Kodak Adds To VISION2 Family Of Advanced Films

LODZ, POLAND – Kodak unveiled KODAK VISION2 Expression 500TColor Negative Film 5229/7229, the second product in the new generationof VISION2 color motion picture films, here at the CamerimageInternational Festival of the Art of Cinematography. The new emulsionis designed to satisfy the needs of filmmakers who want a 500-speedfilm that renders images with a somewhat softer look, includingsmoother skin tones and a more subdued range of contrast and colorsaturation. The new film also features a noticeable reduction inapparent grain, a broad range of under- and over-exposure latitude, andan enhanced capacity for recording subtle details in bright highlightsand dark shadows.

“We have made a quantum leap forward in photochemical scienceand technology with the KODAK VISION2 platform,” saysKodak’s Entertainment Imaging Division President Eric Rodli.“We are now leveraging those advances to provide visualstorytellers with an extraordinary new palette of motion picturefilms.”

VISION2 Expression film has a recommended exposure index of 500 in3200 Kelvin degree tungsten light and 320 in daylight with an 85 filteron the camera lens. This new film replaces KODAK VISION Expression 500TColor Negative Film 5284/7284.

“The KODAK VISION2 Expression film is the second 500-speedfilm in the VISION2 platform,” notes Bob Mayson, general managerand vice president of Image Capture for Kodak’s EntertainmentImaging. “This new film benefits from the improved grainstructure and tonal range of the VISION2 platform, while offering thelower color and contrast attributes that filmmakers have asked for whendevising the right looks to tell their stories. These films are alsodesigned for efficiency during optical and digitalpostproduction”

Masao Nakabori, JSC, a cinematographer based in Japan, shot a 35 mmdemo designed to judge how the new film renders images in naturallight. “I like the subdued colors,” he says. “Thedegree of grain shown by 5229 in the highlighted portion (of the image)is superb. In a scene we shot in falling rain, with only one Kino Floused as supplemental lighting, the 5229 showed a color tone andsoftness that matched the rain.”

Caroline Champetier, AFC, a feature film cinematographer based inFrance, tested the new emulsion in the 16 mm format. “More thananything else, I love lighting faces,” she says. “I like towork in low light, in the lower part of the tonal scale. That’swhere high-speed film is most subtle in rendering a scene, especiallyan actress’s beauty. The rendering of beauty is always paramountin my choice of films. The absence of grain and the softness of 7229are invaluable for extreme close-ups of faces. These qualities make itpossible to render the skin’s texture and color softly andaccurately. The absence of grain in the VISION2 Expression film –even in low light – is a great advantage.”

Last year, Kodak brought the next generation of motion picture filmsto the marketplace with the introduction of KODAK VISION2 500T ColorNegative Film 5218/7218. The KODAK VISION2 family of films incorporatesadvances in image structure, and are also designed for efficiencyduring optical and digital postproduction. Rodli notes that the filmhas been enthusiastically received by cinematographers around theworld, and that Kodak will introduce additional film stocks to theVISION2 family in early 2004.

Kodak’s Entertainment Imaging division is the world-classleader in providing film, digital and hybrid motion imaging products,services, and technology for the television, feature film and new mediaindustry.