B/W 16mm film stock for film noir

[Amy Punt]

I am wondering if anyone knows about the new Kodak Reversal stocks--Kodak Plus-X Reversal 7265 and Kodak Tri-X Reversal 7266. I am shooting a Film Noir piece. In the brief research I've done, I've learned that I need to be shooting with a negative stock, but these new reversals look promising. Has anyone shot with them? What do you reccomend?

[David Mullen ASC]

B&W reversal is pretty high contrast and the problem gets worse when you dupe them or make a reversal print off of the original, which doubles the contrast.

 

However, the contrast isn't as bad when you do a video transfer from the original or are doing a digital intermediate. But you still have to be pretty accurate in your exposures.

 

I have some Plus-X reversal footage on my demo reel - it was the first thing I ever shot in 16mm, some 17 years ago -- and it looks like it was shot in 35mm, it's so sharp.

[Kevin Zanit]

Next Friday I am shooting a test of 7266. I'll post the results.

 

 

 

Kevin Zanit

[Vivian Zetetick]

Please do...would love to see. I was given 1200' of Kodak PLUS-X Reversal a few years ago. The owner had been storing the 400' cans in a refrigerator since around 1970! It was wonderfully noirish -- very smooth and silvery, very rich blacks, and the age didn't seem to affect the image at all. I expected it to look contrasty like PI, but perhaps it didn't because I took the film directly to digital tape (Rank telecine at FilmCraft) & finished there.

 

On a related note, does anyone have a particular preference for Ilford or Kodak black & white stocks, given that Ilford claims to use edge-code numbers now? A photographer friend of mine won't touch Kodak black & white products, always uses Ilford.

 

I see that the Ilford Motion Picture Film page (http://www.ilford.com/html/us_english/bw.html) shows SFX200 as an avilable motion picture film. A shot 3 rolls of this with a 35mm still camera (using a dark red filter) and loved the pictures -- at least the ones that came out properly exposed. Would be an interesting film to use in a movie.

[John Pytlak RIP]

Here's the link to information on the Kodak website:

 

http://www.kodak.com/US/en/motion/products...4.4.8&lc=en

 

There were some nice demos made to introduce the new B&W Reversal Films last year. Your Kodak representative can probably arrange a showing. B)