Crazy, just an odd thing I found.

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Brent Arnold

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As for paper bands I use them if they're there. There must be an entire category of idiots out there who cut the strings. But why prints come from TES with cut strings I don't know. I used to not re-apply these, figuring if you have to tape it anyway might as well just tape the film down. (I wouldn't toss them--just return them in the can.) Over the last year or so I came to the conclusion that a taped down string-less band is still more secure than film taped to itself (which often lets go in transit) so I'll use them even if sans string.

It's amazing how much lazyness exists in booths. It would seem that standard operating procedure in many/most is that anything that does not absolutely have to be done isn't and especially those things that impact the next person and not the present venue. Thus, leaders hung on with masking tape (or not at all), bands not reused and strings cut.

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Here's how my projectionist-in-training dealt with the paper reel bands, when they are even present. He brought our shipping tape dispenser up to the booth -- the one we use in the mail room -- has transparent tape about 2in wide. He pulls the rivet off the end (as pointed out, no string is ever attached to these rivets any more) and wraps a piece of the wide transparent tape around that end and then the same on the other end, lengthwise so that when the band is wrapped around the reel, there will be the plastic tape meeting plastic tape. This provides a strong slick surface so that he can then apply the standard Artist hold-down tape. The hold-down tape will not land on paper -- it will land on the plastic tape. Thus it can be removed and reattached or new tape applied over and over without tearing the paper, as hold-down tape invariably does when it is pulled off.

I looked at that and said, what a great idea, but the distributor should be doing that to protect their print, not us and not on our time. But the kid is really gun-ho and points our that it only takes him an extra minute to do it. I am thinking, I shouldn't discourage him, but at the same time, if I were the accountant running a megaplex and print makeup now take an extra 60 seconds per reel, that's a good chunk of work/hours that I would be paying for. He also would us a fine point felt tip pen to print the title, reel number, image and sound formats and the print & release numbers (he got those from the TES label). When he got done, the print looked like it had come from an old NSS depot twenty years ago.

Since we are not a megaplex, and we are talking only an extra 5 to 10 minutes for the small number of prints we have to deal with, I let him do it.

Frank

As over enthusiastic as he is, it gave me the idea that since strings seem not to be in vogue now -- maybe they could use paper that's impregnated with plastic. Kind of laminated -- this would correspond to my apprentice's wrapping tape in that if the reel bands were plasticized, you could apply hold-down tape to them over and over yet it would easily pull off without destroying the reel band the way it does now.

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If Technicolor is so worried about protecting their prints from damage, they should nix those stupid paper bands and spend the money on better reels and new cans.

=TMP=

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John P. Pytlak, Senior Technical Specialist
Worldwide Technical Services, Entertainment Imaging
Research Labs, Building 69, Room 7525A
Rochester, New York, 14650-1922 USA
Tel: +1 585 477 5325 Cell: +1 585 781 4036 Fax: +1 585 722 7243
e-mail: john.pytlak@kodak.com
Web site: http://www.kodak.com/go/motion

But yeah, a laminated sort of badn would be a good idea. In the long run, it should save them money. For the popocrn selling projetionsits, they will at least see "hmm these bands look important maybe I should send them back" and then TES wont have to replace the bands everytime, they can just put their little inspection sticker on it, that can be removed for the next inspection.

When we recieve 16mm it comes with a plastic band aroudn it with a clip on it, that clips to the film, and the inspection sticker is in the center of the reel, like over the center hole. That would really almost work for 35mm...