Well this is certainly sad. In less than three months, many of the 368 remaining drive-ins across the U.S. will go dark forever if they can’t afford to convert to digital projection, estimated at $75,000+ per screen. Honda aims to change that. In support of Project Drive-In, Honda’s effort to save as many drive-ins as possible, the automaker is hosting a one-day live Twitter Vine auction today with film critic Leonard Maltin as auctioneer. Proceeds will go directly to Project Drive-In: Save the Drive-In Fund.
Starting at 10AM PST, a Vine video will post on the @Honda Twitter account showcasing at least eight items available for auction. Each item will be opened up to bidding when that item-specific Vine video is tweeted out with information detailing the minimum bid price and auction closing time.
To participate in the auction, bidders will tweet the title of the item, bid price and hash tag #DriveInAuction. The highest bid at the close of the auction wins. @Honda will tweet the winning bidder who will then be directed via @Honda direct message to a payment page on the Project Drive-In fundraising Web page. The auction will conclude at 2 p.m. PT.
Auction items include:
– Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 plush toys, autographed poster, concept artwork and Hollywood VIP package featuring tickets to the Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 premiere and tour of the Sony Pictures and Sony Pictures Animation studio lots
– Four Disneyland park hopper tickets and four Aquarium of the Pacific tickets
– Basketball and license plate signed by Maroon 5, headlining the 2013 Honda Civic Tour
– Private suite experience at Paramore concert (headlined 2010 Honda Civic Tour) at Honda Center on Oct. 19, includes tickets and catering for 16 people
In addition, a Honda-donated 2014 Odyssey Touring Elite is available on the Project Drive-In fundraising Web page for $50,000 and will be promoted during the auction. The donation will not only award the winning bidder with the brand new Odyssey minivan, but also help fund an additional digital projector and save another drive-in from closing.
Of the effort, Honda & Acura Social Marketing Manager Alicia Jones said,”Project Drive-In has sparked so many heartwarming stories and dedicated communities determined to save their drive-in culture that Honda feels compelled to do even more. We want to help people keep their drive-ins open, so we have launched this auction utilizing Vine and Twitter to help get more people involved by leveraging a medium where people are already talking about #SaveTheDriveIn.”
