AFI BLOG: Media and Technology

The Hollywood Reporter

Studios are restoring an increasing number of films

It’s a magical experience to view pristine film classics, and these days it seems studios are restoring an increasing number of their most valuable assets for commercial as well as historical reasons.

Among the reasons for this upswing:

>The advent of Blu-ray Disc and larger home displays are putting increased emphasis on image quality;

>Studios are fielding requests for digital versions of legacy films for display at digital cinema theaters as well as film festivals;

>The emergence of the digital technology means there are more capabilities than ever.

Restoration increasingly has been shifting from a lab process to a digital one. The digital intermediate process has played an important part in that transition, along with such specialty tools as MTI Film’s Correct and Digital Vision’s Phoenix.

This new technology has advanced the field of restoration. But it also has shifted the model and raised new questions, from what should be restored and how to go about it to how to preserve it and how to pay for it. The community will address those issues at the Reel Thing Technical Symposium — a nonprofit event dedicated to studying the technology used for restoration and presentation — set for June 6-7 in Los Angeles.

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