Reeling in the movie years

The lights dim and the film reels begin to whir, Russell Campbell has a twinkle in his eye.

He watches as the audience settles, their glowing cellphones go dark and their attention shifts to the silver screen.

And then Mr Campbell (66) goes to work, peering out from his perch high above the audience in the projectionist's box of the Regent Theatre in Dunedin, juggling reels of film, checking colours and sound.

And, at 1.15pm today, it is a job Mr Campbell will have been doing for 50 years, at the Regent, and some of the country's other grand old theatres.

He will mark his milestone in fitting style, setting the reels in motion for a screening of The Killer Inside Me.

It might be a far cry from Mr Campbell's favourites - black and white westerns, musicals and classics like Casablanca - but that does not seem to matter.

For Mr Campbell, it is not about watching the movie - it is about ensuring every thread of film finds its place, the equipment is cleaned and ready, and that - ultimately - the audience enjoys the occasion.

"I tell you, that does the heart good. It makes it all worthwhile," he said yesterday.

"I have never wanted to do anything else."

And not even the advent of television, digital technology and home theatres can quell Mr Campbell's enthusiasm.

In fact, he embraces the changes - purring over the Regent's near-new Simplex 35mm projector, Xenon lamps and Dolby digital sound system more than the old 1940s Kalee 12 projector he once used.

"They were workhorses ... It was pretty rudimentary.

"The Regent is lucky to have the facilities we have got [now]. Well, the Dunedin people are lucky," he said.

Mr Campbell's passion began as a 16-year-old winding film and doing other odd jobs in Dunedin's Embassy Theatre.

However, his enthusiasm for the job came earlier, after a visit to Gisborne's Kings Theatre ended with a tour of the projection box.

"I would have been about 6 or 7, and I was hooked. It was the heat, the smell of oil, the machinery running. It was exciting," Mr Campbell said.

Since then, he has worked in theatres in Gore, Dannevirke and Matamata in the early 1960s, then Hamilton and Christchurch, before moving to Wellington to join the National Film Unit in 1972.

In 1990, he returned to Dunedin, moving about the city's theatres before joining the Regent in 1995.

He retired last year, but still works during the New Zealand International Film Festival, now running in Dunedin, and World Cinema Showcase.

And, despite reaching his 50-year milestone, Mr Campbell has no plans to call for a final curtain.

"I love it as much now as probably when I was that little 6 or 7-year-old boy."

chris.morris@odt.co.nz