It’s a quiet revolution that has been taking place for years without much argument. In Hollywood the last buck is everything and the rise and rise of digital technology has led to the stuff that started it all being threatened with extinction. Film stock, known for catching fire as well as producing the world’s most beautiful images, is at an all-time low in sales terms. With a 96% drop since 2006 high profile producers like the Weinstein Co. and Paramount are thinking the unthinkable, aiming to cease distribution via celluloid.
If anyone was going to make a fuss about this it is director Christopher Nolan, who shot his DARK KNIGHT trilogy amongst others the old-fashioned way. A well-known champion of IMAX, he wants to project the problem onto a massive screen, joined by Quentin Tarantino, Judd Apatow and J.J. Abrams, in an attempt to keep film in the public eye. Nolan openly referred to film as “the gold standard” at the Scientific And Technical Academy Awards recently. With Abrams shooting STAR WARS EPISODE VII and Apatow TRAINWRECK on the volatile shiny strips, the group have reportedly corralled a group of studios into striking a deal with Kodak, whose factory is the last remaining source of the product.
Under this proposed agreement the big guns would be obligated to purchase a quota of stock, despite there being no guarantee it will be used. As good a compromise as any, though with talent such as Nolan around the need for shooting on film should never fade out.
Source: IndieWire
