Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: ‘Star Wars': Episode 9’ Will Be Shot On 65mm Film

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Posted by Jonathan Goeldner (Member # 4854) on 11-12-2016, 10:55 PM:

I assume this is the right place here to mention this but according to slashfilm, director Collin Trevorrow and Kodak mention that Episode 9 will be shot in 5/70mm film. I remember reading that 'Rogue One' at one point was also considered to be shot as such, but eventually wasn't. A lot can happen in two years time but I'm glad 70mm isn't up and completely dead.

Star Wars: Episode 9’ Will Be Shot On 65mm Film

oops - can a mod move this to the Film Handler's section

Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 11-14-2016, 09:50 AM:

The confusion with Rogue One had to do with the movie using Ultra Panavision anamorphic lenses, but only to bake an anamorphic look into Arri Alexa 65 camera footage.

Posted by Mark J. Marshall (Member # 1409) on 11-14-2016, 10:23 AM:

That's cool. George Lucas couldn't even get that done. He was happy with the resolution of 16mm.

It wouldn't surprise me if they still mastered the thing in 2K.

Posted by Connor Wilson (Member # 6088) on 11-14-2016, 10:26 AM:

I wonder if anamorphic lens will be used in Episode IX. 35mm anamorphic was the principal format that Episodes IV, V, VI, I, VII, and VIII were shot on. To me, it's part of the Star Wars language, and the new trilogy was supposed to have similar aesthetics to the original trilogy.

Expect a 4K (or god forbid 2K) digital intermediate to come out of this, at least half the supposed resolution of 5/65 film. This is the same director-and-cinematographer duo that brought us Jurassic World, which if I can recall disappointed some folks here.

Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 11-14-2016, 01:50 PM:

Yeah, the 2:1 thing in Jurassic World was indeed pretty stupid. Yet another example of "filmmakers" being out of touch with how movies are currently being shown in commercial theaters. All this 65mm talk may be a continuation of that.

I wouldn't be surprised if they shot Episode IX in 5/65mm and used Ultra Panavision lenses for the sole purpose of baking an anamorphic look into the movie, even if it doesn't deliever the same anamorphic effects that come from 4/35mm 2:1 ratio 'scope lenses. To top it off, the original 2.76:1 imagery would get chopped down to 2.39:1, ruining even more of the resolution advantage of 5/65mm. Rogue One is being framed in 2.39:1 after all. Style over substance.

Finally, since studios seem hell-bent on forcing a 3D version despite the market being all but dead for it on home video, they'll probably put that 65mm footage through a post production pipeline that squeezes everything down to a 2K final render. To add more insult to those of us care, that 2K final product will be used for a film-out to a few 70mm prints. Some of us will pay to see those large format prints with HDTV quality imagery anyway out of desperation to keep film alive in any state possible. They'll use the same 2K master to up-rez to Ultra HD Blu-ray since the de facto norm there is using 2K source material for fake 4K movie discs.

This latest sorta fad with 70mm is really just a limited run parody of past glory days of movie theaters when "70mm" actually meant something.