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FIAF publications review #1
by Jürgen Kellermann, Adelaide Email: juergen.kellermann @ sa.gov.au
The Advanced Projection Manual: Presenting Classic Films in a Modern Projection Environment.
Torkell Sætervadet. The International Federation of Film Archives & Norwegian Film Institute, 2006.
(300 pages, hardcover).
The Fédération Internationale des Archives du Film
(FIAF) is the peak international body representing film
archives around the world (www.fiafnet.org). FIAF has
issued a number of books, journals and brochures over
the years. This is the first in a series of reviews
discussing some of these publications.
The Advanced Projection Manual is a practical
guide for cinema engineers and projectionists engaged
in the archival field, museums, repertoire cinemas and
cinémathèques, i.e. institutions presenting classic and
archival films with modern equipment. As private film
collectors own and screen ‘old’ films, this book is
certainly worth a look. Some knowledge of motion
picture technology is required.
The book is divided into chapters on how to set out your cinema, which projectors and other equipment
to choose (46 pages) and how to maintain it (divided into sections on projection and sound equipment; 14
and 11 pp.). A very short chapter describes the treatment of film and archive material (6 pp.). 35mm film
format and projection ratios (36 pp.) and sound formats (46 pp.) are very well described and explained.
This is followed by chapters on non-standard formats, i.e. 70mm film projection (22 pp.), 3D film (12 pp.)
and narrow gauge film (10 pp.). One large chapter discusses the presentation of video and digital images
(54 pp.) and is certainly worth reading for people venturing into these ‘modern’ formats.
Ideas on what to look out for when designing your cinema or screening room are certainly useful,
however, the film collector is often constrained by the space available, and the costs involved in building a
cinema or acquiring projection equipment. I found the thorough overview of 35mm & 70mm film formats,
and sound formats, very informative. For someone who just uses a mono white-light solar cell without a
special sound processor, the different types of sound formats are rather confusing. The author also writes
about obscure formats, e.g. Sensurround. (It was interesting to read that there are films that will not play on
a red light reader at all, esp. if the soundtrack is printed in grey colour; a white light reader reproduces them
without problems.) All 35mm and 70mm formats and aspect ratios are very well explained and illustrated,
and a good explanation on how to recognise them and project them is given.
An obvious omission in the book is a chapter on nitrate film, how to handle and project it. Film
archives are probably the last places to ‘officially’ screen nitrate prints to the public (e.g. British Film
Institute, London, or George Eastman House, Rochester) — though we all know that many collectors own
nitrate films, as well. We are not even told how to recognise nitrate film stock, and I cannot recall having
come across the word ‘nitrate’ while reading, at all. It would have been interesting to read about the
requirements and procedures of projecting nitrate in a large cinema today.
The treatment of small gauge film in the Manual is very disappointing. Only a few pages are devoted
to 16mm and Super-8. The author seems to think that non-standard format prints is not suitable for the big
screen, and that there are too few good quality projectors available for these gauges. As many films from
the 1920s, 30s and 40s are only available as 16mm viewing prints this is a rather poor stand to take.
Furthermore, many documentaries, educational films, TV productions and news footage were originally
shot on 16mm and should be presented in that format. The same applies to experimental films and home
movies on Standard-8 / Super-8 as well as other gauges, like 9.5mm and 28mm, since many early films
only survive on these ‘obsolete’ formats.
Nevertheless, I enjoyed reading the book very much and recommend it to everyone working
professionally and privately in 35mm, 70mm or digital presentation. There are hardly any recently
published projectionists’ manuals available, most books on the topic are more than 20 or 30 years old. The
book is very well designed and printed. It can be purchased online, e.g. with amazon, or visit the FIAF
web-site (price: EUR 55.00).