Sunday, February 28, 2021

Vintage nitrate film presents dilemmas for the digital restoration artist

Given the time, digital tools and artistic/restorative abilities, this series of frames from 35mm nitrate could be restored to near perfect condition.  But 'could be' maybe is not the question.  The question  is rather - should certain segments be restored at all?

As we look back over 100-years at media that can never again be the way it would have been the day the film was first developed - wouldn't leaving specific severely degraded frames 'as-is' as part of a larger restored film be an reminder to the viewer of the reality that the media is ephemeral?

These are the questions I am asking myself when restoring this feature-length studio film from the silent era.

Comments welcome.