When you go to the movies, you’re paying for more than a seat in front of the screen. You’re paying for an experience.

As the lights dim, the cold volatility of reality fades away, and you are immersed in the warm security of the film’s vision. But rarely do you consider the catalyst of this artistic escape.

However, if you were to enter into the hidden world of Ragtag’s projector’s booth, you would see how much skill and passion projectionists bring to their vital role in a moviegoer’s experience.

Ragtag moviegoers likely feel a certain combination of excitement and comfort as they walk into the theater, because they know what they’re going to get: the stimulating juxtaposition of an alluring, unpredictable film, and a cozy, familiar, welcoming environment in which to experience it.

Last week, Tony Layson, looking dapper, yet quirky in a pale yellow cardigan, sold tickets to “The King’s Speech,” which was about to start. Before the film began, he walked through the Little Theater, into a back-room filled with cases of beer, and up a narrow staircase into the projector’s booth. In what looked like a small office with purple walls and windows overlooking the two theaters, Layson introduced MOVE to the projection process.

“I get nervous every time,” Layson said. “There’s so many small steps. None of
them are difficult, but there are so many that if you mess up even one, you can either really damage the print or just completely mess things up. It’s all on such a tight time schedule.”

Both Simplex projectors had run over 55,000 hours of 35 mm film. In the corner of the room lay a stack of “platters,” which hold the film reels. One platter holds the film for an entire movie, usually between five and seven reels. The “brain” is a gadget placed in the middle of the reels that controls the speed of the platters, so that the film is running at a constant rate. The film runs through a series of timing mechanisms called rollers over to the projector. The top portion displays the images and the bottom runs the audio. The film comes out of the projector and runs through another series of rollers back onto the platter.

Audience members trickled into the Big Theater to see “The King’s Speech.” As it began to fill and show time neared, Layson turned down the music he had been playing and went downstairs to give the introduction.

When he returned, it was time for what he described as the most anxious part of the process. He lowered the lights, then amidst a whirl of sound and focus adjustments, played DVD bumpers, pulled a red lever to open the shutter and flipped the switch to start running the film.

Watching Layson work, it is clear projectionists are more than mere middlemen who press a button to make a film play, they are passionate professionals who nurture the film and the audience in order to communicate the film’s full artistic potential. They are caretakers of the movie-going experience.

“I think (film) was my first artistic love, so I’ve stayed true to it,” Ragtag projectionist Jon Westhoff said. “I define art as a symbolic communication of ideas and experiences…My art of choice is film to communicate the human experience to people, and (to) unite people.”

Westhoff got his start in the business more than 10 years ago, projecting 16 mm film for the MSA film series at MU.

“I love when we get to show a movie that wouldn’t otherwise be offered in Columbia,” Westhoff said. “It’s neat to contribute to the artistic community in that way.”

When the lights dim and the trailers begin, moviegoers rarely think about who or what is making it happen. But according to Layson, that means he’s doing his job right.

“The whole idea of being a projectionist is you don’t want people to know you’re actually there,” Layson said.