Were they shot in 4k or something we just didn’t have TV’s that could see 4k back in the day?
In: 2291
If they were shot on film, the original resolution for 35mm is about 3k and 70mm is about 18k. So getting 4k scans from this is not that big a deal. Original analog television had really crappy resolution so film movies shown on it looked bad.
If they were shot on film, the original resolution for 35mm is about 3k and 70mm is about 18k. So getting 4k scans from this is not that big a deal. Original analog television had really crappy resolution so film movies shown on it looked bad.
Because they were originally shot on 35mm film, which doesn’t have a “resolution” per se, but is effectively high enough quality to produce 4K-like images. Therefore, our ability to make high quality digital copies depends on our ability to scan the original film strips into a digital format. Originally, those films were copied to VHS, and eventually DVD, which only had so much resolution, so they only made digital version of the films detailed enough to work in those formats. You can’t make a Blue-Ray quality film from an SD-DVD, you have to go back to the original film source. Some stuff made before digital video was shot on smaller film formats or tape, so recovering 4k quality digital video from them doesn’t work the same.
[Here’s a video](https://youtu.be/rVpABCxiDaU?si=gkTrSJ5hhuawQnzL) that will teach you more than you could ever want to know about this topic.
They were shot on film. Film does not have pixels. Film is basically a load of chemicals which react with light to change colour, creating an image. 35mm and 70mm film, which major Hollywood movies are usually shot on, have plenty of detail in them for a 4k transfer. And if you saw them in cinemas, you’d be seeing that detail. But televisions, as well as distribution means like UHD Blu-Rays and streaming, have only recently gotten to the point where they can show this much detail.
TV shows, meanwhile, were a mixed bag. Some shows were shot on 16mm film, which has enough detail for an HD release, which is why shows like the original Star Trek could get a full HD remaster by going to the original film and rescanning it in HD. (Edit: Okay, apparently Star Trek was 35mm, as were a lot of American shows. Even better. I don’t know much about American TV or Star Trek, hence my ignorance.) But other shows were shot on video tape, which only records at standard definition, like what a TV at the time could show.
A lot of old TV shows (Certainly in Britain, I dunno about other countries) were shot with a mixture of tape and film. They’d use video tape in the studio and film on location or for complicated effects shots. (Video tape was much cheaper than film, but was impractical to use outside the studio, hence the mix). So Blu-Ray releases of old shows that used this are often a mix of quality. Buy any of the early 80s of Doctor Who or Only Fools and Horses on Blu-Ray, and you’ll see that everything shot on location is way higher quality than the stuff in the studio. That’s because the location work is on high-detail film, but the studio stuff is on low-detail video tape.
Because they were originally shot on 35mm film, which doesn’t have a “resolution” per se, but is effectively high enough quality to produce 4K-like images. Therefore, our ability to make high quality digital copies depends on our ability to scan the original film strips into a digital format. Originally, those films were copied to VHS, and eventually DVD, which only had so much resolution, so they only made digital version of the films detailed enough to work in those formats. You can’t make a Blue-Ray quality film from an SD-DVD, you have to go back to the original film source. Some stuff made before digital video was shot on smaller film formats or tape, so recovering 4k quality digital video from them doesn’t work the same.
[Here’s a video](https://youtu.be/rVpABCxiDaU?si=gkTrSJ5hhuawQnzL) that will teach you more than you could ever want to know about this topic.
They were shot on film. Film does not have pixels. Film is basically a load of chemicals which react with light to change colour, creating an image. 35mm and 70mm film, which major Hollywood movies are usually shot on, have plenty of detail in them for a 4k transfer. And if you saw them in cinemas, you’d be seeing that detail. But televisions, as well as distribution means like UHD Blu-Rays and streaming, have only recently gotten to the point where they can show this much detail.
TV shows, meanwhile, were a mixed bag. Some shows were shot on 16mm film, which has enough detail for an HD release, which is why shows like the original Star Trek could get a full HD remaster by going to the original film and rescanning it in HD. (Edit: Okay, apparently Star Trek was 35mm, as were a lot of American shows. Even better. I don’t know much about American TV or Star Trek, hence my ignorance.) But other shows were shot on video tape, which only records at standard definition, like what a TV at the time could show.
A lot of old TV shows (Certainly in Britain, I dunno about other countries) were shot with a mixture of tape and film. They’d use video tape in the studio and film on location or for complicated effects shots. (Video tape was much cheaper than film, but was impractical to use outside the studio, hence the mix). So Blu-Ray releases of old shows that used this are often a mix of quality. Buy any of the early 80s of Doctor Who or Only Fools and Horses on Blu-Ray, and you’ll see that everything shot on location is way higher quality than the stuff in the studio. That’s because the location work is on high-detail film, but the studio stuff is on low-detail video tape.
They rescan the old film prints and clean them up.
Only problem is a lot of films (effects heavy ones especially) in the mid-2000’s were finished digitally at 2K resolutions. Which is why there are no “true” 4K versions of those films from that era.
Film is an amazing, but inconvenient medium.
They rescan the old film prints and clean them up.
Only problem is a lot of films (effects heavy ones especially) in the mid-2000’s were finished digitally at 2K resolutions. Which is why there are no “true” 4K versions of those films from that era.
Film is an amazing, but inconvenient medium.
If the movie was shot on film and the originals exist in good condition, the film can be scanned and turned into a digital file. The picture quality you get relies more on the scanner itself rather than the film since film doesn’t exactly have a resolution. There is a point past which film may appear fuzzy, but generally speaking most film can be scanned at much higher resolutions than what is commercially available for displays.
If the movie was shot on film and the originals exist in good condition, the film can be scanned and turned into a digital file. The picture quality you get relies more on the scanner itself rather than the film since film doesn’t exactly have a resolution. There is a point past which film may appear fuzzy, but generally speaking most film can be scanned at much higher resolutions than what is commercially available for displays.
Latest Answers