First was Wisconsin, where 19 buses were brought in to transport 800 people from Middleton and Mazomanie to fill 10 screens at a local cinema. An exhilarating buzz permeated the rumbling buses as employees, many adorned in Star Wars costumes, chattered about their hopes and expectations.
"I've been waiting for this movie since before I was born," said Mike Tarman, a lifelong Star Wars enthusiast from ETC's marketing department. "I've kept my expectations in check, but I'm feeling something I've not felt since." Tarman, an aspiring filmmaker, helped create a Star Wars-themed video to announce the company outing at ETC's holiday party a week prior. Since then the entire company has been buzzing.
Upon arrival, attendees found free drinks and popcorn awaiting them, as well as a full-sized, remote-controlled R2-D2 replica, who was featured in the announcement video. This came courtesy of ETC product graphics designer John Masino's brother Mike, who has been building the droid for a couple of years, including having some parts painted at ETC.
One by one, ETC's offices in New York, Los Angeles, Orlando, London, Holzkirchen (Germany), Rome, Ede (the Netherlands), and Hong Kong were all closed to allow their staff to see the film at separate showings in their time zones.
This is the third time ETC has closed for a film premiere. First was Star Trek: The Motion Picture in 1979 when ETC counted a mere five employees. Then in 1999, ETC's CEO Fred Foster sent more than 500 employees to attend Star Wars: The Phantom Menace.
"We're a company of geeks!" he exclaims. "And we're thrilled to celebrate one of the most anticipated motion picture releases in history."
(Jim Evans)
