Info Desk | Why Movieville?
Why have I taken the time to create Movieville? First and foremost: I love movies, and I love movies seen in movie theaters. Los Angeles is the best place in the world for that.
(This is also where I happen to live; I could do this for a handful of theaters in DC, NY, Orlando, Seattle and Nashville but a handful isn't good enough. If you seriously want to launch another city, drop me a line and we can talk about either space here or the marginally competent database design I use.)
State of the art starts here. Anyone who saw (for a recent example) "Independence Day" at the Village in Westwood on July 2 or 3 or 4 knows what an experience going to the movies can be. Part of the big screen experience is the big screen spectacle; you don't get that on TV, or even at some of the smaller multiplexes. But wait, you say, I've never been to the Village! I've never even heard of it. Or, I've heard of it, but I heard there isn't anywhere to park. Well, that's what the Theaters section is for - to tell you about it and where to park.
But not everywhere is quite that up to date. There are still plenty of theaters in this film-industry town that are not so hot. (Sadly, some of them are almost brand new yet appear to be designed to hold shoes, not movie screenings.) Some theaters aren't bad, but are prone to sellouts -- and if you'd only known, you'd have left earlier. The movie theater list is also here to help you steer clear of the bad theaters, or at least be forewarned to avoid disappointment.
Anyone who has been to the Orpheum in Downtown LA for a LA Conservancy "Last Remaining Seats" screening knows that we've got our share of history - and there aren't just classic theaters in LA, there are also classic movies. Far more movies than theaters - in fact, classics and other special film events play all the time in LA. If you don't know where to look, though, won't find them. The other night I was at the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences in Beverly Hills for a tribute to the great director Stanley Donen, with clips from a dozen of his best - "Singin' in the Rain," "Charade," and many others - and Donen himself was there, ten feet from me. A row behind him was Arthur Hiller, president of the Academy. Two rows behind him was Billy Wilder. (I managed to snag the "seat reserved for Wilder" sign he squished. I couldn't be more proud.) While I was getting Donen's autograph Jimmy Stewart came up to him. Now, I'm not anyone important (yet) - this event was open to the public. Tickets were a whopping six dollars. There were a handful of empty seats - everyone in the standby line got in. I know lots of people who after hearing my experience there wished they'd only known in advance. Well, the revival theater guide are here to make an attempt to help you find those events - before you read how great it was later.
I also created Movieville as an interesting design project that would be free except for my time (which it certainly seems to eat a lot of) and as an excuse to not work on my screenplays. (I mean, as an escape from the hours and hours I put in on my screenplays. Yeah. That's what I meant.)
Thanks for your interest! If you'd like to see Movieville thrive and grow and get updated, check out the Future of Movieville.
Otto