posted November 11, 2008 03:49 PM
Can anyone describe what steps one must take for an optical blowup, of b/w Super 8mm (Plus X, Tri X), to an internegative format and then to a b/w 35mm release print?
Would it be necessary to make an intermediary blow-up from a conformed S8mm master- to 16mm internegative- and to then blow that up to 35mm positive?
Or is someone equipped to go straight from S8mm to 35mm internegative?
The film to be thus processed is a documentary about waterfronts and harbors. Huge, pelting film grain is one of the goals.
It seems the optical route is becoming a rarity. Engineers argue that there is a greater degree of control over the creation of a digital intermediate and a subsequent tape to film transfer.
I am trying to stay on the film side with this project and to be economical. Are the two contradictory?
Surely there are film specialists who have maintained their own laboratories, who conform positive S8mm masters and reshoot them in highly controlled conditions?
Or is the consensus that nothing is finally gained by choosing the optical path over the digital?