Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: Digital Classics

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Posted by Martin McCaffery (Member # 37) on 08-19-2009, 09:26 AM:

As I mentioned in another thread, we had to show Woodstock on DVD because there were no good prints.

I noticed the Arclight Dome in LA will show Woodstock in "digital". Does anyone know if WB created a real 2k digital version for them, or would the Arclight really show a DVD?

Which leads us to, does anyone know if the big classic distribs (we're looking at you WB and Univ) are planning to convert their catalogs to 2k digital? I kow Emerging got some Hitchcock's done in their process, but have not heard about anything else.

Posted by Mike Olpin (Member # 1115) on 08-19-2009, 09:57 AM:

We played Woodstock on BluRay. The distributor did not have anything of higher quality. I suspect the ArcLight will be doing it on BluRay as well. Fitted and scalled properly, most people have a hard time discerning BluRay from DCinema.

Posted by Mike Blakesley (Member # 26) on 08-19-2009, 11:15 AM:

Paramount sent out an email saying Grease is now available for digital engagements.

Posted by Tim Asten (Member # 4051) on 08-19-2009, 07:51 PM:

We ran Grease 6 months ago digitally. We have just shown Spartacus and The Blues Brothers (completely sold out) and we have just received Scarface and John Carpenters The Thing, all digital, all excellent quality. We do great business with repo. Interestingly we sometimes get two films on one drive.
Tim.

Posted by Scott Norwood (Member # 30) on 08-19-2009, 08:12 PM:

Supposedly, the latest version of Blade Runner is available in DCI as well.

Do all of these titles have the correct studio logos and original sound formats, or have they been replaced with their modern equivalents, as is all too common on new video releases of older titles?

Posted by John Wilson (Member # 269) on 08-19-2009, 11:02 PM:

Even the re-release of Grease in 35mm replaced the original Paramount logo with the 'stars' one. To me, that was just slack. If they didn't want the 'Gulf and Western Company' bit on it, they should have made one that looked original without those words on it.

[thumbsdown]

Posted by John Hawkinson (Member # 1135) on 08-20-2009, 06:30 PM:

--jhawk

Posted by Mike Moreno (Member # 4887) on 08-20-2009, 10:00 PM:

did you guys have the web site where we can find this titles?
we would like to show classics an digital.

mike moreno

Posted by Carl Martin (Member # 1146) on 09-09-2009, 03:58 AM:

???

woodstock played in san francisco a month ago, on film. it was the extended version, though, which has its pluses and minuses. perhaps the original version is unobtainable.

Posted by Martin McCaffery (Member # 37) on 09-09-2009, 09:57 AM:

When I talked to WB they said they didn't have a good print of Woodstock, and the shipping wouldn't be worth it. So, it sounds like it's obtainable, but not in good shape.

Was the director's cut released in 35mm? I thought that was video/digital only, but could be wrong.

Then there's the 70mm version (yay! 16mm blown up to 70mm) any status reports there?

Posted by Gordon McLeod (Member # 33) on 09-09-2009, 10:59 AM:

I ran it a few months ago in 4 track mag up here

Posted by Mark Lensenmayer (Member # 134) on 09-09-2009, 02:39 PM:

Regarding a 70mm WOODSTOCK, there is some dispute about this. There is an article in a Kodak Publication that indicates 70mm prints were going to me made. But no one I know of has ever been able to confirm any screenings. It remains a mystery.

Posted by Frank Angel (Member # 248) on 09-10-2009, 02:21 AM:

Last time I ran WOODSTOCK we got what I was told was only one of two existing 4trk mag prints and it was in bad shape in terms of sprocket damage, but the picture was excellent and the mag tracks sounded fine, at least after we spent hours with Perfix repairing the damaged areas. WOODSTOCK kicks ass. Play it on a good sound system and you rock the house.

If they have decided not to make new film prints of their classic libraries, but are beginning to transfer them making DCI copies, then they should also make them available on something like DigiBeta or even "theatrical" BluRay (specially made without all the upfront gack and a clean start point). I mean, at this point in the game, why relegate screenings only to DCI houses since surely they are not still worry about these titles being bootlegged. This way the rep house who don't yet have DCinema can still get decent images with high-end E-Cinema projectors. When you are talking about rep and arthouse stuff, if a studio can't find its way to striking a few new prints of a popular rep title, then it makes no sense to lop off a good chunk of a title's revenue potential just to have superduper security which is virtually meaningless since these are all out on DVD and BluRay. If a bootlegger wants a copy of CASABLANCA, all he has to do is go to a RedBox and rent it for a dollar....where is there a security issue that would prevent them from allowing it to play high-end E-Cinema houses?

Posted by Justin Gorka (Member # 3727) on 10-15-2009, 07:00 PM:

In the Uk we've shown Blues Brothers, The Thing, Godfather, Scarface, Sparticus and will be showing American Werewolf on London and National Lampoons Animal House over the next couple of months.

Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 10-15-2009, 08:28 PM:

quote: Scott Norwood
Do all of these titles have the correct studio logos and original sound formats, or have they been replaced with their modern equivalents, as is all too common on new video releases of older titles?

