Pricing

Minimum charge $ 19.95 + cost of tape or DVD

Price per foot of film (8mm, Super 8mm, 16mm, silent or sound)	.10	per foot
Splicing	1.00	per splice
Cleaning and Lubrication	.02	per foot
Edits	1.00	each
Titles	2.50	each
Fades and Wipes at beg. and end		No Charge
Correcting film wound backwards on reel	1.00	per reel
Format changes if all 8mm is grouped together, All Super 8mm is grouped together, and all 16mm is grouped together		No Charge
Format changes if film types are intermixed	4.00	per format (type) change

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Types of Film

8mm (8 millimeter)
This is a common type of home movie film. It is 8 millimeters wide and has sprocket holes along one edge. The rectangular holes are oriented from side to side to the film and line up with the internal edges of the frames. Sometimes the reels are in boxes that read '25 Feet' but don't let that mislead you. When purchased, this reel of film was 25 feet long and 16 millimeters wide. It was exposed along one edge, flipped over, and exposed along the other edge. During processing, the film was split down the middle and spliced together into a 50 foot reel. It is all silent film. In the 1950's, Kodak briefly offered to add sound strips to 8mm film but it required a special projector to play and was soon discontinued. We cannot transfer sound which was added this way.

Super 8mm
This film came on the market after 8mm but resembles it closely. The sprocket holes are a little smaller and are oriented lengthwise to the film. A sprocket hole will line up with the middle of each frame. This film was sold in plastic cassettes which were returned to the lab for processing. They were returned to the customer on 50 foot reels. This film came in both silent and sound varieties.

16mm
This is a higher quality film which was sold before, during and after the time periods 8mm and Super 8mm were popular. It comes in both silent and sound varieties. It is 16mm wide and can have sprocket holes along both edges (no sound) or one edge (with sound) of the film. It was sold on 50 and 100 foot reels. Older film was shot at 16 frames per second and was usually silent. More recent film was shot at 24 frames per second and often had sound.

16mm film shot at 16 frames per second will appear to run fast - the 'World War I Syndrome'- as seen in old newsreels. In order to slow it down, it must be digitally remastered for an additional fee. Please call for details if you need this service.

Movie Film in Cassettes
Some types of movie projectors required that film be loaded into hard plastic cassettes. In order to transfer this film, it is necessary to remove it, destroying the cassette in most cases. One type of cassette loaded film is called 'polarvision.' It is basically super 8mm film but tends to be a little darker. It usually transfers quite well.

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Quality of Transfer

All three types of movie film transfer to video with excellent results. You may be surprised to see virtually no flicker to the film. Although the film color sometimes fades a little with age, it holds up well during transfer. If you had film transferred a few years back, you may be surprised to see how far technology has come.

To really enhance the quality of your film to video transfer, we can now transfer your Old Home Movies to DVD.  This format offers extremely high quality results, far exceeding the quality of VHS, as well as truly preserving your films for years to come.  If you do not presently own a DVD player, we can make you a VHS copy of your digital transfer for you to enjoy now and you can archive your DVD Master for future generations.  This service is slightly higher than the above mentioned prices for transfer directly to VHS, but well worth the difference.   
ASK US ABOUT IT!

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Estimating Footage

Movie-to-video transfer is priced according to the length (or footage) of the film. The same guidelines apply to estimating footage regardless of the type (8mm, Super 8mm, 16mm) of film.

If the film you have is on small (3 inches across, usually blue or white) plastic reels or in small yellow boxes, you can estimate the footage yourself.  These each usually contain 50 feet of film. Add them up, multiply by 50 and you have the footage.

Sometimes, the film is pre-spliced onto larger reels, and estimating footage is a little more compliacted.  Reels may hold 50, 200, 300, or 400 feet. 16mm film can be on even larger reels. Call us for assistance, or bring your film in to our shop and let us estimate the footage for you.

