Side By Side Producers Choose KODAK Film to Archive Critically Acclaimed Documentary

[Sue Smith]

Producers Keanu Reeves and Justin Szlasa have chosen to create a film element of their feature documentary Side by Side on KODAK VISION3 Color Digital Intermediate Film 2254. This intermediate post production step will also provide the producers with a master for making 35mm film prints. The 2254 will then be archived at the Academy Film Archive, which is providing substantial and instrumental support to preserve this culturally significant exploration into the evolution of digital and film formats.

 

Side by Side recently aired on PBS after a successful run on the 2012 festival circuit, and a limited release in theaters. The Academy is also planning future screenings of the film.

“We took a deep dive into the evolution of filmmaking technology and spoke to hundreds of artists and filmmakers to make this documentary,” says Reeves. “What we took away is that, right now, film is the only archival medium that is truly proven. We'd like Side by Side to be available for future generations, and we think creating film elements is the best way to do that.”

KODAK VISION3 2254 Film faithfully retains nuances in colors, contrast and other characteristics of digitally created images, and offers exceptional dye stability, allowing for extended asset life.

Technicolor New York is providing the transfer services, and the stock will be used as a master for generating a few high-quality release prints for upcoming 35mm film screenings of the documentary. By choosing this postproduction path, Side by Side will be preserved for more than a century.

Side by Side investigates the history, process and workflow of both digital and film creation. The movie, directed by Christopher Kenneally, shows what artists and filmmakers have been able to accomplish with both film and digital and how their needs and innovations have helped push filmmaking in new directions. Interviews with directors, cinematographers, colorists, scientists, engineers and artists reveal their experiences and feelings about working with film and digital — where we are now, how we got here and what the future may bring.

“At the end of the day, film is still the most stable and reliable preservation medium,” adds Andrew Evenski, President, Entertainment & Commercial Film, Kodak. “Only film offers a standardized, human-readable format that has been in existence for well over a century, and methods for retrieving content from a 35mm frame will exist well into the future. When content is preserved on film, no re-mastering is necessary.”

[Anthony Schilling]

I saw the doc last week and it was very interesting. When the problem of archiving digitally acquired movies was presented, none of the big names interviewed had an answer. George Lucas basically said it was "something that someone has to figure out". The 2254 seems to be the perfect solution. They mentioned how over 80 formats of video have come and gone in the last 30 years, most of which are no longer supported for viewing... meanwhile they were able to project 35mm film images from 1898 just fine.

[Robert Houllahan]

It is a pretty big thing to "Figure out" kind of like building a spaceship which gets you to space and then trying "figuring out" how to get back to earth, after orbit is achieved. I suppose film stock is like the critical heat shield in the equation.

 

-Rob-