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\title{Presidential Review 2003}
\author{Sky Weber}
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`If there is one underlying principle that must guide the next twelve months it
is to remember that our members are not customers'.  Some of you were here last
year and may remember Richard Bray; the previous President ending last year's
\emph{Presidential Review} on that somewhat humble request.  Although many people
disagreed with it, I feel, for reasons that will become apparent, that it is a
very fitting way to begin this year's review.

One of the last tasks for a President before they hand over is to present a
review of the Society's activities over the past year.  I now stand before you
to talk about where we have showed strength and camaraderie and where we have
not been able to rise to the challenges that have been set before us.  I'll try and keep it as
short as possible as I'm sure you all have much better things to do then listen
to me here, like listen to me present the Film Quiz over at the bar in a few
moments time.  On a slightly more serious note, I would like to keep the
formality that is the \emph{Presidential Review} as short as possible  to ensure that
you all have the opportunity to question me and the rest of the exec about
anything you would like to know about the Society and our stint in office. 

This year started for us with an extra-ordinary event, the special screening of \emph{One Giant Leap}.  This
screening, attended by the directors,  provided me with a very step learning curve into the logistics of
running a society as large as ours, the politics within it and the external forces that ultimately govern it. 
Being President has given me the privilege of working with some fantastic people, who may at times have given
me a headache, but it has been an experience that I shall never forget, and am sure will draw upon for the
rest of my life.  Indeed there have been some fantastic achievements within the society this past year that we
should be proud of.

Technical improvements, and impairments have been carried out this year 
under
the very watchful and occasionally bloodshot eye of Amanda Window.  The biggest
project the technical team undertook this year has been the upgrade to the
sound system.  This has involved new equipment from one end of the sound chain,
with new surround speakers and amplifiers, right through to the source itself
with the soon to be commissioned Sony Dynamic Digital Sound.  SDDS is the
3$^{rd}$ major digital sound format and Warwick Student Cinema will be the only
Student Cinema in the country to boast this superior format and one of only a
handful in the region, reaffirming our status as one of the technical leaders
in our field.

Another area that has seen exponential growth has been the Society's IT
infrastructure.  The IT team headed up by the demure JP has evolved the limited
IT resources of the society from a single account on the University network to
a complete in-house network serving all the society's web hosting, e-mail, and
database requirements.  Although the computers used to provide these services
are very old, slow and decrepit, when networked together they can accomplish
tasks greater then collective abilities put together.

I know this concept of synergy is almost a clich\'{e} but it is very true and one
which we must not forget.  There will always be times when a cog is unable to
perform its role to the standard that has been set by their peers, and more
importantly by themselves.  We must remember that when we are part of a bigger
society, we should not loose sight of the entire picture.  We must come
together and help each other even if it means that we must make sacrifices
ourselves.  However, for this concept to work it is imperative that we admit
when we are wrong and have made mistakes.  There is no one in this room that
could say, with their hand on their heart, that they are perfect and have never
done anything they regret or anything that they feel they could have done
better.  We all make mistakes, we must move on and learn from them and admit
when we are wrong.

Socials as usual have provided a very important aspect to our society.   This is the biggest society on campus
and it is easy to get lost within it and it can be very difficult to break into already formed cliques.  To
ensure that we can get people more involved we must make this feel more like a society. With the new IT system
with have seen the introduction of the ability to \emph{mass mail} our members.  This has made it even easier
to keep them up to date with the goings on within the society.  It also makes informing them about special
events such as The AllNighter and preview screening less troublesome then under the traditional paper methods
of the past.  However, despite the clear benefits that IT gives us by bringing us closer, we must be cautious
not to let it drag us apart.   One area where this could be a potential issue concerns the fortnightly General
Meetings where the advent of IT has the power to lead to their ultimate demise.  The introduction of on-line
rotas and and an improved web page have the potential to remove some of the main reasons for coming to these
meetings.   However, the General Meetings should be more then rotas and news, they should provide a forum for
everyone to meet face to face without the usual restrictions that a computer can imposes on us.

So.  Going back to the point I started my review with: Do we have members
or customers?  The easiest way to answer that question is to ask
ourselves, are we a society or are we a service?  I think to be able to
answer that question correctly we should break the society into two
distinct categories.  Number 1: The Associates.  You guys and gals make
the society what it is, it is with your dedication and commitment that we
are able to show films almost every night of the week and we need to repay
that dedication by giving you more then just something to put on your CV.

It is very easy to get carried away with being highly involved in the society,
it is very important to enjoy yourself every once in a while and to have fun. 
This term has seen film showing times put back by half an hour to allow the Associates
working shows to have more time afterwards to socialise and add more \emph{fun}
to being a part of our family.  So on this level I can positivly say that we are a
society.

The second group of people in our society is populated by The Members.  These are the people who purely come
to watch films and enjoy themselves. Some of you here, and indeed most of those over in The Union feel that
this group of people are merely customers and not members.  Why do they feel this?  Because to them all we do is provide them
with a cinema.  On a level this may be true, but we must remember that they pay for this service, not only in
terms of buying a ticket but also by becoming a member.  This year the Union imposed a `SocsFed' tax on joining societies, raising
the cost of joining a society from \pounds{2.50} to almost \pounds{8} and we must strive to add as much value as possible to
memberships now more then ever in order to counteract the decrease in membership that we, along with most
societies have experienced this year.  This can be done by introducing more speaker evenings, and by arranging
more preview screenings both of which have been very scarce this year due to forces out of our control.  We
can also work with other societies to give our members a bigger package that consists of more then just a
ticket to see a film.  When we give up the fight and admit to The Union that we are just a money making
service and our members are in fact just customers, as they would like us to, we shall divorce ourselves from
this very important part of our family.  This part of the society gives us meaning; it provides us with the
reason for the societies existence.  Film is a very powerful media and has the capability to affect people in
many ways.  It has the power to make us laugh, make us cry and most importantly open our minds and make us
think.

On an affirming crescendo Warwick Student Cinema is a magnificent society and I mean that in the most positive
way, true to our society's embracing tradition.
 
Thank you


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