Amid a gloomy business atmosphere, movie premieres continue to
shine brightly in Westwood Village.
“The Matrix: Reloaded,” which premiered Wednesday,
follows a long tradition of high-profile Westwood movie
premieres.
According to Glen Gay, a supervisor at the Fox Westwood Village
Theater, Westwood held its first premiere in 1938 with the opening
of the black-and-white musical comedy “My Lucky
Star.”
Since then, Westwood has become one of the most popular locales
in Los Angeles for big-budget movie premieres.
Neighborhood theaters which host major events include the Fox,
the Bruin, and the National, all three of which are owned by the
Mann Theatres chain.
Gay said the Village’s sound system makes it an attractive
venue for high-profile premieres.
“The speaker system in the auditorium is really outrageous
and people love it,” he said.
Westwood’s convenient location also contributes to its
attractiveness as a premiere venue. Many celebrities come to
Westwood to watch movies as regular patrons.
“This is the theater that all the stars go to,” Gay
said of the Fox.
While individual theaters host the movie premieres, the events
themselves are organized and publicized by the major film
studios.
Lylle Breier, senior vice president of Worldwide Special Events
at Disney Studios, organizes the premieres for Disney films.
She said premieres bring in celebrities and the media in order
to maximize publicity for the film being released.
It is important to “get as many famous people as you
can,” Breier said.
Premieres also serve as a “coming-out party” to
celebrate the efforts of the actors, directors and other
participants who made the film, she added.
Breier said a number of factors influence the selection of a
theater to host a particular premiere, including auditorium size
and technical aspects.
Disney premieres most of its movies at the El Capitan Theatre in
Hollywood.
Warner Brothers Studios owns Mann Theatres and thus holds many
of its premieres at the theaters in Westwood.
Breier said there is a sense of competition among theaters to
attract premieres.
“There is nothing more sexy (or) more exciting” for
a theater than to host a premiere, she explained.
For theater employees, sighting movie stars and random
celebrities is what makes premieres attractive.
Julian Arreguin, an employee at the Bruin Theater, said he tries
talking to celebrities “only when the manager isn’t
looking.”
Brad Pitt, George Clooney, and Jack Nicholson are some of the
many stars he has spotted at premieres.
“They look better in person,” he said.
Gay said some celebrities “won’t give you the time
of day,” but most are generally nice.
“They ask you to hold their popcorn while they take
pictures,” he said.