The Pianist Sounds Off
It's a good job Roman Polanski wasn't around for this screeningJust before a screening of Roman Polanski's latest film The Pianist, the sound system in the main theatre broke and the audience never saw the film.
For the first few minutes of the LA benefit premiere, many in the crowd thought the audio problems were the director's artistic choice.
The 2002 Cannes Palme d'Or winner begins with the Nazis' WWII assault on Warsaw, and it was possible to imagine that the actors' muted voices, as opposed to the bombing that was heard clearly, might indicate deafness caused by explosions.
However, it quickly became apparent that something was wrong with the speakers as the projection stopped and an announcement was made.
The audience milled around for 45 minutes before Focus Films co-president David Linde came out and said, "The guys can't figure out what's wrong with the machinery."
Considering how things went wrong, the crowd - which included Jack Nicholson and Lara Flynn Boyle - was in a surprisingly good mood.
It certainly wasn't like being at the airport when a flight is cancelled.
The guests went right to the buffet, listened to the orchestra and then socialised.A Focus rep said special screenings were being arranged so that the audience could see the film over the next two weeks.