My guess is the situation will vary from title to title.

In the case of Bladerunner: The Final Cut, it has the correct studio logos on it (the Ladd Company). Well, at least that is the case for the Blu-ray version. My guess is the DCI version would have to be similar since the Blu-ray was sourced by way of a brand new film scan and digital intermediate.

I wonder if the Blu-ray versions of classic movies vary in terms of studio logos, etc. from versions shown in d-cinema theaters. The 4K restored version of The Godfather has the newest Paramount Pictures logo on it, but in a more sepia toned, deliberately grainy and monochrome look.

Posted by Todd McCracken (Member # 4718) on 01-07-2010, 12:55 PM:

Hopefully in about a week here I can post the titles of repertory prints that I have seen flowing in here for distribution (pesky non disclosure agreements) [Smile]

But until then, You may want to contact your bookers as indeed a large amount of titles are quickly becoming available.

Posted by Scott Norwood (Member # 30) on 01-07-2010, 01:39 PM:

So, what does it cost now to scan, compress, and encode an existing film for DCI? Assume that film elements are available and in good condition.

Are Academy-ratio titles being released with pillars on the sides? How do the distributors deal with silent films that run at speeds other than 24fps?

Posted by Kris Verhanneman (Member # 5562) on 01-07-2010, 01:55 PM:

In France, the distributor Gaumont is releasing every month one of his classics in 2K DCP. They are scanning and restoring old classics from the 50' 60' and 70's

Posted by Joe Tommassello (Member # 4632) on 01-07-2010, 04:52 PM:

I'd be particularly interested if any of the studios are dipping into their 3D classics for digital cinema. Seems like Universal has been quite active in getting their classic catalog ready so why not "Creature from the Black Lagoon" and "Revenge of the Creature" in a 3D double feature package? I'd bet it does surprisingly well. If they were on the ball they'd be working them already since 3D TV is on the verge of exploding and there is not really a lot of quality product.

Posted by Stephen Furley (Member # 1277) on 01-10-2010, 03:12 AM:

quote: Scott Norwood
Are Academy-ratio titles being released with pillars on the sides? How do the distributors deal with silent films that run at speeds other than 24fps?

In the case of the two that I've shown, yes.

Posted by Brad Miller (Member # 2) on 01-10-2010, 01:05 PM:

The old Cinerama titles need to be converted to DCI. Keeping 3 digital projectors in sync would be very easy.

Posted by Caleb Johnstone-Cowan (Member # 3710) on 01-11-2010, 08:04 PM:

I saw The Red Shoes in digital recently, if you can see or book it do so, stunning film and beautifully restored.

Posted by Martin Brooks (Member # 1269) on 03-05-2010, 11:57 AM:

quote: Mark Lensenmayer
Regarding a 70mm WOODSTOCK, there is some dispute about this. There is an article in a Kodak Publication that indicates 70mm prints were going to me made. But no one I know of has ever been able to confirm any screenings. It remains a mystery.

I've debated this with "film historians" for years. My strong recollection is that I saw Woodstock in 70mm 6-track discrete at the Trans-Lux West on Broadway and 49th Street in NYC. For the surrounds, they had Altecs sitting in the aisles, but it sounded great. The surrounds were mainly used for the stage announcements.

But I can't prove it. I also had a recollection that it also played at the Trans-Lux East in 4-track mag and that I chose to see it in 6-track and 70mm (natch) based on a newspaper ad. However, I've gone back to the NY Times, Village Voice, NY Post and Daily News microfilm records and there is absolutely nothing in any ad that I could find that indicates anything about the format...not even a mention of stereo. So I no longer remember how I would have known which theatre had the superior format, unless I just happened to walk by the theatre, which is possible because my father's office was next door, although that still doesn't explain how I chose the TL West over the East, because my inclination would have been the East, since the TL West had been primarily a newsreel theatre and I wouldn't have expected the presentation to be very good.

But then I also remembered seeing what I thought was a revival 70mm print at the Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria, Queens. But I contacted the curator, David Schwartz, and he wrote that he remembers the print being a 35mm IB Tech print with 4-track mag sound. However, he also said that (although he didn't supply any documentation), that 70mm prints were definitely made and he "thinks" that it must have played in 70mm in NYC. But obviously, that's not "proof" either.

So yes, it's still a mystery. But I still maintain that I saw it in 70mm, as stated.

Posted by Mark Ogden (Member # 43) on 03-05-2010, 07:38 PM:

There is a least one 70mm print of Woodstock out there, it was shown last year at the Roger Ebert film festival in Illinois. It must be a pretty recent one, though, because it was the four hour version, which I don't recall being seen before recently. Steve Krauss (whatever happened to him?) would have handled it.

In point of fact, the 35mm prints of this title are all, in actuality, 70mm reduction prints. Because the production wanted a multiple split-screen effect using the original 16mm footage, the decision was made to rephotograph it by making multiple passes onto a 70mm negative, using a layout designed by Thelma Schoonmaker.

Posted by Michael Coate (Member # 757) on 03-06-2010, 01:15 PM:

The "Woodstock" screening at EbertFest was a digital projection presentation.