my profile | my password | search | faq & rules | forum home

» Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE   » Community   » The Afterlife   » DW Griffith Biograph DVDs (Page 1)

This topic comprises 2 pages: 1  2

Author Topic: DW Griffith Biograph DVDs Peter Brown Film Handler Posts: 86 From: Ceredigion, Wales, UK Registered: Jul 2005 posted 04-07-2006 02:27 AM                     Morning all, Can anyone recommend a set of DVDs featuring Griffith's Biograph work? There seem to be several versions out there, and I'd like to get one with a decent telecine, preferably from 35mm. I'm not fussed about extras unless they're historical - Roger Ebert brings me out in a rash... Does anyone have a set and can make a recommendation? Many thanks, Pete.  |  IP: Logged Leo Enticknap Film God Posts: 7474 From: Loma Linda, CA Registered: Jul 2000 posted 04-07-2006 06:04 AM                        This Kino edition is probably the highest quality material you'll find on DVD (NTSC, region 1). They also do some further Biograph shorts on NTSC VHS, too. I've got around 20 Kino DVDs (though not this one) - they do use high quality transfers from the best quality elements they can find. The ones I've got range from acceptable to amazing. You won't find any shitty Elmo transfers of 7th generation 16mm dupes in their catalogue. Perhaps this thread wants shunting into Afterlife?  |  IP: Logged Warren Smyth Expert Film Handler Posts: 158 From: Auckland ,New Zealand Registered: Aug 2003 posted 04-09-2006 10:10 AM                     Peter, at long last Photoplay are releasing the HOLLYWOOD series on DVD in August. This, made by Kevin Brownlow for Thames television is, I believe, the best series on the history of the American film industry. There is a section on Griffith's work but you will have to buy the whole set of four disks. It is however well worth it. Even the Carl Davis music score is an absolute treat. It was made on film and I know from a friend who was one of the editors, a lot of care was taken with the original transfers of achieve material which included from rare guages such as 28mm. We can only hope that they go back to the original negative of the series for the mastering for DVD rather than from quad broadcast tapes.  |  IP: Logged Peter Brown Film Handler Posts: 86 From: Ceredigion, Wales, UK Registered: Jul 2005 posted 04-10-2006 02:37 AM                     Thanks very much, Leo and Warren. I'll order the Kino set, and keep an eye out for the Brownlow series later this year. Without Brownlow we'd never have had Karl Brown's reminiscences of his years with Griffith!  |  IP: Logged Gary Davidson Expert Film Handler Posts: 101 From: Santa Monica, CA Registered: Jan 2004 posted 04-10-2006 05:46 PM                     Warren -- Do you have any more detail about the a new version of Brownlow's HOLLYWOOD coming on DVD you mention?  |  IP: Logged Warren Smyth Expert Film Handler Posts: 158 From: Auckland ,New Zealand Registered: Aug 2003 posted 04-11-2006 03:29 AM                     Gary, there was a reference to it's release in the USA on this forum some time ago but after much searching I was unable to find confirmation of it anywhere on DVD although it was available on VHS. However, I have just discovered that it is being released on August 7th. It will be available on DVD from Amazon UK. There is no reference to it at present at Amazon US. Keep in mind this will probably be PAL so you may need a multi- standards and zone player. The price is 29.99 pounds or if you pre-order, there is a discount with the price being 22.49 pounds. Do a search for "Hollywood - Complete Series" at Amazon UK and you will find it. [ 04-11-2006, 09:59 PM: Message edited by: Warren Smyth ]  |  IP: Logged Peter Brown Film Handler Posts: 86 From: Ceredigion, Wales, UK Registered: Jul 2005 posted 04-12-2006 07:35 AM                     Excellent - I've pre-ordered mine! Thanks for the heads-up, Warren. Now all I need is 'The Golden Years: The RKO Story'...  |  IP: Logged Tim Reed Better Projection Pays Posts: 5246 From: Northampton, PA Registered: Sep 1999 posted 04-22-2006 06:10 AM                       quote: Warren Smyth rare guages such as 28mm Wasn't 28mm a home movie format?  |  IP: Logged Warren Smyth Expert Film Handler Posts: 158 From: Auckland ,New Zealand Registered: Aug 2003 posted 04-22-2006 09:45 PM                     You are right Tim, 28mm was a home movie format but although there were cameras for domestic shooting it was also used for entertainment and education as well. It was originated by pathe who produced the KOK projector and later the Pathescope company in America made the Pathescope Premier which had the option of hand crank or motor drive. I'm fortunate to have one of these. The Victor company also manufactured a version in the 28mm gauge with a slight sprocket hole variation, possibly to get round copy right issues, by introducing a degree of incompatability. Anyway, there was a large library of films from Hollywood as well as Europe available and the gauge was used extensively in Canada. The result is that some early films survived only on this format and because of the large frame size, the picture quality is quite good. You could say, that these films were the early form of DVDs. Unfortunately, pressure from Kodak's 16mm gauge in the thirties brought it to an end. A conference of the major players just before the war agreed that 28mm would no longer be continued in favour of 16mm. It is believed that Pathe were paid compensation to kill the 28mm gauge. Apparently, much of the equipment and films were destroyed in France during the occupation due the the Germans having supported the adoption of the 16mm gauge. The 28mm projectors and films are sought after by collectors.  |  IP: Logged Hillary Charles Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 748 From: York, PA, USA Registered: Feb 2001 posted 04-25-2006 06:37 PM                     The Brownlow HOLLYWOOD series is fantastic! I have the set on laserdisc, and am often watching an episode here and there. It'll be interesting to see how the DVD's are packaged here.  |  IP: Logged Peter Brown Film Handler Posts: 86 From: Ceredigion, Wales, UK Registered: Jul 2005 posted 04-27-2006 02:10 AM                     The Griffith DVDs turned up yesterday - and they're superb. Thanks for the recommendation, Leo. I'm looking forward to getting the 'Hollywood' ones in August now...  |  IP: Logged Leo Enticknap Film God Posts: 7474 From: Loma Linda, CA Registered: Jul 2000 posted 04-28-2006 03:11 PM                        quote: Warren Smyth The Victor company also manufactured a version in the 28mm gauge with a slight sprocket hole variation, possibly to get round copy right issues, by introducing a degree of incompatability. There was also a perforation issue around safety. If my (admittedly hazy) memory serves me correctly, pre-print 28mm elements were nitrate, but all projection prints were diacetate. In order to make absolutely sure that no-one could accidently try to project a negative (with the fire risk that would involve), I think that release print elements had four perfs per frame along both edges (same as 35mm), but pre-print elements had four perfs down one side, but only one (adjacent the frame line) on the other. Because the sproket teeth on a projector would be trying to engage perforations which didn't exist, a pre-print element would therefore refuse to run.  |  IP: Logged Warren Smyth Expert Film Handler Posts: 158 From: Auckland ,New Zealand Registered: Aug 2003 posted 04-30-2006 09:39 AM                     Leo wrote quote: Leo Enticknap I think that release print elements had four perfs per frame along both edges Actually Leo, the Pathe and Pathescope release prints had three perforations per frame along one side and just one on the other - opposite the frame line. Just to complicate things a little, I believe the films made for the Victor projectors had three perforations down BOTH sides and naturally, the Victor projectors' sprockets had three teeth on both sides as well. This meant that Pathe and Pathescope films could not play on the Victor projectors as two teeth for each frame on one side of the sprockets, would not have any perforations to engage. Victor's films however could be played on Pathe or Pathescope projectors and so, as I stated earlier, there was a degree of incompatibility. It is believed that Pathe didn't want their films shown on projectors of another manufacture, not unlike the restrictive practice that Edison tried to enforce by registering copy protection over the perforations on 35mm film. The two sets of three perforations on Victor products therefore provided a one way incompatibility. Incidentally, most Pathescope 28mm projectors had the single tooth per frame on one side of all sprockets. On mine, this applies only to the intermittent sprocket with the upper and lower sprockets having no teeth at all on one side, (that side which would normally has a single tooth per frame). I can only assume that this was an improvement to make the projector easier to thread. The film seems to drive through the projector quite well using one set of perforations only. One perforation per frame engaging on matching teeth on the intermittent sprocket however, means that the film cannot be threaded out of frame. This makes threading through the gate a little easier. Safety was an issue and non flamable "lavender" prints were used. The projectors had an underwriters approval sticker on the front stating "for use with slow burning film and an enclosing booth not required". [ 04-30-2006, 06:00 PM: Message edited by: Warren Smyth ]  |  IP: Logged Leo Enticknap Film God Posts: 7474 From: Loma Linda, CA Registered: Jul 2000 posted 04-30-2006 10:45 AM                        My mistake, sorry. We don't have any 28mm in our collection, so this isn't a format I've had any involvement with since I was an archiving student in 1995-96. I knew that there were perforation compatibility issues deliberately built in, but was probably getting confused with Eastman's decision to make 16mm deliberately incompatible with 35mm stock manufacture on safety grounds and to promote it as a medium safe for use by amateurs, i.e. impossible to produce by simply slitting 35mm raw stock down the middle and reperforating.  |  IP: Logged Ron Keillor Expert Film Handler Posts: 166 From: Vancouver, B.C. Canada Registered: Jul 2003 posted 04-30-2006 03:30 PM                     Article on film sizes with pictures at http://www.xs4all.nl/~wichm/filmsize.html#TOP  |  IP: Logged

All times are Central (GMT -6:00)

This topic comprises 2 pages: 1  2

Printer-friendly view of this topic

Hop To: Select a Forum: Category: Operations -------------------- Digital Cinema Forum Film Handlers' Forum Large Format Forum Ground Level Feature Info, Trailer Attachments & REAL Credit Offsets Category: Community -------------------- Film-Yak Film Handlers' Movie Reviews The Afterlife Bob Maar's Joke-A-Thon Category: Classified -------------------- Equipment and Supplies Wanted/For Sale Help Wanted/Seeking Employment Category: System -------------------- Software Beta Testing Forum

The Film-Tech Forums are designed for various members related to the cinema industry to express their opinions, viewpoints and testimonials on various products, services and events based upon speculation, personal knowledge and factual information through use, therefore all views represented here allow no liability upon the publishers of this web site and the owners of said views assume no liability for any ill will resulting from these postings. The posts made here are for educational as well as entertainment purposes and as such anyone viewing this portion of the website must accept these views as statements of the author of that opinion and agrees to release the authors from any and all liability.