TRAVERSE CITY -- A patron wouldn't know it from the plush theater seat, but there's a lot happening in the projectionist booth to make movie magic.
A crew of about a dozen film gurus toils for moviegoers' viewing pleasure at the Traverse City Film Festival.
"We like to show things that are as pristine as possible, and sometimes it is really difficult with the way that some people handle prints. Some festivals aren't as picky as others," said Bill Hill of Hill Top Productions. "In Traverse City, if it is not up to standards, we do our best to get a replacement print."
Hill's company is based in New Mexico, and he assembled a group of professional projectionists and film inspectors for the festival. He has served big-time festivals including Sundance, Toronto, Bermuda, Tribeca and in Traverse City since its start in 2005.
Projectionist Michelle Puetz, a Chicago graduate student in film, is helming the Lars Hockstad Auditorium at Central Grade School. She grew to love the mechanical aspects of the job and hearing the audience laughter from the booth.
"There's something incredibly romantic about being in a projection booth," Puetz said. "(It's) a little like being a magician behind the curtain because nobody sees you. Nobody knows you are there."
Puetz's booth is built from scratch before she arrives since Lars normally is not operated as a movie theater. A 35 mm projector, digital video projector and sound system are set up. She runs test loops of film to make sure the projectors are aligned.
Back at a warehouse, workers repair damaged films and bad splices, check for scratches and fill out detailed inspection reports.
"It's still a labor intensive job," said Bill Taggart, projectionist at the State Theatre. "It isn't as easy as what they say; there's an awful lot of preliminary work to make sure that a show is put together."
The booth can get warm from all the heat-spewing equipment, and there's heavy film to hoist. During the festival, the booth is busy from the morning through the conclusion of midnight movies.
But the screening Taggart, of Cleveland, Ohio, is keenly aware of is scheduled for this morning. "Shorts for Kids" might be a good time for pint-sized movie buffs, but it's a "brutal program" and a "call to arms" for a projectionist.
He must run well over a dozen films that vary from a scant one minute to 10 minutes in length in different formats. He will switch between video and film, while trying to make it look "like it's flowing" and "not chunky and choppy."
If the focus or framing is off, the audience will notice something is not quite right and it may impact how they judge a film, Taggart said. An experienced projectionist gains a sense of feel, timing and even "a little bit of showmanship."
He has 45 years on the job, and his father, too, was a projectionist.
"You make one mistake and guess who sees it? That entire audience," Taggart said. "They all turn around, and they are looking at the projectionist."
Quick thinking and solid troubleshooting skills are essential, Puetz said.
Taggart has worked each Traverse City festival and witnessed its take-off. But one thing he doesn't get to watch is the movies as they roll.
"We might catch the ending," he said.
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