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Author
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Topic: Films bought by non-collectors?
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Adrian Winchester
Film God
Posts: 2941
From: Croydon, London, UK
Registered: Aug 2004
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posted May 26, 2018 01:21 PM
There's sometimes speculation that high prices of films sold on ebay have been pushed up due to bids from film memorabilia collectors who don't own projectors. I'm not claiming that this never happens and I can imagine a Star Wars collector thinking that (e.g.) a Ken 400' with the original box in good condition has an appealing retro charm, and they might even enjoy holding a few frames up to the light now and again to reflect on how domestic film viewing happened in the 'old days' And I can imagine some liking the idea of having the Derann feature if they are quite wealthy, especially if the box is in good shape and they know what version it is. Otherwise, though, I generally struggle to imagine the appeal of a feature to anyone that doesn't collect film, especially if it has been placed on larger spools and any original artwork is missing or cut up. If I was a non-film collector seeking material from (e.g.) the Alien series, I suspect I'd prefer a Ken 400' with an excellent condition box to a feature, because it would cost far less, look better on a shelf and take up less room. Edited versions are arguably part of the distinctive period charm of Super 8 releases from the mass market era.
So, I'm asking whether the appeal of Super 8 (or even 16mm) to non-collectors is mostly speculation, or is anyone aware of hard facts which conclusively indicate that they are freqently bidding high for films and pushing up prices? Part of the reason I'm unsure is because Super 8 advert reels have been attracting plenty of high bidders on ebay recently - I saw one 200' reel go for over £70 a few days ago and others were selling for over £50. I can't imagine that these would be of great interest to memorabilia collectors, but film collectors know they will become increasingly hard to find, and you can't easily buy a digital alternative.
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Adrian Winchester
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Tom Photiou
Film God
Posts: 4837
From: Plymouth U.K
Registered: Dec 2003
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posted June 02, 2018 02:00 AM
i'm not too sure on this subject myself. At the end of the day, if, for example, i was a star wars fanatic, and i paid a thousand for the feature on ebay as a a non collector it wouldn't take long to work out that all you need to watch your treasure is a projector and these come up in abundance on ebay. Researching anything these days is relatively easy for everyone with the internet.
There are hardened cine collectors who buy for the sake of it and amass thousands of films. How do you ever get around to viewing them? I struggle with 580. I agree that there is bound to be some people who collect cine films but probably never view them, i guess i call them hoarders. It would seem pointless having a collection of movies if you never intend to view. ![[Wink]](wink.gif)
I put a 200ft cartoon up on ebay a couple of years ago, (motor mania, goofy), it went for over £80, if i could get that for all my 200s I'd sell them today, then use the money for some 16mm features. For one (maybe two), of those £70 200ft reels you could get a 16mm feature.
The advert reels do have a lot of appeal, most of them are superb in quality and of course, they are essential to create the reel cinema feeling as show openers. I wish i bought all of them as they were released but we do have 15 at present. I was browsing through some of the old film for the collector magazines the other night, During one period in the 90s, it looked like Derann released a new advert reel every three months.
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