# 35mm frames/photos?



## Twisted_Whisper (Aug 1, 2017)

Hello there, I am new here, was said this thread might be the best place for my quest 
I got a pack of old frames of some kind, I do think it can be old silent era frames. Might be theater or just normal day photos, I have no clue.
They guy that I got them from said they might be from germany..maybe... I do not know if he was joking. I did today take some photos whit my camera, I will try and see if I can scan them tomarrow. 
I do show you some here, anyone know what this cam be from?

That photo whit the guy and that girl, that must be one of the most butiful pictures I have ever seen. I am a bit inlove in this kind of make up and era. The focus is way better ofc on the real frames then what my camera show.


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## Derrel (Aug 1, 2017)

NEAT!!! These look like very old motion picture snips...pretty old-looking film!


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## webestang64 (Aug 1, 2017)

Derrel said:


> look like very old motion picture snips



My thought as well.


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## Twisted_Whisper (Aug 2, 2017)

Derrel said:


> NEAT!!! These look like very old motion picture snips...pretty old-looking film!



Yee I do think the same, only I wonder if one can find what movies they are from, then one know and what country they are from.


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## compur (Aug 2, 2017)

Looks like film editor scraps. Any writing along the edges of the film?


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## jcdeboever (Aug 2, 2017)

Too cool


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## Twisted_Whisper (Aug 2, 2017)

compur said:


> Looks like film editor scraps. Any writing along the edges of the film?



Well I do not think it is scraps, you mean like cut away on the cuting room floor.  I do wonder if they just did just one frame then, there is a viewfinder that is made to just watch one frame. What is the point of watching scraps, if I understand right what you mean about scraps. 

And I got to talk to the guy that I got them from again, he was joking about germany, they was found in a death house here in Sweden, so my info stop there, I do not know who lived there or anything. 
BUT this do not really look to be from Sweden. It can be. It whuld make sence if it is from Silent Movies from Sweden. 
My guess is they are promotion photos maybe. 
But scraps can be right. and no there is nothing writen on them. Onyl thing that can be seen is some company letters for the film makers. not just that is stand that but like kodak you know. Not anything hand writen. 

I will call the film socity here in Sweden and see if they wanna help me with this.


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## vintagesnaps (Aug 2, 2017)

They did sometimes hand tint silent movie film. I saw something about it maybe on TCM, Turner Classic Movies. Seems like it was a feature on early movies and it showed people seated at tables with some sort of viewing machine they were using to hold the film while they tinted it. 

TCM has Silent Sundays at midnight on Sunday nights usually, but this month is Summer Under the Stars so it won't be on again til September. Not sure if there's anything on their site about silent movies or not. 

Maybe try the Eastman House museum in Rochester NY and see if their website has any resources on this. They have been involved in restoring old vintage movies.


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## maris (Aug 2, 2017)

This could be nitrate base film and potentially explosive and/or flammable. Check it out to be safe.


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## jcdeboever (Aug 2, 2017)

maris said:


> This could be nitrate base film and potentially explosive and/or flammable. Check it out to be safe.


Cool


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## Derrel (Aug 2, 2017)

compur said:


> Looks like film editor scraps. Any writing along the edges of the film?



These do not look like film editor scraps...I used to work as a projectionist at two local theaters, one indoor, one drive-in. What the box looks like to me are unauthorized projectionist "*frame snips*" from actual theater prints. 35mm motion picture theatrical films used to be shipped in steel film cans (with heavy-duty handles, and strong latches), from theater to theater, on *shipping reels*. Shipping reels were thin, stamped steel reels. When a print came in, you'd prepare it, examine the leaders, review the film for damage, oil, and spalices, tears, etc.. and of course you'd make sure the reels were in the right order, and then you would load your projection drawers with the reels in numerical order. OIL on the prints was a common issue...many older machines had oil issues!

The film prints were typically initially transferred from shipping reels to projection reels using a hand-cranked rewinding machine, onto high-quality, precision-made, very sturdy *projection reels* (sturdy-high-precision, and marked in feet on the outside). During actual showings, most projectionists used a motorized rewinder, but for that initial "print preparation", hand-cranked machines were what we were told to use. This was of course, for reel-to-reel, two-projector systems that used carbon arc lighting, not modern-day, "platter" systems with a Xenon bulb and the entire movie spliced together on one gigantic film platter.

