F911 shuns Pinellas Co., FL - 4th largest city in FL gets Cold Shoulder

[soup]

Bear with me please while I set up my question. Still on my first cup of coffee.

Does a chain (Regal, AMC) decide if they will carry a film and in which theater? Do individual theaters have any control over what is shown on their screens? Is it entirely decided by bookers at distributing companies?

F911 was being advertised as opening in at least 1,000 theaters on 06/25. What was the final number? 800+?

Wouldn't LionsGate and IFC (distributors of the film) be aware of things like population, market shares, demographics and ticket sales from former releases and take that into consideration when booking a film?

For those not familiar with the area, Pinellas county, FL could easily incorporate as one giant municipality called Pinellas County City, FL.
Information and a small map here: http://www.pinellascounty.org/Municipalities.htm

What on earth would cause a distributor to decide to open a film in a theater in a little outskirts town with a population of 12,701 (Oldsmar, FL) and NOT in a neighboring municipalities with a population of 101,830 (Clearwater, FL), NOT in Dunedin with 35,234, NOT in Pinellas Park (46,642), NOT in Tarpon Springs (21,003), NOT in Seminole (18,500 ), NOT in Largo (68,500 ) and NOT in the 4th largest city in Florida - St. Petersburg (249,068 )?

Did bookers at LionsGate or IFC make a list where the film would show and someone say, "OH, We just HAVE to put this film in a theater in the town of Oldsmar, FL?" (no offense meant to anyone who lives there). Did someone else pipe up and say,"Let's Not place it in Largo, pop. 68,500, and centrally located in the county. That just would not be to our advantage." and someone's final word in the decision-making go something like this, "Well, we definitely do NOT want the film to open in St. Petersburg, population 249,068, the 4th largest city in FL. What a mistake that would be."???

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FINALLY, I get to the point of my post...
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'Fahrenheit' gives Pinellas the cold shoulder

If you wonder why Michael Moore's Fahrenheit 9/11 isn't showing at a theater near you, the answer is twofold: economics and ignorance.

First the economics: Fahrenheit 9/11 opened Friday on a reported 868 theater screens nationwide. In the Tampa Bay area, it's at AMC's Woodlands Square 20, Veterans 24, Westshore 14 and Regency 20 megaplexes, the Sunrise Cinemas in Tampa's Old Hyde Park and Burns Court Cinemas in Sarasota.
>snip<

Now the ignorance part: Bookings for theaters are generally handled on orders from distribution executives in Los Angeles and New York, who haven't learned that the Tampa Bay area, ranked No. 15 among U.S. movie markets, includes three cities: Tampa, St. Petersburg and Clearwater. When scheduling Tampa Bay area theaters, bookers keep thinking Tampa only, like some sports fans still think the Tampa Bay Devil Rays play baseball in Tampa.

Last week, I contacted Russell Nelson at Lions Gate Films, distributor for Fahrenheit 9/11, and explained our geographical identity crisis. Nelson was informed that nearly half of the 15th-largest U.S. movie market would essentially be ignored if bookings weren't secured on the west side of Tampa Bay. I suggested three Pinellas County theaters as venues. Nelson said he appreciated the information and would pass it along to bookers.
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http://www.sptimes.com/2004/06/26/Artsandentertainment/_Fahrenheit__gives_Pi.shtml

The article goes on to mention the opening of Gibson's "Passion", and assurance that there's no 'conspiracy' about where the film would open - because "if there were, Moore would certainly use it for publicity purposes, as he did with other protests".

So, what's up with that? :shrug: Does anyone know?