8mm Forum: 16mm negatives

This is topic 16mm negatives in forum 16mm Forum at 8mm Forum.

To visit this topic, use this URL:
https://8mmforum.film-tech.com/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=5;t=000310

Posted by Jim Schrader (Member # 9) on May 05, 2008, 08:43 PM:

Hey all I aquired 3 films or kinescopes of a tv show that ran nearly 40 years ago the film and soundtrack were made on seperate films the main print is the negative and the second is just the sound track with no picture how were these transfered? does anybody know the process thanks

Posted by John Whittle (Member # 22) on May 05, 2008, 10:49 PM:

Yes, this is the common method. Sound tracks are recorded on special stock which is high contrast and picture is on a low contrast material. In the case of color, the picture is a color negative and the track is a black and white sound track.

There are two ways this can be done.

1. The picture is printed on a continous contact printer, a hole is punched which is used later to synchronize the track negative. The print is rewound in the dark and the track is printed with a change in the printer aperture to only expose the track.

2. There are printers that have both a picture and sound printer head. In that case the picture negative is threaded against the raw stock and thru the printer picture head, the raw stock continues on to a sound head and the track negative is threaded up and printed.

When the print is completed, the stock is processed and it conttains the picture and track on one piece of film.

This also makes it possible to use the same picture negative with various sound track negatives (for example, spanish or french).

John

Posted by Jim Schrader (Member # 9) on May 06, 2008, 10:28 AM:

Thanks is this a costly thing to have done?

Posted by John Whittle (Member # 22) on May 06, 2008, 01:39 PM:

Labs charge by the foot with a minium billing per item. The first print is called the answer print and is the highest cost, after that you get into release printing and the costs drop.

All that may not matter since, in the USA, labs require a certificate that you own the rights to reproduced the material you have. They won't deal with PD stuff walking in the door, if you're Disney or Fox, that's different but be prepared with a title clearnace (not just a bill of sale) that proves you can order prints. We used to least rights to various educational distributors and each and every lab required that we supply a letter of authorization before they would print for some pretty big names in the educational business.

Don't be surprised if you find a lab to do the work, that they charge you a $1 per foot for an answer print (including checking the negative, cleaning, negative assembly--i.e. running the track through with the negative in a synchronizer and checking physical condition).

Also only a very few labs in the US will accept nitrate film (which you don't have if it's 16mm) but that's another problem to deal with.

John

UBB.classic^TM 6.3.1.2