Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: 70mm Prints In Indy ETS

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Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 09-07-2000, 07:20 AM:

I was at the ETS branch in Indianaplis yesterday and they have the following 70mm prints on the shelf.
1. Hunt For Red October
2. Aliens
3. Days Of Thunder
4. Top Gun(had just been shipped to Chicago)
Anyone looking for 70mm prints to screen take heed of these. They are supposedly all in good shape.
Mark

Posted by John Pytlak (Member # 331) on 09-07-2000, 07:52 AM:

I'm sure there are other 70 mm "gems" in exchanges around the world, waiting to be shown again. With proper promotion, they should do pretty good business, even though these films have been available on video for years. Put them on your biggest screen, and get the local press involved in promoting the "Splendor of 70 mm" again --- see the film as it was meant to be seen, on a BIG bright screen with six tracks of sound.

Any Kodak print made since Kodak introduced lower fade dye technology in print film in 1982 should have minimal fading. Older triacetate prints may have a bit of shrinkage or vinegar smell if they were stored improperly, because the solvents and iron oxide used in magnetic striping can aggravate vinegar syndrome. Physical wear-and-tear and track degradation are the only remaining concerns, so anyone booking a 70 mm print should try to project and inspect it well ahead of any public showings.

Anyone showing 70 mm features should post the information here, and share their experiences. If you have first-hand knowledge of the location and condition of any 70 mm prints, post them by title on the Film-Tech "Feature Info & Trailer Attachments" forum, so others can know which prints to specifically request. I'll get the ball rolling by copying and collating posts that have already been made regarding specific 70 mm prints.

------------------
John P. Pytlak, Senior Technical Specialist
Worldwide Technical Services, Entertainment Imaging
Eastman Kodak Company
Research Labs, Building 69, Room 7419
Rochester, New York, 14650-1922 USA
Tel: 716-477-5325 Fax: 716-722-7243
E-Mail: john.pytlak@kodak.com

Posted by Dave Cutler (Member # 515) on 09-07-2000, 09:13 AM:

My local ETS depot has atleast 2 70mm prints of 'Star Trek V', I don't know the condition. They also have atleast one 70mm print of 'Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.' I saw more 70mm prints but didn't have time to check them all out. Next time I am there I will take a closer look and ask about their condition.

Posted by Brad Miller (Member # 2) on 09-07-2000, 01:30 PM:

That is the only Top Gun print in existence. It has problems, mostly splices. Also, the reels were jumbled between prints and the sound changes from reel to reel, so an overall average must be obtained when setting up the MPU.

The prints of Hunt for Red October and Days of Thunder in the Dallas depot (could be those by now) were in excellent shape.

Posted by Jim Ziegler (Member # 86) on 09-07-2000, 02:29 PM:

2 prints of Star Trek 5? FOr the good of mankind, they must be destroyed immeditely!

Posted by Dave Cutler (Member # 515) on 09-07-2000, 02:34 PM:

Now c'mon Jim, everyone knows Star Trek V is the best Star Trek movie.

Posted by John Wilson (Member # 269) on 09-08-2000, 12:42 AM:

Actually, there's a Top Gun here, but you'd need to have full houses just to pay for the freight!

...it's condition has been stated previously. It is in great shape on screen, but the end of reels 2, 4 and 6 have badly strained and cut sprockets where someone has run it for a while with too high tension on the feed arm.

We've also got Rocky 3 (!) and Gone With The Wind but I'd hate to see the condition of GWTW. I'll correct that...I'd just hate to see GWTW in 70mm. What were they thinking!

There's others but I'll post them where John P. suggested.

Posted by Dave Bird (Member # 490) on 09-08-2000, 07:13 AM:

What determines which movies actually get struck in 70. Are they requested and specially done for 70mm houses (then presumably because of the lack of titles in storage now, shredded?)? Or do the directors/ or distribs make the call. Are they filmed in 65mm or blown up from 35 (or both). Why couldn't "Dave's Down-Home Discount Drive-In" get 70mm? Better picture, better light, technology perfected, what am I missing here?

Posted by John Pytlak (Member # 331) on 09-08-2000, 08:32 AM:

The "missing piece" is whether the added cost of a 70 mm print will result in selling more tickets. Kodak sells 70 mm print film for about twice the price of 35 mm print film, as you might expect. But 70 mm is still a low volume item at the few labs that handle it, using more labor-intensive slower printers and processing machines, so their costs are greater than 2X. Add the cost of making a 65 mm duplicate negative, which would be prorated over the number of prints. Magnetic striping and sounding added significant cost and hassle, and the significant investment required to upgrade solvent recovery systems to meet new environmental regulations for a relatively small volume has caused most companies to shut down their striping operations. Fortunately, 70 mm DTS works very well, and uses the same disks as 35 mm, but current printers still require two passes through the printer to print the picture, and then the timecode.

Success stories like Gordon McLeod's (sell-outs of 70 mm "Titanic" all summer, after other theatres have been playing it for six months)give ample proof that audiences appreciate and seek out superior presentation. Some European exhibitors (e.g., Kinepolis, Coliseum Norway, UK Odeon) subsidize the making of 70 mm prints for their "flagship" theatres, knowing that it will more than pay for itself. I hear that you could see a 70 mm print of "The X-Men" in Europe, but not anywhere in North America.

Posted by David Kilderry (Member # 142) on 09-08-2000, 07:09 PM:

Each year I run a "get to know 70mm" day here for technical managers and projection staff that were not around when fat film was king.

Last year we ran a morning that included 70mm spools of the following:

"A Star Is Born" - Streisand, w/s blow-up
"Cobra" - Stallone, blow-up
"Khartoum" - Ultra Panavision 70,
"Star" - Julie Andrews, TODD-AO
various THX and some of our company logos.

We run it all in a THX auditorium on Bauer 35/70 U3's. Processor is CP 200.

We convert the projectors, align the lenses and then sit back and listen to the glorious 6 track sound and watch the crisp (65mm neg) focus.

See a photo at: www.drive-insdownunder.com.au/projectionbooths/vccbox.htm

David

Posted by John Pytlak (Member # 331) on 09-11-2000, 07:09 AM:

David Kilderry said: "Each year I run a "get to know 70mm" day here for technical managers and projection staff that were not around when fat film was king."

That's a GREAT idea!!!

I think one reason the "suits" and bookers don't seem to try very hard to get 70 mm prints is that they often aren't aware of how much better 70 mm prints look on a very large screen, compared to 35 mm, even for "blow ups". Seeing the quality "first hand" also allows them to PROMOTE and ADVERTISE the 70 mm shows as well, which is needed to really get the audience the format deserves.

Posted by Thomas Hauerslev (Member # 566) on 09-12-2000, 01:00 AM:

Just to let everyone know, I have a page on my web site about 70mm film screenings, but it is up to the web users to let me know when 70mm film is shown. The page is here:
http://hjem.get2net.dk/in70mm/magazine/screenings.htm

Just drop me a note at my e-mail and I´ll add your 70mm film screening.

All the best from Denmark, Thomas Hauerslev

Posted by Martin Frandsen (Member # 74) on 09-13-2000, 02:18 AM:

Any chance to see X-men in 70mm here in Europe?