When was my 8mm film processed by Kodak?

[Allan Reizman]

He everyone. I'm scanning some old family 8mm Kodak processed film that dates from the early 1960s. These were mailed to and returned from Kodak Australia in the original box before Kodak switched to using mailer envelopes. I'm able to read the symbols and can date when the film was manufactured but I would like to date when the film was developed. On some boxes Kodak has a date and letter code for the year. For example, a reel I recently scanned was marked 21 OCT PE. PE must be a year code but what is it? The film manufacture dates from 1960 per the date symbols. Other boxes have a code punched into the film and box flap.
Can someone help me identify these codes and what they mean?
Thanks in advance, -Al-

[Joerg Polzfusz]

I doubt that the characters are used to indicate the year. They might as well have been indicators for the lab (PE=Perth?), the initials of the the employee that operated the machines, an indicator of the shipping method (PE = Pony Express… or Photo Equipment dealer?) or … whatever.

Back in these days, film was readily available in a large number of shops. So there was no need to buy film in advance. And as there was a constant demand, film never got old in the shops. Hence, as a rule of thumb, the film got shot and processed within a year or two after having been manufactured. Of course, there have been exceptions (sick filmers or „oops, there’s still film from last Christmas in the camera“).

[Allan Reizman]

Understood but it seems strange Kodak would take the bother to print the month and day but leave the year off. By this time K was putting the full date on processed 35mm slides having moved away from leaving the year off. It would be nice to know the exact year the fil was shot which is probably within a 1 or 2 of the film manufacture date.

[Joerg Polzfusz]

The PE might have also indicate that it was the PEth film that day. (The first film would have been marked as AA, the second as AB, …)

The punched in numbers might as well have been the tracking number (on the processing envelopes later as „3“ as your receipt and listed again for Kodak under „1“).

[Allan Reizman]

Frustrating, as I have a film roll, when I decode the symbols, is manufactured around 1952. However I know the exposure was about 10 years later as the scenes and people are circa 1962. Only conclusion I have is someone found an old roll lying around. And, (now I'm ranting) why the glyph date symbols? Couldn't Kodak just mark the year on the film instead of using a code of circles, dots, etc. ??

[Shane C. Collins]

Frustrating, as I have a film roll, when I decode the symbols, is manufactured around 1952. However I know the exposure was about 10 years later as the scenes and people are circa 1962. Only conclusion I have is someone found an old roll lying around. And, (now I'm ranting) why the glyph date symbols? Couldn't Kodak just mark the year on the film instead of using a code of circles, dots, etc. ??

Sometimes you can find the film date of processing on the film itself. If you look along the perforations you can see the print date. I have a reel of film from 1958 that shows a date code, which I assume is the processing date. You may have to hold the film up to the light, and use a magnifying glass to see it. All my modern Ektachrome Super 8 films, that I have shot over the last 10 years, do not come this way from the lab.

[Joerg Polzfusz]

Frustrating, as I have a film roll, when I decode the symbols, is manufactured around 1952. However I know the exposure was about 10 years later as the scenes and people are circa 1962. Only conclusion I have is someone found an old roll lying around. And, (now I'm ranting) why the glyph date symbols? Couldn't Kodak just mark the year on the film instead of using a code of circles, dots, etc. ??

The glyphs might have been caused by technical problems adding readable numbers…but the main question is: why did they repeat the glyphs every 20 years and started to use different glyphs, depending on the production site?
https://www.kodak.com/content/produc...ture-Films.pdf

Another question: Didn’t Kodak also produce motion picture film stocks in Australia? So why is it missing in the above guide? Have they been using the same symbols as in the US?
https://aiccm.org.au/wp-content/uplo...o_p147-158.pdf
https://museumsvictoria.com.au/kodak/products/

[Ken Finch]

Is there not a postage date stamp on the return address side of the box ? This will indicate when it was processed.

[Allan Reizman]

There is a postage stamp but it is unreadable. Kodak did mark the processing day/mo on the box but not the year. I downloaded a chart that interprets the glyphs but those only tell me where and when the film was manufactured. In later years Kodak would mark the processing date on the film leader. This practice did not start until the 1970s.