Notice the very interesting scenes and actors/actresses in these? I beleive that these are "snips" that some projctionist amassed from films of his era. That's my take. I've seen this before...I've seen literally dozens and dozens of prints come in with 3 or 4 or 5 or 6 frames "snipped" then tape-spliced...usually where there are  '_interesting _'  actors or actresses, in ' _interesting _' scenes...

When you hand-wind with a crank machine, you literally feel the film edges, for splices, as you wind from shipping reels to projection reels, and when you do encounter a mid-reel splice, as well as EVERY leader splice! you stop and quickly check and make sure each splice is GOOD, before you project it! The last thing you want is a crappy splice that some id'jot made ruining the presentation.


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## Twisted_Whisper (Aug 3, 2017)

Derrel said:


> compur said:
> 
> 
> > Looks like film editor scraps. Any writing along the edges of the film?
> ...



I have been working with movies this way too as a projectionist at both a nonrewind and two reel shift place as you. 
Right they come and you splice maybe 2-3 reels togheter and save one frame on the one you cut away. so you know the start slide goes back again on the right reel. 
So I guess this is what you mean, that some toke an extra frame from the starts and ends off some reels and put them somewhere and collected then as personal thing, or maybe they where alowed to do that. If you take out one frame from 24 it do not happend so much really. Over all the movie is now shorted. Take out 3-4 we are starting to see something, but maybe not even then. At the start when I was working I toke some frames like this. Then I felt, no this is nor right to do and stoped....sadly...might had a box for the future like this I have 
This is in fact a real time capsle I have...


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## Twisted_Whisper (Aug 3, 2017)

maris said:


> This could be nitrate base film and potentially explosive and/or flammable. Check it out to be safe.



Yee I did check one to see, a bad frame was cracked, I put fire close to it and POFF!!!! crazy.  BUT all are very very very well stored, somehow over all this years, most times if this frames is stored togheter like this, they can melt togheter and starts a fire. Many do think that you store this best in a metal box maybe, looked in. BUT NO.. best is to have them in somewhere in a not to hot place that let in and out air. or let out the gas that this films make. So yee dangerous things. Many film archives and cinemas burned down because of this type of film. That have now left us whit sooo many silent movies, we will never ever see...


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## jcdeboever (Aug 3, 2017)

Cool


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## Twisted_Whisper (Aug 3, 2017)

I did try my normal home scanner, it did not scan that good or that big. It did not get so hot and this frames are soooo well preserved, I do not get it how they still can be this clean.  Like this frame look at the holes, have this even been played ? And dose she not look a bit like Mary Pickford? I do not mean it is her, but it reminds me of her.  So this photo I think because of the clothes can be put to a year right?

I did talk to the film society here in Sweden and they waned to help me scan this and archive them. I just needed to wait a week for the man in change over it, but the guy I talked to was very forward and saying this was really interesting and I calling them was totally the right thing to do.


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## compur (Aug 3, 2017)

I don't doubt the testimony of the experienced projectionists here. My relevant experience is working in Hollywood film editing rooms (as a PA "gopher") and the stuff looks like "cutting room floor" snips to me. I've been ankle deep in it. But, it makes little difference. It's cut pieces of movie film either way. And, since it was found a long way from Hollywood it probably is projection snips making Derrel the winner. 

And, that looks like Mary Pickford to me too.


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## Twisted_Whisper (Aug 3, 2017)

compur said:


> I don't doubt the testimony of the experienced projectionists here. My relevant experience is working in Hollywood film editing rooms (as a PA "gopher") and the stuff looks like "cutting room floor" snips to me. I've been ankle deep in it. But, it makes little difference. It's cut pieces of movie film either way. And, since it was found a long way from Hollywood it probably is projection snips making Derrel the winner.
> 
> And, that looks like Mary Pickford to me too.



Cool you worked so close to what this might be. So "the cutting room floor" can be of many one singel perfect frames? Not being mean or discredit you, just fell this are to lovely looking to be scraps. And I know sometimes good stuff need to be cut away too. **** I do wonder what this is soo bad. I been going over them a bit more and more and guys.... it is like more 100 frames here...   

