Bratenahl’s Man Behind The Projector
By Tim A. Schultz
If you’re ever lucky enough to be invited to Jim and Lori Zaas’ house to watch a movie,
you are in for a major surprise and an evening you will not soon forget. The reason,
unlike most of us with a common Blu-Ray player and wide screen TV, Jim Zaas has a
complete working movie theater built into the basement of his Haskell home.
A Passion For Projection
Jim’s lifelong fascination with film projection started when he was only six years old.
When Jim’s father was hospitalized with multiple sclerosis, his Uncle Lou made it a point
to visit almost every week. A movie buff, Lou would bring along his own projector and
movie to entertain Jim’s dad, as well any patient who wanted to watch. To see his dad,
Jim usually came along. Interestingly enough, the movies that Uncle Lou showed held
little interest for Jim. Instead, he was fascinated by the mechanics behind the show. And
because of that fascination, Uncle Lou soon bought Jim his first 8 mm projector. At the
age of 7, Jim started showing 8 mm silent movies to his buddies. Then, after Jim’s uncle
bought him his first 16 mm projector at the age of 12, Jim’s passion for projection really
took off. During junior high and high school, Jim was the movie guy, routinely showing
fellow students films during recess and lunch. Jim was the go-to guy for film projection
for good reason: he was often the only one who knew how to operate the projectors.
Although Jim’s real passion was projection, it takes a movie to make a show. At 12 years
old (and after his first couple of projectors), Jim began collecting films. For every
Christmas and birthday, Jim could count on at least one new movie from his uncle and
mother. Then, at age 30, Jim took his collection to the next level. When Sunray Films
went out of business, he made his first major purchase, buying 135 feature films for $18
each. Today, Jim owns over 550 films, including 180 in 35 mm format, each nicely
stored on multiple 45-pound reels, the same large film format still used by most local
theaters. (Today, some theaters are switching to digitally downloaded movies on a hard
drive. No more celluloid.)
Inside The Zaas Theater
Movie night at the Zaas house is guaranteed to impress. On the way to his in-house
theater, you first pass through a veritable museum. You’ll see 18 projectors from his
collection of 40 on display, each one with its own special story. There is an exact replica
of that first Bell & Howell projector that Uncle Lou used to entertain his dad. There are
also exact replicas of Jim’s first 8 mm and 16 mm projectors, as well replicas of the
projectors that Jim worked on in junior high and high school. But that’s the museum. It’s
show time.
Jim’s in-house theater is 18 feet wide by 30 feet long with 12 recliners in a stadiumseating format. As you walk up the sloped incline to find your seat, you are guided by
theater-stair lighting. The screen is 13-1/2 feet wide by 6-1/2 feet high for a perfect
Cinemascope aspect ratio of 2.35:1. And as far as those noisy projectors go, you won’t
have to worry. They are in an elevated enclosed projection room, which is behind and
separate from the theater.
The projection room includes one 16 mm projector and two 35 mm film projectors
retrofitted with Xenon lamps. Built in 1947, these 500-pound Motiograph projectors were
considered the Rolls Royce of film projection prior to the digital age. Jim has also added
a digital projection unit for DVDs and Blu-Rays. To house all of his feature films, he
added a warehouse and storage facility behind the projection room that is 15 feet by 20
feet. Then, to make certain that his theater area, projection room and storage facility are
all climate-controlled, providing less humidity and adequate ventilation, he even added a
separate furnace.
With respect to Jim’s personal tastes in film, you will find plenty of comedies and science
fiction. It’s no wonder that one of his favorites is, “It’s A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World,” a
movie with special meaning. Married to Lori for 43 years, this was the feature film they
saw together on their first date.
You might wonder if Jim made any mistakes having a theater built into his new Haskell
home. Considering that it was his third effort at installing a theater into a house, he got it
right. He even used the same builder who was responsible for constructing the last two
theaters in both of Jim’s homes in Moreland Hills and Chagrin Falls.
So why does he do it? According to Jim, “I don’t sing. I don’t dance. I can’t entertain
anyone. But I get tremendous satisfaction putting on a show and seeing friends enjoy a
movie in my home entertainment center.”