tiktok cinema secrets

These cinema workers are spilling all the secrets of the cinema on TikTok

Including what is actually going on in the projection room


TikTok has become the place for people to go to share the secrets of the companies they used to work for or to reveal what really happens behind the scenes of certain industries. A few months ago flight attendants dished the dirt on just how messy those planes really are and gave viewers tips on how to get a free upgrade. And now cinema workers are sharing the secrets of the film industry too.

Going to the cinema you always wonder who is in the projection room, how often they clean the cinemas and just why on earth is the popcorn so expensive? Two cinema workers, one based in the UK and the other in the US have taken to TikTok to share their movie theatre wisdom with the world including what size drink you should actually get and how the cheese sauce is really made.

TikTok user @thatcoolguy25597 aka June Long went viral earlier this week when he shared the alleged “scam” of the cinema industry about different sized popcorn buckets. He’s since shared a number of other behind the scenes videos from the cinema he appears to work for. There’s also TikToker @baabybelles who used to work in the Odeon and has shared a number of videos about her experience of working there.

This is everything they revealed about the cinema:

Medium popcorn is the same size as small

@thatcoolguy.25597If you’re at the movies just get a small or large no in between💀 ##workingatthemovies ##movies ##comedy ##funny ##fyp ##foryou♬ Calm LoFi song(882353) – S_R

Right this is the one that has blown my mind and I feel royally ripped off. According to @thatcoolguy25597 the small bag and medium bucket of popcorn actually contain the exact same amount of popcorn.

He even demonstrated this in a TikTok video where he emptied the small bag into the medium bucket and it was the exact same amount. We’ve been robbed guys.

The cinemas don’t make money from films

According to @baabybelles there’s a reason the cinemas charge so much for the food and drinks and it’s not just because they hate us but because they don’t make money from the movie tickets. And therefore they need to charge a lot for the concession stand.

This appears to be slightly true as the Independent Cinema Office suggests cinemas make most of their money from screening new release films and selling confectionary.

There are no hoovers to get rid of the popcorn

@baabybelleswhy do I sound like a Karen ??? 😔👊🏻 tbh ushering was my favourite part idk why I’m complaining ##odeon ##film ##trivia ##retail ##fypシ♬ original sound – bella ✨

During one of her Odeon secrets videos @baabybelles claimed the cinemas had cleaners who came in at the end of the day however throughout the rest of the shift it was their job to clean up the screens. However instead of using a hoover to get rid of the popcorn quickly they had to use a brush.

She said: “That doesn’t mean we don’t clean up the screens all day. For anybody who thinks we have hoovers for all this popcorn, we have to use a sweeping brush.”

Yikes, that’s a tedious job.

They put your favourite film on the badge if you work there

One perk of working at the Odeon appears to be the staff’s name badges have their favourite film on them. @baabybelles told her followers in one video the Odeon asks you what your favourite film is whilst filling out their contracts.

After this the film title is then added to their name badge, which is fun.

They took posters home

Another perk if you’re a proper movie fan is getting to take home a poster if you’re a worker at the cinema. According to @baabybelles there is a strict process to getting a poster.

She said: “There would be one nominated cinema host whose job role included doing the posters. If you remember to jot your name down for a poster whilst they’re still up, have a decent manager on shift and/or have a good relationship with the poster person then you could end up taking a massive poster home.”

She goes onto say some posters for films like the Avengers franchise would often be auctioned off for charity.

This is how cheese sauce is made

@baabybellesReply to @erenyaygrrrrr she still tasty tho 😔🤤 ##odeon ##odeoncinema ##cinemasecrets ##behindthescenes ##cinephile ##film ##trivia♬ original sound – bella ✨

Cheesey nachos are a staple cinema snack and @baabybelles explained exactly how they get the cheese sauce to that very thick consistency.

She said: “The cheese sauce arrives to us in a big white tub, when we get it it’s more like a really heavy white paste with bits in it. We had spatulas we would use to get the cheese into a jug.

“We literally pop it in an industrial sized microwave, put it in a cheese heater and it just sits there all day.” Delicious.

This is what goes down in the projection room

As a child and occasionally as an adult you always wonder if there is someone the projection room watching you whilst you watch the movie.

In the past there would be someone in the projection room changing the reels of the film, however now films are delivered to cinemas on hard drives.

According to @baabybelles the manager will upload the films onto the laptops situated in the projection room to play on a queue. Finally the answer I’ve been waiting for.

Featured image credit before edits via Krists Luhaers on Unsplash  

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