Operator's Companion
The Operator's
Companion
Everything you need to check before a screening—sunset and actual start time, wind and weather conditions, projector placement measurements, monthly sunset times at a glance, and checklists to ensure everything is in order.
Sunset & true movie start
Type a ZIP and date to see the sunset time and the actual start — about 25 minutes after sunset — plus a full month of dates at a glance.
Sunset is when darkness begins and the picture starts to become viewable. Run your ad reel about 10 minutes after sunset — bright, bold, high-saturation slides that hold up in the fading light — then start the feature around 25 minutes after sunset, once it’s truly dark.
Hour-by-hour for your event night
An event-night breakdown from 3 PM through 2 AM with wind, gusts, and chance of rain — flagged the hour they start to matter, so you know what the show is up against.
Projector throw & operator checklists
A quick rule of thumb for projector placement, a link to the calculator that handles every model, and two operator checklists for pre-event prep and showtime.
Calculate Movie Start Time
Enter the venue's ZIP code and the event date. Find the earliest the sky is dark enough for a high-contrast picture.
Event-day detail
Hour by hour for the date above, 3 PM through 2 AM. Wind, gusts, and chance of rain for the location you entered, from Open-Meteo.
| Time | Conditions | Temp | Precip % | Precip in | Wind | Gusts |
|---|
Forecast by Open-Meteo. Hourly numbers shift through the day — re-check 2–3 hours before doors.
Live precipitation radar
Animated weather radar for your venue — recent echoes plus a short nowcast. Regional view; it recenters on the ZIP you enter above.
Radar unavailable right now. Use the gust curve and the hour-by-hour detail above — they don't need radar.
Radar by RainViewer · basemap © OpenStreetMap, © CARTO. Regional view (radar tiles are capped at a wide zoom for coverage).
Monthly sunset calendar
A month at a glance, with sunset and movie-start times for every day.
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Enter a ZIP or postal code above to see sunset times.
Download 12 month guide per state
A free, printable year-round sunset guide for every U.S. state capital — each day’s sunset, the temperature at sunset, your ad-reel start (about 10 minutes after sunset), and movie start (about 25 minutes after).
Choose your state and download PDF.
Each guide is calculated for the state capital. Want one adjusted for your exact zip code? Produce your own above, or contact us and we’ll generate it for you.
Sunset marks the start of darkness — the moment the projected image begins to become viewable. About 10 minutes later is your ad-reel window: there’s still a lot of ambient light right after sunset that washes out contrast and dilutes the picture, so design those reels with bright backgrounds, big bold fonts, and saturated colors — high contrast and high saturation are what cut through. By roughly 25 minutes after sunset it’s dark enough for a crisp, full-contrast image — start the feature.
Projector throw distance
Where to place the projector depends on the projector model — every lens has its own throw range. Projector Central has the calculator that handles every model; this page sets the rule of thumb so you arrive knowing what to aim for.
Open Air Cinema projection surfaces have a 16:9 ratio, and we name our screens by their horizontal width — a Pro 20, for example, measures 20′ × 11′. To find throw distance, enter that horizontal width into the Projector Central calculator linked below.
Precision matters. Moving a projector at showtime is hard — sometimes impossible — so double-check every measurement before you set up.
When you cross-reference your projector’s throw range on Projector Central, aim for the middle of its range. That leaves zoom headroom on both ends.
Checklists
Two short lists: pre-event prep at home, then everything from day-of through showtime at the venue. Check off as you go — the page keeps your place.
Keep the Companion one tap away
The Companion lives on this page — no app to install, no account to create. Bookmark it so it's there when you need it at the venue.
On iPhone (Safari)
- With this page open, tap the Share icon at the bottom of the screen.
- Choose “Add to Home Screen” to keep it next to your other apps, or “Add Bookmark” to save it in Safari.
- Tap Add. Open it any time from your Home Screen or Bookmarks.
On Mac or PC
- Press ⌘+D (Mac) or Ctrl+D (Windows) to open the bookmark dialog.
- Choose the Favorites bar so the Companion stays one click away.
- Click Add. You'll find it across the top of every new tab.