Restoration of "At The Club"

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phonogfp
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Restoration of "At The Club"

Post by phonogfp »

We're Getting There!

The Antique Phonograph Society wants to thank everyone who has contributed so far to the restoration of the 1928 Vitaphone film, At The Club. As of Sunday morning, August 27, $8,194 of the required $13,500 has been pledged. But there are only 19 days remaining in this fundraising drive (deadline is September 15).

Donations are tax-deductible, and if full funding isn't raised, all donations are returned.

The APS has been reliably informed that once the film is restored, like all other similar restorations the 35mm print can and will be shown at any venue requesting it (such as Film Forum, Cinecon, or theatres). Restored Vitaphone shorts have been screened in dozens of venues over the years. However, if the fund-raising falls short, Billy Murray, Henry Burr, Monroe Silver, and the other "Eight Famous Victor Artists" will remain in the same "voiceless" state they've occupied for the past 85 years.
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May the APS ask a favor of you?

A number of people have mentioned to various APS Board members that they're waiting till nearer the end of the drive to see if their help will be needed, or to even generously pledge a larger amount if necessary. The danger of this is that if the remaining shortfall is too large, no one will be inclined to pledge the necessary funds.

In order to keep the momentum going, the APS is asking everyone who is considering a pledge to make that pledge now - but at only one-half of their intended total. In other words, if you're considering a pledge of $50, make your pledge today at only $25 (you can make an additional pledge later on if you wish). If you were intending to fund $500 of the project, pledge only $250, but do it now. This will give the APS a better idea of how we're doing, keep pushing the project forward, and MAYBE even save the generous donors some money in the long run. Everybody wins, and The Victor Eight will perform again on film. :)

For more information and to pledge, see this earlier thread:

http://forum.talkingmachine.info/viewto ... =2&t=31394

To go directly to Kickstarter and pledge, here's the link:

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/35 ... sts-at-the

Thank you, thank you, thank you! :)

Antique Phonograph Society

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Re: Restoration of "At The Club"

Post by phonogfp »

Happy September!

You folks are great - - since posting this 5 days ago, combined pledges of over $2000 have come in! There's only about $3000 left to go...but only 2 weeks in which to do it.

As of this morning, Friday Sept. 1, pledges total $10,424.

Will the Victor Eight sing again on film? Call me naive, call me Pollyanna, call me delusional - - just don't forget to call me when the music starts! :)

If you're considering a pledge - no matter how "small" you may think it is - now is the time.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/35 ... sts-at-the

Moreover, your name can be on the short list of people who stepped up and saved this early Vitaphone talkie from oblivion.

Think of it as an opportunity - because that's exactly what it is! :)

Thanks again and best wishes to all,
George P.

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Re: Restoration of "At The Club"

Post by phonogfp »

I've said it before, but...

You folks are great!

Six days ago I reported on the fund-raising progress (see post above). At that time we had about 58 folks pledging. Well, over the week the amount climbed by $2000 and an additional 13 pledgers.

We're now only about $1000 short of the goal!

But time's running short - - the deadline is September 15, only 8 days from now.

It's the Home Stretch.

Can the $1000 be raised in the next week? Sure...just 20 people pledging $50 would do it. Or only 10 folks pledging $100. Out of the nearly 2000 members of this Forum, if 40 of them pledged $25, that too would ring the bell.

If you've been waiting to pledge, or waiting to increase your pledge, NOW'S the time!

Remember - it's tax-deductible, and there are additional incentive packages (listed on the right-hand side of the page in the link below) to reward you even further. Will your name be on the list of those who saved this 1928 talkie from oblivion?

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/35 ... sts-at-the

Thanks - and God Bless Florida.

George P.

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Re: Restoration of "At The Club"

Post by welshfield »

Call me curious, or, if you must, call me jaded, but why the need for all this money?

We have the film, we have the recording. Digitize the film, digitize the recording, put them together. I have done this myself individually for films and for recordings using simple software on my laptop. Certainly someone could merge them together for less than $15,000.

Of course I stand to be enlightened. Apparently much more is involved that I can not understand.

John

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Re: Restoration of "At The Club"

Post by phonogfp »

You and me both (by the way, the estimated cost of restoration is $13,500).

But keep in mind that there's more involved than simply digitizing the existing formats. Both film and sound track will need to be restored. I've seen before-and-after demonstrations on Turner Classic Movies where "unrestored" film is shown side-by-side with "restored" film. And on the same network I've noticed in the credits where restoration was helped along by "generous grants" from large corporations. Clearly, there is expensive work involved.

The restoration of the film/soundtrack will be a first-class, professional job. Beyond that, I can offer no intelligent explanation of costs. I've been astounded at the costs involved in restoring phonautographic tracings and tinfoil recordings through digital technology as well. It's all well beyond my pay grade.

George P.

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Re: Restoration of "At The Club"

Post by martinola »

I'll hazard a guess that the expense is due to the preservation side of things. Digital is (or at least was until recently) not considered a preservation format. 35mm film on the other hand can last more than a hundred years and therefore is what the Library of Congress uses for its preservation elements. The film process is an expensive work flow, especially when one has to nurse a shrunken, fragile negative through a printer or scanner one frame at a time. In any case, I'm glad to see movement being made on this title!

Martin

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Re: Restoration of "At The Club"

Post by Curt A »

Usually, the basic process is to scan the film one frame at a time to get a complete group of the individual images that make up the film. Then, each individual image has to be "restored" by a time consuming process of correcting the exposure, color and removing any unwanted artifacts like scratches, missing portions of images, etc. Once all of the images are corrected (thousands of them) then they can be reinserted into a timeline to reproduce the film in a restored version.

Then the soundtrack has to be examined for pops and unwanted noises and then those things need to be removed for a clean recording... It then has to be re-inserted into the newly restored film, exactly matching the original, so people moving their lips are saying the correct things at the correct times. Anyway, that is a simplified version of what is necessary.... There may be special programs for doing those things in an easier way, but it still has to be done. Otherwise, you have a digitized version of a crappy copy with a soundtrack that may or may not match and may or may not be totally audible...

This picture shows the exact problem in the restoration. It needs a lot of work to look like it did originally and to become legible...
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Re: Restoration of "At The Club"

Post by Swing Band Heaven »

I see that the target has been met. :)

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Re: Restoration of "At The Club"

Post by welshfield »

Thanks to all of you for the good explanation.

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Re: Restoration of "At The Club"

Post by fran604g »

Swing Band Heaven wrote:I see that the target has been met. :)
:)
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