Appendix 1

Finishing on Film
gate of the projector. The projector is equipped with a three-color print head for making color adjustments.
It also has twin feed reels and take-up reels, allowing two rolls of negative to be bi-packed
at the gate, the fi lm closest to the camera blocking areas of the rear fi lm.
In optical printing, it is possible to print the picture in either A or B wind. By simply fl ipping the
original in the gate of the printer’s “projector,” the emulsion position or the image can be fl opped.
When ordering 16 mm prints and effects to be made optically, you must specify the wind you want,
either A or B.
More complex optical printers use “aerial” image, allowing the camera to be many feet from the
projector. Second and even third projector heads can be added making it possible for many images
to be composted together. As the goal is to produce a negative that can be cut in with the camera
original, the fi lm must be printed twice, once to an interpositive and then back to negative. So, while
it’s possible to print directly from the camera negative on the optical printer producing an interpositive,
normally an interpositive (IP) is contact printed fi rst and then printed back to negative on the
optical printer. The two-step process is necessary anyway, and because the fi lm is handled less, this
helps protect the camera negative.
The optical printer can be used to create complicated, composted special effects as well as simple
dissolves and fades. It can reposition the image, fl ip or fl op the image, speed up or slow down the
shot, soften the focus, blow up 16 mm to 35 mm, and reduce 35 mm to 16 mm. Many of the complex
special-effects uses for the optical printer are now normally preformed digitally, but the optical printer
is still widely used for simple effects, fades and dissolves, as well as titling and blowups.
Modern optical printers are computer controlled and cannot only create some great effects, they can
be used to assemble and color correct an entire motion picture. This workfl ow, called “analog intermediate”
or AI, can be used almost exactly like digital intermediate. The cut list is programmed into
the optical printer and interpositive prints of the camera original are printed to a complete, colorcorrected
internegative ready to make release prints.
Some printers are equipped with a “liquid gate.” The liquid gate printer is a contact or optical printer
equipped with a system to coat the fi lm to be printed with a coating of oil. The oil covers scratches
and fi lls grain. It also gives the image a “soft” quality. It is often used when blowing up 16 mm to
35 mm. The grain of the 16 mm can be rather intense when blown up to 35 mm. While many people
like the look of the liquid, or wet, gate print, others feel it overly softens the image. For some projects
it may be the perfect look, for others it may be totally wrong.
Key Code on Film
During the telecine, bar codes imprinted on the fi lm negative are read as a function of the telecine
process. These bar codes are a machine-readable version of the key code numbers also on the edge
of the negative. These numbers and bar codes are fl ashed onto the fi lm during manufacture and
become visible after the fi lm is processed. They work in the exact same way as time code, and they
contain other information as well, such as the manufacturer of the fi lm and the type of stock.
The key code numbers, as shown in Figure 5.4, occur every foot on 35 mm fi lm and every six inches
on 16 mm fi lm. A key code number may read something like this: KW80 7659 6497. In this case, the K
designates a Kodak fi lm, the W80 is the type of stock, and the rest of the number is simply a map to
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