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Additional Services

Film Cleaning
Film cleaning and lubrication are available for $ .02 per foot of film. It does not remove 100% of the spots and, of course, will not restore film which has been scratched or badly damaged. This service is mandatory for film that is molded, dirty, dry or has any chemical smell to it. We reserve the right to insist that it be cleaned if absolutely necessary. It could cause damage to our equipment.

Splices and Edits
Splicing (connecting ends of film) consists of:

• Splicing all 50 foot reels together and returning them on 400 ft. reels

• Splicing together broken film for the purpose of transferring onto video cassette. If the film has been temporarily repaired with tape, it must be replaced with a proper splice.

There is a charge $1.00 each for the above. There is no charge for the high quality reels and cans we provide with the splicing. We generally make many more splices in the course of preparing a film for transfer but, unless there are an excessive number, we only charge for the above mentioned ones.

Preserving Original Film
As we prepare movies for transfer, the smaller reels are joined together into larger ones. Leader tape is added to the beginning so that we can capture all of the film action from beginning to end. Whenever we find blank or totally black film in excess of about 5 inches, we remove it. Old splices are often in disrepair and are replaced. Even film that is given to us on larger reels often needs repair. The film runs more smoothly when it is on larger reels. The film will be returned in metal or plastic cans, which are the best possible way to store and preserve film. It is wise to save this original film as long as possible as a backup.

If for whatever reason, your movie film must be returned in exactly the same condition as when you provided it to us, please be sure to make us aware of this, as it is very difficult (or impossible) to restore after the fact.  In this case, we can run the film on the smaller reels, but will have to charge a $1.00 Edit Charge for each time the recording deck must be stopped and restarted for reel changes, cutting out blank or black sections, film or splice breakage. This can be very costly. We may require additional time to process these orders since they require more hands-on attention and take more time, but we feel that it is important to accommodate your needs.

Editing Film for Content
It is not practical to edit the films for content as we transfer them. If you need this service, you should have all the film transferred and then edit the video tape or DVD.   Another option is to procure a movie film editor and manually cut and re-splice the film before sending it to us.

Damaged Film
Movie film often comes to us in very poor condition. We will try to salvage film if at all possible.

Some types of damage are:

• Brittle Film - Due to storage in hot or dry conditions or due to extreme age. Sometimes we can loosen this up enough to run, especially if only the outer layers are stiff. Let us have a look at no charge, and we'll let you know whether or not this type of damage can be overcome.

• Emulsion Peeling Off - Due to the same reasons as above. Usually this film is not worth watching even if we can get it to run. Again - we will be glad to look at it. If we can get an image, we will run it and you will not be charged extra.

• Chemical smell - Referred to as "The Vinegar Syndrome" After a period of years, sooner or later, a chemical reaction begins in the film which produces acetic acid (hence the vinegar smell). This causes the emulsion to separate from the film base and eventually ruins the film. Once this reaction begins, the film deteriorates rapidly and in just a few months cannot be salvaged. Film with a chemical smell should be transferred immediately.

• Moldy or mildewed film - Due to storage in an overly wet place. This film will smell musty and look awful but is usually in very salvageable condition. Cleaning is mandatory and may not remove 100% of the mildew, but the film is usually very supple and runs well.

• Broken film - This can be re-spliced and run if the pieces are not too small. Wrap the film on a reel, if possible, in the desired order. Splicing charges will apply.

• Torn & missing sprocket holes - Due to film which has been loved and played too much or on the wrong type of projector. An occasional torn hole may cause the film to jump. If a series of consecutive holes are torn, this section of film must be removed. If the holes are stretched or slightly torn, the film will mostly run but may be a little jumpy.

• Film which was never processed after exposure - If it is not too old, you may be able to get your outlab service to process this film. Sometimes, if the film is old, the developing process for this film will be discontinued. There is a lab that still runs these films (Rocky Mountain Film Lab 303-399-6444) but you should be warned that it is expensive (sometimes $ 30.00 - 40.00 per reel), it may take a year or more to process, and you are charged whether the film turns out or not. Call them directly to see if your film can still be processed. Because of the time involved and expense, we do not handle this service.

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