G-FEST Movie Screenings and Complainers

It gets tiresome to have to explain to people multiple times that when we screen movies via DVDs at G-FEST it is only because prints just aren't available.

We have lists of available films in 35mm prints.

This issue cropped up again at a Godzilla message board. One poster posted that he didn't want to drive a long way to see movies projected from a DVD. Well, we don't really want to resort to them either. This year, we had to screen some movies via DVD because 35mm prints featuring our special guest, Kenji Sahara, weren't available. I had to arrange special permission from Toho to screen them via DVD as, per Toho's policy, they don't allow screenings of their movies from DVDs. They agreed to allow it as Mr. Sahara was the guest.

Also, some of the decisions were made at the last minute as we "scoured the earth" for any available prints, including some from collectors right up to the last minute. So we were unable to immediately post whether they are prints or DVDs as we didn't know either.

This was explained several times, yet it doesn't seem to penetrate some folk's thick skulls! Yeesh!

Sometimes we just have no choice in the matter. If anyone doesn't want to attend a screening if it is by DVD projection, that's within their right to do so. But they have to understand that to have screenings with the special guest showcased, we have to go with what's available to us.

It is also interesting to note that those who gripe the most never come up with any ideas themselves.