[Frameworks] Modern 16mm features, distributed on film

[Herb Shellenberger]

Let's just say $7000 USD to make two prints, adding up the above costs and having someone cut your neg...

In the face of this, Roger’s suggestion to project originals doesn’t sound too crazy. It obviously wouldn’t be a practice suitable for all kinds of work but might be interesting to infuse experimental cinema, separate from moving image performance, with a sense of immediacy, improvisation and impermanence via this practice.

It’s a different topic but it would be also interesting to discuss artists who have projected originals in a cinema setting (Jack Smith, Nathaniel Dorsky and Jerome Hiler, Fred Camper’s SN, Luther Price), their varying motivations and the longevity—or lack thereof—of this work.
Herb Shellenberger
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From: FrameWorks [mailto:frameworks-bounces at jonasmekasfilms.com] On Behalf Of 40 Frames
Sent: Sunday, July 20, 2014 6:44 PM
To: Experimental Film Discussion List
Subject: Re: [Frameworks] Modern 16mm features, distributed on film



On Sun, Jul 20, 2014 at 1:08 PM, John Woods <jawoods01 at yahoo.ca<mailto:jawoods01 at yahoo.ca>> wrote:

Alain, while I'm primarily interested in experimental or artists films, I'd open up to mainstream films too. I'm more broadly interested in the state of 16mm film as an exhibition format and not necessarily experimental. If Spielberg decided to distribute his latest on 16mm, then that would count. I guess I'm biased in my thinking that a 16mm print nowadays is an indulgence for the creator and few mainstream filmmakers are going to convince their distributor to pick up the bill for the print.


70 minutes x 36ft/min = 2520 feet

Optical Track .60/ft x 2520 = $1512 + shipping

Answer Print 1.00/ft x 2520 = $2520 + shipping

Release Print .70/ft x 2520 = $1764 + shipping

Subtotal $5796

Cut your own neg, or add the cost of that as well ($5 per cut). Let say 100 cuts for a nice round number multiplied by an
A roll and B roll... $1000 + shipping. Neg cutting will get more expensive as black leader is becoming more expensive. One
can A roll, and/or cut their own neg to save cost, but there's still going to be a cost to cutting neg given the supplies needed to cut neg.

Let's just say $7000 USD to make two prints, adding up the above costs and having someone cut your neg...

A common "art theater" rental rate in the US is $250 or a certain percentage of the door whichever is greater. Let's assume
$250 is better than the percentage. Book 30 screenings and you've made $7500, covering your lab cost for making prints. That's assuming you didn't travel to any of these screenings... and assuming each theater agreed to pay the $250 rental + shipping (both ways)!

The film coops and artist-run labs can bring some of these costs down... indeed it might be the only way one can consider going this route, but then you have the issue of 16mm projection....




That surf film sounds pretty interesting. A throwback to the days of Warren Miller touring his films. The ski/surf/skate genre is in away similar to experimental film. Its a niche audience of practitioners and the films are plot-less compositions of beautiful visuals.


I met a guy (this was probably 20 years ago) who was shooting backcountry snowboard films on a Bolex in the British Columbia backcountry. His footage was very nice, though I've always had a difficult time with this style of making, as it's usually is a bunch of shots cut to music. I'd prefer an ambient/location track of some kind, even a non-sync constructed one. I always found these films (ski/snowboard/surf/skate) to be more akin to music videos than experimental films. But still, there are certainly some crossover/similarities, so I would agree with your comment above.




I know it was shot on 16mm, but is Jodie Mack's Dusty Stacks of Mom available on 16mm? Thats about 40 minutes.


Pam asked the same question, perhaps Jodie can answer as I don't know.


Best,
Alain


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