Idiot’s guide to film preservation (for absolute beginners)
May 28, 2007 | filmpres | trackback3. Saving the contents, saving the material
F: Hmm… I_’m getting the feeling that films survived through a lot of crises.
P: That’s how it really is.
F: Although, uh… I hesitate to say this, can I ask you a question?
P: What about?
F: Well, nowadays, it’s easy to watch movies on VHS or DVD, right? So, I wonder why we have to keep films. I know that they look a bit different, but the digital technology is getting advanced, and if you save the data in the computer, it’s handy and saves space.Also if you save films it means we hardly get access to them, because you have to conserve them carefully. It doesn’t make much sense to me.
P: That’s partly true, because the more you project films the more the films get damaged. People who try to save films want to show them as little as possible, but for film fans it’s meaningless if they cannot see them. This contradiction is a long term problem.
F: That’s why I’m saying that after the films were copied onto an accessible medium, the original films are__
P: No need to keep them?
F: Well, I hate to say this because I love films but it seems to me easier not to keep them… does that sound too harsh?
P: Not at all. That’s one way to look at it, really. But, at this stage you are only wanting to see films right now, yeah? I believe we’d better think about passing the films on to the next generation.
F: Why?
P: Firstly, if you digitize all the films, it takes time and costs(S1) a ridiculous amount, at least nowadays. Even if you get over the problem of cost, if the data is erased for some reason, That’s the end. All over. And the latest hardware doesn’t last so long. Don’t you think 10 year old software will possibly not be playable soon? You know Laser Disks were popular at one time, but now we can hardly play them.
F: Well, maybe That’s the case. Digital technology advances too quickly, doesn’t it?
P: But if you keep the original, you can be flexible against the technology changes. it’s not the goal of film preservation to transfer the contents to the latest medium, but to store the film in a proper condition, think about the repair and duplication, accumulate data, and pass it all on to the next generation. it’s a never ending job.
F: OK, then if we preserve them, future generations can see them in very good condition.
P: And the actual materials are really important. Why did this scratch occur? What does this label on the film can mean? What is this mark on the film edge(S2)? If the original materials are there, you can trace the meaning and the history of the film as well.
F: I see. Not only the contents.
P: You can get to know a lot from the materials.
F: But, if That’s the case, we have to save so many things. Do we have enough space(S3)?
P: Oh yes, That’s exactly what we are worried about.
memo
S1: Digital restoration of a feature film, in the case of a domestic (Japanese) lab could cost more than 100,000,000yen.
S2: This marking is called Edge code, which tells you the year of film production.
S3: The biggest film vault in Japan is __Film Center Sagamihara Annex__, which can store 200,000 rolls (about 40,000 titles worth of feature films).
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