How to Manage a Cinema

Cinema Management is not as easy as people think. Though it is an interesting career for those who love to deal with the general public and for those who are movie lovers, it is a more challenging job that involves several kinds of job. Cinema Management comprises of food service management, supervisorial work, customer service and much more to the kit. People in the Cinema Management must work based on a lot of planning. But of course, though the job is a demanding one, it also means one can enjoy their work if they are interested in working in the night and afternoon shifts.

Managing Cinema Theatres

As managing a cinema involves different kinds of jobs to look after several kinds of departments, employees are recruited in such a way that they are specialized in a specific job. Some employees may work across several departments but in general, they are assigned to only one role in a shift. Though the departments are different, the goal is for the departments to work together in order to run the Cinema theatre successfully.

The Theatre Manager

The manager is the most important job in Cinema Management. The manager must have knowledge about all the jobs in the theatre. He must also be able to train the employees who are recruited for the different positions. In addition, he must also fill a position when an employee is absent or very busy. The characteristics of a good manager are to be able to do all the types of job in the cinema theatre to earn the respect of the employees there. Here are some of the other tasks that the manager must be well versed in.

• Movie Projectors are the lifeline of cinemas. Without them, movies cannot be played to the audience. They must be maintained well to avoid damage to the films and thus, resulting in failure to project. A manager must learn the technique of projection and projector maintenance so that in the absence of the projectionist.
• Cinema is all about scheduling. Scheduling means not only the performance schedule of movies but also the employee schedule so that all are in sync.
• Cinema Theatre Managers must learn all the skills as much as possible. For example, if an electrical line fails or a plumbing line leaks in the toilet and outside help is not possible due to various reasons, then the manager must be able to fix them. As weekends and holidays are the time when the cinema is crowded, immediate fixing is necessary or the cinema would lose its’ business.
• Though not frequent, managers must also study films to answer questions about films.

 

Cashiers

If the managers are the ones who work off-stage, cashiers are the first people whom the general public see when they first enter the cinema. The main job of the cashier is to sell tickets to the public. He must have first-hand knowledge of the show times, availability of seats, capacity and seating arrangements for each movie that runs on the theatre. As movie-goers first see the cashiers to buy tickets, the cashiers’ first impression is important for enjoying the whole movie. Cashiers must be fluent with the ticketing system of the cinema and must handle the cash register efficiently.

Refreshment Stand Workers

After the Cashier, the refreshment stand workers are the ones that the customers face. These workers work on the refreshment stands to sell food and snacks to the customers. Their job is to maintain the area and keep them clean because it is the place where food is served. They also maintain the cash register in food counters.

Ushers

Ushers are the ones who check the customers’ tickets for the movie they are going. They are also the ones who direct the movie-goers to the go to the right seating. They are responsible for keeping the inside of the theater clean after the customers have left the theater and keep it ready for the next show. The other duties of the ushers are to check for the sound and picture quality, check the bathroom for cleanliness and talk with the customers if they have a complaint.

Projectionists

The projectionist is responsible for playing the movie on schedule and to check for any error when the movie is running. Though the cinema theaters are operated nowadays by a central computer, projectionists are important to ensure that there is no problem during filming.

Conclusion

Managing a Cinema Theatre is very crucial to ensure the successful running of the theater. Almost all the Cinema theaters are departmentalized and managers are recruited to oversee all the employees of their respective departments. With anefficient workforce in place and proper planning, managing cinema can be done successfully.