![[Shawn G. Smith and Heather Coburn in The Way]](/TheWay/shawn_heather_2.jpg)
Four-walling means that you rent the theater and show the movie
yourself. The theater keeps the concessions. They make more money with
popcorn and drinks than they do with the movie tickets anyway. You knew
that, right? They do.
You can rent a theater for $100 to $300 per day just about anywhere. Some theaters cost more. You should study the theater location and prospective audience demographics very carefully before you make a deal.
It’s really not that hard to rent theaters. But try to negotiate very carefully. Sometimes you’ll find a theater owner who likes your movie and is willing to go fifty-fifty with you. Other times you make a deal where you pay for the advertising and the theater owner gets a smaller percentage of the "door."
There are all kinds of deals you can make, but remember your first concern should be the screening you give your movie, because you can take those exhibition figures, facts and receipts and get yourself a better theatrical distribution deal later, after you’ve proven the box office potential of your movie.