Restored Film Projects (cont'd)

Scanning the damaged film into a digital file workstation at a resolution adequate to caption the picture information in the original element is an essential first step, in this case a 4K scan for WATERFRONT, using Mac G4 workstations, running OS X with Jaguar, and with LaCie FireWire 80GB hard drives, utilizing software that supports a color depth of 16bits. Most of this type of work is done adapting software originally developed for the special effects industry -- removing wires or props from a shot is similar to removing a scratch. When a frame is torn or scratched, the restoration team compares the damaged frames to "clean" frames before or after the damaged one, then copies over the clean frame or partial image into the damaged frame, essentially erasing the damage. It is important that any digitally-replaced shots or sequences match-in with the surrounding original picture so that the digital replacement is seamless and effectively invisible to the viewer.

These before and after shots from ON THE WATERFRONT illustrate the ability to seamlessly replace a damaged frame with a digitally-restored frame. Scratches, tears and general wear can be observed in the first frames from the original picture negative. Next to those are examples of the same frames now restored using new digital processing techniques.