Film Revival: Another step

[HHPhoto]

Hi,

the film revival is gaining further momentum:

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1112932678/the-super-8-web-portal

It just started today.

Cheers, Jan

 

[charjohncarter]

I wonder if the cassettes are the same. Will I be able to use it in my Minolta Super 8, or my Kodak Instamatic Super 8?

 

[zuiko85]

B&H has Kodak Super 8 in stock, 'only' $35 a roll.
Sounds like something for folks with lots of disposable income.

 

[mani]

Any forum members that read my posts will know that I'm passionately supportive of film revival efforts, but I'm afraid I just can't see how this Kickstarter is anything other than a rather feeble attempt to ride the renewed popularity of the medium, and raise cash for something that could (and imo should) at least be started under their own efforts and funding?

It's a proposal to be a subscription-based ‘portal’ (didn't know anyone still used that term) for Super-8, but I see very little benefit for enthusiasts or pros to choose their particular website over any other that might feature Super-8.

RFF could setup a section which might be just as useful as their proposed subscription-based forum.

The whole Kickstarter just strikes me (personally) as opportunistic.

PS: Super-8 as a medium has some of my professional creative friends very excited, so it's definitely not just some 'hipster' or rich enthusiast plaything.

 

[michaelwj]

Any forum members that read my posts will know that I'm passionately supportive of film revival efforts, but I'm afraid I just can't see how this Kickstarter is anything other than a rather feeble attempt to ride the renewed popularity of the medium, and raise cash for something that could (and imo should) at least be started under their own efforts and funding?

It's a proposal to be a subscription-based ‘portal’ (didn't know anyone still used that term) for Super-8, but I see very little benefit for enthusiasts or pros to choose their particular website over any other that might feature Super-8.

RFF could setup a section which might be just as useful as their proposed subscription-based forum.

The whole Kickstarter just strikes me (personally) as opportunistic.

PS: Super-8 as a medium has some of my professional creative friends very excited, so it's definitely not just some 'hipster' or rich enthusiast plaything.

I have to agree.
First they want 20k Euro to get it stared, and then it looks like it will be at least 45 Euro for a one year subscription. What exactly are you backing? What cut of the Euros do the filmmakers who contribute to the '1,000 small films' get. Are they edited or curated? I can watch 1,000,000 small films on youtube for free, so what does this exactly offer me?
And what exactly does it have to do with film? We're watching them online, so they've been digitised already, and I assume compressed enough to allow for the 20k Euro website bandwidth to play.
I don't get it.

 

[tunalegs]

If they said they were going to give funds to say, ten artists to make movies on super 8, then build a site to display the results on - I would be totally on board for that.

But this seems more like somebody needs actual investors to start a business, rather than fundraisers to get a project rolling.

 

[Sid836]

It does not look like film revival, but rather an attempt to revive or just make money out of their site.
Besides, the Super 8 has already two quite big communities that among others, develop, scan and share recordings on super 8 (and double 8 run) films (one is German). Where could a site like that with paid subscription could fit?

 

[Keith]

Out of curiosity what does it cost to get one of these super 8 cassettes processed and how many minutes of footage per cassette? I read the stats somewhere a while ago but can't remember the details.

 

[mani]

Out of curiosity what does it cost to get one of these super 8 cassettes processed and how many minutes of footage per cassette? I read the stats somewhere a while ago but can't remember the details.

Hi Keith

I'm sure you're asking purely because you want to give the medium a try, but the trouble with discussing these sorts of figures on this forum is that a lot of people simply want to know the costs in order to make a drama out of how 'crazily expensive' they are.

When I was working in the advertising business, the company would spend tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars on single video shoots, and equal amounts on post-processing (ironically, pretty often making stuff look like hand-held and shaky home-shot Super8).
The costs that we on RFF associate with rolls of 35mm or 120 film are really not applicable to Super8 - whether personal film-makers or professional producers.

 

[sevo]

I wonder if the cassettes are the same. Will I be able to use it in my Minolta Super 8, or my Kodak Instamatic Super 8?

There was only one Super 8 that came in cassettes (IIRC Beaulieu and Bauer each had one top end S8 camera that also took long mags, but these were a extension of the regular cartridge format). The other cassette format was Fuji Single 8 (by now extinct). All other 8mm formats (Double-8, Double-S8, Normal-8 and variations thereof) were reel to reel.

 

[Keith]

Hi Keith

I'm sure you're asking purely because you want to give the medium a try, but the trouble with discussing these sorts of figures on this forum is that a lot of people simply want to know the costs in order to make a drama out of how 'crazily expensive' they are.

