between reels with minimal interruption.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cue_mark

[Deviance]

Have you ever noticed in movie theaters that you might see a black spot that flashes on the upper right corner of the screen every 20-30 minutes?

Yeah I seen it a couple of time myself. The Great Escape movie theater is known for this.

[Limzo]

Ah. That makes sense, I guess. You've worked in a projection booth before, no doubt? Or know someone who has? I've never noticed the specific spot and timing coincidence that has been spoken of, but had you not replied, I was going to suggest that it was probably just the usual random film glitches that occur on analog projectors. Frame errors, dust, etc.

No, I've never worked there, or know anyone who has. I'm only 13 :P.

[AtmaWeapon]

So I'm the only dude here old enough to remember Fight Club?

[erm2003]

I remember Fight Club. That was a good yet pretty messed up movie.

[The Beefcube]

I don't think I ever saw that before... but after reading this I've noticed it almost every time I go to a certain theater.

[The_Amaster]

Yeah, it's a mark for a reel change. You can tell, sometimes too, where it seems to cut between scenes abruptly because it wasn't transitioned well.

[The Desperado]

Has anyone ever noticed 6 brown dots that appear on the screen every once and a while? They're set up like this...

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I have no clue what they are.

[cbailey78]

I've once saw five dots that looked like this...



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It was just a split second to a "cue mark"! Strange.

[Plissken]

Wow right when I saw this topic I also thought of Fight Club. That was a pretty awesome movie.