16mm telecine demonstration

This video was produced as part of the European Research Council funded ADAPT project based at Royal Holloway, University of London. For more information about the project visit www.adaptTVhistory.org.uk
This footage was filmed in August 2015 at BBC Studios and Post Production in South Ruislip, London, United Kingdom.
BBC archive telecine specialist Tim Emblem-English and retired telecine operator Jim Gregory demonstrated the processes involved in scanning television film footage onto tape for broadcast.
This video is part of a series that shows how engineers used telecine scanning processes in order to prepare finished films for broadcast transmission.
The footage being scanned was originally exposed during the project’s historical reenactment of a 16mm television film crew at work, and subsequently processed at i-dailies in West London.
ADAPT (2013-8) is a European Research Council project at Royal Holloway University of London. The project studies the history of technologies in television, focussing on their everyday use in production activities.
ADAPT examines what technologies were adopted and why; how they worked; and how people worked with them. As well as publishing written accounts, the project carries out 'simulations' that reunite retired equipment with the people who used to use it.
Participants in these simulations explain how each machine worked and how different machines worked together as an 'array'; how they adapted the machines; and how they worked together as teams within the overall production process.
www.adaptTVhistory.org.uk
doi.org/10.17637/rh.c.3925603.v1 ADAPT (2013-8) is a European Research Council project at Royal Holloway University of London. The project studies the history of technologies in television, focussing on their everyday use in production activities.
ADAPT examines what technologies were adopted and why; how they worked; and how people worked with them. As well as publishing written accounts, the project carries out 'simulations' that reunite retired equipment with the people who used to use it.
Participants in these simulations explain how each machine worked and how different machines worked together as an 'array'; how they adapted the machines; and how they worked together as teams within the overall production process.
www.adaptTVhistory.org.uk
doi.org/10.17637/rh.c.3925603.v1

[@flyingo]

Viewing these ADAPT videos about the “old school” methods of creating visual content for television or other display mediums has me reminiscing about my various rolls in the same processes here in America. I look back with tremendous pride at my self-taught skills in the design, engineering and wiring these systems. The best times in my career were spent building television stations and creating content. I’m very happy these videos of the various film/videtape processes are being produced!

[@Ricoxemani]

Very fascinating

[@lesliedymond9484]

What a wonderful educational video thank you dear people good health to you all

[@srikanakadurgaartscreation3724]

Superb

[@mpanico3727]

Old school video and post.

[@viva2archive]

Do they mention at any point in the project at which frame rate the film was shot (both for this project and for the BBC in general)? I naively assumed the BBC shot film at 25 fps for a frame-accurate telecine to PAL video, but the final output video from this project is surprisingly jerky and looks more like a pulldown from 16 or 18 fps.

[@darrenhowie4009]

Y

[@falseprophet1972]

Could that kit be any older..........

[@wdavem]

Have you seen the latest film transfer gear?! I have.

[@moow950]

So those Digital SP tapes: are they transferred as digital files to a video server archive? Which format is used (ProRes, Raw?) What about backups?

[@northernplacecorporation]

Digital Betacam, actually.

[@SuperSy99]

Telecine is real time transfer of film to dvd or vhs tape,oppose to film scanner which it scan frame by frame.Telecine faster transfer but sacrifice resolution while Film scanner is more acurate and achieve higher resolution but it takes forever to scan long film.

[@SuperSy99]

@@northernplacecorporation they are not tape.its 16mm film being transfer to digital or tape cassette but in real time.today we have film scanner which frame by frame scan but slow process but very accurate.telecine is old technology

[@DigitalAndInnovation]

2:20 So he mentions this was to be done live. So they just ran stuff on film right to tv? I know in the very early days that was the only option... but why not do the 'painting' to tape then just pop that in a VTR? Was it an investment of time to great to do- or was it maybe generational loss?