When I was working in the advertising business, the company would spend tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars on single video shoots, and equal amounts on post-processing (ironically, pretty often making stuff look like hand-held and shaky home-shot Super8).
The costs that we on RFF associate with rolls of 35mm or 120 film are really not applicable to Super8 - whether personal film-makers or professional producers.

Very true Mani. Those who value it probably won't focus too heavily on the cost I guess. Thanks for your reply. 🙂

 

[HHPhoto]

Honestly, unfortunately most comments here are a bit unfair and from people who don't have any experiences with Super8.

The founders Jürgen Lossau and Friedemann Wachsmuth are real Super8 experts for decades.
Lossau for example has written some very good books about Super8, and he published the Super8 / 16mm print magazines "Schmalfilm" and "Small Format" for a very long time in the past.
In a time in which all others said "Super8 is dead".
They are really dedicated Super8 enthusiasts.

This project is to make such a magazine again, but
- online, not in print form
- on a global base, for all who are interested worldwide
- more detailed, with more content
- with content a print magazine simply cannot offer (for physical reasons), like showing films.

Making a global magazine is an expensive effort. Asking for support in the start phase in the range of 20,000€ is very little for such a project.

Cheers, Jan

 

[emraphoto]

Out of curiosity what does it cost to get one of these super 8 cassettes processed and how many minutes of footage per cassette? I read the stats somewhere a while ago but can't remember the details.

Where I'm at, the cost of processing a cassette of super 8 is about the same as the purchase price. So, purchased, souped and transferred to digital and sent back is about $70 a roll.

That gives you 3 1/2 minutes of footage. How much of that makes the final film is hard to pin down. If you plan your shooting very carefully, you could use 2-3 mins of it.

 

[HHPhoto]

Out of curiosity what does it cost to get one of these super 8 cassettes processed

Here in Europe only 17€ for E6 Super8.

Cheers, Jan

 

[mani]

Honestly, unfortunately most comments here are a bit unfair and from people who don't have any experiences with Super8.

I accept that criticism of my response, and hope the project prospers to prove my initial skepticism wrong.

 

[Keith]

That cost was actually less than I thought ... and just the fact that super 8 still exists should be a cause for celebration in my opinion. 🙂

As a kid I had a multi talented uncle who was into all sorts of things ... built his own hi-fi gear, wood turner, photographer etc. He used to make some great 16mm home movies and possessed some serious editing skills from memory ... the end results were always seamless. All the family piling into his loungeroom while he set up the projector and screen is a wonderful memory not lost. 🙂

 

[michaelwj]

Honestly, unfortunately most comments here are a bit unfair and from people who don't have any experiences with Super8.

Hi Jan,

It's got nothing to do with film or the format.

Lets suppose I want to crowd source funding for an online magazine dedicated to ANYTHING. I only need $20,000, and then it will be $45/year to subscribe. I'm just saying that it better have some damn good content.

If they are such experts, why can't they get more traditional funding?

 

[daveleo]

What follows here is legitmate skepticism, not intended to bash or start a fight.

I LOVE watching projected film movies in dark room. I almost don't care what the "topic" is, I just love to look at it. But I don't get what's going on here, if the final product is a movie (clip) shown on a computer screen. The digitizing process and monitor characteristics (in my mind) erase the magical feelings of projected film.

So .... I don't think you can get there from here. The magic of projected film needs a dark room and an analogue projector. It is not physically possible to simulate that (on the monitors that most of us are using).

Right?

 

[seany65]

Out of curiosity what does it cost to get one of these super 8 cassettes processed and how many minutes of footage per cassette? I read the stats somewhere a while ago but can't remember the details.

Sometime in the 90's for a very short time I had a Canon 512XL super 8. I put one cassette in and I believe I got 4 minutes of filming.

 

[roscoetuff]

daveleo: They used to call it "Spellbound in Darkness".

Super 8? Did all that as a teen. Loved it. Shot it. Developed it. Edited it. Projected it. Live and Animated. It was fun. I had a great super 8 camera... actually a double super 8 Bolex H8 converted to super 8. Bought it with my paper route $'s and sold it to an optical printing lab when it was done. My film prof said, "Y'know... super 8's a waste. Go with 16mm." And the fair thing is, he was right. For projection, 16mm will always kill super 8 the same way 120mm kills 35mm - it's just plain engineering. Now as an almost 60-year-old geezer I wonder like my old teacher, "Huh?"