I was looking around online at Mary Pickford for some photo off her whit that hat and dress, but did not found any yet,  still can be her.

Here is another photo of a frame I toke with my camera in raw and edit some and it did turn out kind of ok I think. This  frame was a bit rolled up, so that is why the top and edges is a bit distorted.


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## compur (Aug 3, 2017)

Twisted_Whisper said:


> Cool you worked so close to what this might be. So "the cutting room floor" can be of many one singel perfect frames?



Sure. Most of what is shot on a typical feature film ends up either on that floor or never processed in the first place. Anything from one frame to entire camera reels. What you see in the theater is a fraction of what was filmed. Each shot is typically filmed multiple times -- sometimes dozens of times -- and only one "take" (or none of them) ends up in the finished film. Entire scenes comprised of many different shots also get the big snip. That is what is called the "shooting ratio" -- how much was shot vs how much was kept in the finished film. Typical Hollywood shooting ratios are in the 6:1 to 10:1 range for film but can be higher or lower.

I also worked for many years as a Hollywood extra and much of my work ended up on that floor, I can tell you. But, that's show biz. 

PS - In case you were wondering -- No, I didn't work with Mary Pickford. (I'm not _that _old.) But, I did work at her old studio.


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## Twisted_Whisper (Aug 3, 2017)

Oh yee I do know that xD I just ment that do they cut away just one frame. Whuld it not be more frames cut away. I just had my thoughts. I do get it. And yee I have been working a bit as an extra too and I do movies myself too. VERY low budget movies though. xD Just having fun. Going to record a short film this weekend, I am an actor in this project, low budget, going to be some kind of terminator fellow. See how that goes. 

xD I did not think you worked with her, though that would have been nice.

I will update some more on monday if anyone wanna see some more frames. Happy weekend all, no need to say it back, just take care out there


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## jcdeboever (Aug 3, 2017)

That definitely looks like Mary Pickford.


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## sniper x (Aug 3, 2017)

One thing is they are indeed cool! A couple look like they are from a fairly recent movie called "Iron Sky". BUT, it is also possible the director for that motion picture saw the original movie these were from and was inspired! A couple look a little too "worked" to look old but may be legit as well. All in all, they do indeed look like 35mm motion picture film. I have been shooting and editing 8mm, 16mm, super 16mm and a few different formats of 35mm motion picture film since the early 1980s. While I no longer shoot motion picture film I do have a working idea of it's look. And these do look like singlet frames from 35mm film. I am super interested in finding out what YOU find out! 

About thirty years ago when shooting home movies on film by consumers was completely dead, I picked up a bunch of cameras cheap from a photo store in Monterey Cali where I lived. One camera had an exposed 100ft reel in it. I always wanted to have it processed because it had an inscription on the outside of the box that read, Germany WWII, war footage.


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## Twisted_Whisper (Aug 7, 2017)

sniper x said:


> A couple look like they are from a fairly recent movie called "Iron Sky". BUT, it is also possible the director for that motion picture saw the original movie these were from and was inspired! A couple look a little too "worked" to look old but may be legit as well.  out!
> 
> I always wanted to have it processed because it had an inscription on the outside of the box that read, Germany WWII, war footage.



What? Iron Sky is very new. This are like from around 1920 something. they all are legit. What are you talking about. I told you I scanned in my home scanner, sadly it is not good, then I toke a photo there in RAW format and edit in photo shop, still real though. 

I do also have a 8mm movie that I got some a fle market that is undeveloped and it say on it 1/2 developed. So I wonder what that can be. Just something home made I guess. 

Then for you all. I did write some in this forum also - NitrateVille.com • View topic - What is the frame?
One user there told me this:
"...
this was common practice with movie films. After their run in theaters they would
be spliced down and sold on the secondary market for toy projectors and viewers like yours. Some very interesting footage has turned up this way in the past. I hope someone can chime in and maybe identify the actors with in your film."

That sounds very likely. And I looked into it more now there are around 170 frames here. So many. 
and might be from around 6-7 movies. Some frames I see are from the same movie.


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