Film Preservation

Back in the old days, films were made entirely on film stock. There were no computers involved. There were no digital copies of everything. And since there was no digital copy, the editors worked directly on the master film reel and when the film was finished, copies of that master film were made for distribution, but only one master existed. It is saving and restoring these masters that film preservation has always been concerned with.

Thankfully, these days all films can be digitally re-mastered and preserved forever in digital format. Once a film is digitized, it can be reworked and restored in many ways and it can be copied an infinite number of times with no loss or degeneration. But all of this does not save the original old master film reels from the ravages of time. This is where film preservation comes in. film preservation is the art of saving those rare old master film reels from the effects of aging. Time marches on and isn't always kind to any of us, but the old film stock, with its unstable chemical emulsions is particularly vulnerable, which is why film preservation is so important.

A huge piece of our cultural history could be lost forever without the efforts of film preservation. Future generations would not ever really know what a film was really made of back in the golden age of films if not for film preservation. These films are invaluable works of art that were created in a certain medium and they ought to be preserved in that medium at all costs. Film preservation is not just about restoring these master reels to like new condition. Film preservation is also about the proper care, handling and storage of these precious bits of our cultural heritage.

Without film preservation, an important link with the past would be lost so film preservation isn't just about movies. It is about heritage and tradition. Film preservation is about understanding and respecting where you came from. Film preservation is about preserving the genius of an earlier time and paying homage to that genius.

Film preservation isn't cheap. It takes a lot of time, effort and money to restore and preserve these important documents of a bygone era. Film preservation shouldn't just be left up to those who might feel the need to save our precious heritage. Film preservation should be a national priority and film preservation should get all the funds needed to do the job right.

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