Commercial Motion Picture Production with 16-mm Equipment

Abstract

Improvements in film characteristics together with progress in film laboratory technic and in 16-mm sound recording during the past few years have made it possible to produce sound motion pictures directly on 16-mm film with both picture and sound quality comparable to the results obtained in the past by optical reduction from 35-mm negatives, and at considerably reduced cost. This method is of special value in the production of training films and other types of industrial and educational motion pictures requiring much of the photography to be done away from studio facilities. — This paper discusses the apparatus available for direct 16-mm production, the film types that are in use, the film laboratory services that are available, and the methods that are used by direct 16-mm producers in the cases where these methods differ from those of the 35-mm producer. Particular attention is given to the Kodachrome process as used in commercial motion picture production.