The Death Of Film

• Share

(2 of 2)

There are alternatives to studio-financed conversions to digital. Kodak, Technicolor Digital Cinema and Boeing Digital Cinema offer third-party solutions in which theaters and studios split the cost but neither owns the equipment. Mulone has signed an agreement with Technicolor, which will charge a fee for every digital feature he shows. By leasing or renting the equipment, theaters will also make sure that as the technology improves, they can upgrade to the latest digital systems.

The studios are starting to come together to prepare for the transition. The seven largest jointly announced early this month that they have formed a group to devise a common set of technical standards. While who will pay for the transition may also be discussed, insiders say the focus is engineering. Too much cooperation on pricing schemes could leave them open to antitrust concerns. So far, Disney has emerged as the biggest proponent of digital cinema. With 11 digital releases under its belt, it is also the most ready for the switch.

Removing the burden of creating film prints could also make it easier for small films to find an audience. The cost of just one 35-mm print to show a distributor "can kill your budget," says Brad Anderson, director of Session 9, a psychological thriller set in an abandoned insane asylum and shot on high-definition digital video. Anderson found a distributor to release Session 9 on film, but he would have preferred an all-digital release. To save money, he says, the distributor cut corners on the film stock, and the image quality suffered.

Digital projection has gathered enough support that the industry argues over when, not if, the transition will happen. "When better technology shows up, it doesn't stay secret for long," Soderbergh says. "It makes too much sense"--for both art and commerce.