The 63rd FIAF Congress Tokyo 2007 Symposium "Searching the Traces: Study of Short-lived Film Formats"

　Under the theme of "Searching the Traces: Study of Short-lived Film Formats", the Symposium offered a wide range of papers as well as presentations on the many short-lived formats for film and other visual medium prior to the establishment of 35mm film as the norm of the industry. At the same time, the presentations stressed the need for the preservation and restoration of not only such short-lived film formats of the past, but also of its projection equipment as well.
　 We are listing a brief description of only a portion of the presentations and images presented at the Symposium. Should there be any further interest in these subjects, please contact the presenters directly. As most of the presenters are F.I.A.F. related, their contact information is available on the FIAF website.

EUROPE

The Archaeology of Formats Donata Pesenti Campagnoni (Museo Nazionale del Cinema/Fondazione Maria Adriana Prolo, Torino)

Short-Lived Film Formats in the French Film Archives/CNC Eric Le Roy (Archives Francaises du Film/CNC, Bois d'Arcy)

Pre-Cinema Artifacts: How We Should Preserve Them Laurent Mannoni (Cinematheque Francaise, Paris)

ASIA

Hand Colour Sound Films in Hong Kong Hung Yuen (Hong Kong Film Archive, Hong Kong)

JAPAN

Preservation of Narrow Gauge Films in Japan: A Case Study of 8mm Films
Yoshiyuki Yahiro (The Fukuoka City Public Library Film Archive, Fukuoka)

Paper Film: History and Preservation Fumiaki Itakura (National Film Center, Tokyo), Natsuki Matsumoto (Film Collector/Historian, Osaka)

The History of Toy Film in Japan and the Challenges of Its Preservation 　Yoneo Ota (Osaka Univeristy of Arts, Osaka)

Baby Talkie and Its Era 　Machiko Kusahara (Waseda University, Tokyo

"The Archaeology of Formats" by Donata Pesenti Campagnoni, Museo Nazionale del Cinema/Fondazione Maria Adriana Prolo, Torino

Prior to the birth of cinema, there were a multitude of image formats including fixed images (magic lantern slides, anamorphoses, panoramas, dioramas, polyoramas), 3D images (perspective views and stereoscopic views) and dynamized images (mechanical magic lantern slides). These formats all had a specific aspect ratio and some were passed on to filmmaking.

Panorama plate for a toy magic lantern. La Pierre, Paris, 1880	Panorama magic lantern plate. Italy. Latter half of the 18th Century.

Magic lantern plates. "Dissolving Views". E.G. Wood, London 1880	Praxinoscope theater film. E. Reynaud. Paris, 1879

Magic latern plate. Eastman Kodak. U.S.A. 1898	Panorama format (70mm) Filoteo Alberini. 1911

Photographs: Courtesy of Donata Pesenti Campagnoni. (Museo Nazionale del Cinema/Fondazione Maria Adriana Prolo, Torino)

"Hand Colour Sound Films in Hong Kong" by Hung Yuen (Hong Kong Film Archive)

The film format providing hand colour special effects to black and white sound films in the 1960s was one of many short-lived film formats in the history of Hong Kong cinema. Such hand coloring provided special effects mainly to depict an air of fantasy by presenting traditional Kung Fu like martial art technique of using one's "spirit" to bring down an opponent without any physical contact. However, the hand colour film format used on black and white film started to fade and eventually was forgotten as color film became the norm in the Hong Kong film industry.

Photographs: Courtesy of Hung Yuen, Hong Kong Film Archive

The French Film Archives of CNC preserves short-lived film formats of 35mm and under, as well as their projection equipment. Included in this collection are the Lumiere 35, the Pocket Chrono Gaumont 15mm, the Pathe 17.5mm, the Planchon Mirographe 20mm, the Edison 22mm, the Ozaphane Cinelux 23mm and the Pathe Freres 28mm.

Photographs: Courtesy of Eric Le Roy, Archives Francaises du Film/ CNC, Bois d'Arcy

"Pre-Cinema Artifacts: How We Should Preserve Them" by Laurent Mannoni (Cinematheque Francaise-Paris)

The Cinematheque Francaise preserves a 4000+ collection of archaic and modern equipment dating back to the 18th Century. Not only does the Cinematheque Francais collect such equipment but it also preserves the images produced by such equipment.

Projection equipment for short-lived film formats: Biltac (left) and La Pierre Cinematographe (right)
Photographs: Courtesy of Laurent Mannoni, Cinematheque Francaise

"Preservation of Narrow Gauge Films in Japan: A Case Study of 8mm Films" by Yoshiyuki Yahiro (Fukuoka City Public Library Film Archive)

The Baby Pathe (9.5mm) and Kodak's 8mm and 16mm cameras were imported into Japan in 1923, and helped popularize filmmaking in Japan. However, because such equipment was very costly, only the well to do could afford them. Nevertheless a change came with the post-war era. After the end of the war, prices for cameras dropped starting with the introduction of the Super 8 and Single 8, and this led to a trend of amateur filmmaking and to the creation of 8mm film festivals. In this medium, the Fukuoka City Public Library Film Archive has succeeded in the restoration of the 8mm "Little Cub Bear,"which won an award at the Cannes Short Film Festival. The Film Archive has also succeeded in restoring Japan's first post-war feature animation, "The Princess of Baghdad" jointly with the National Museum of Modern Art Tokyo-National Film Center.

Among the collection of 8mm film at the Fukuoka City Public Library Film Archive are, "High School Panic" (left), "Little Cub Bear" (middle) and the restored "Princess of Baghdad" (right)

"The History of Toy Film in Japan and the Challenges of Its Preservation" by Yoneo Ota (Osaka University of Arts, Osaka)

There was a time in Japan when people used to enjoy toy film projectors. These projectors made out of tin plates were small but could project fragmented 35mm film as well as film made especially for them. These projectors became a trend during the golden age of Japanese silent films (1920～30) when samurai films were extremely popular.Toy film in Japan covered a wide spectrum of genre including animation, news reels as well as military propaganda films, and for this reason, play an important role as precious, historical material.


「Momotaro of the Skies」	「Chushingura (47 Ronin)」	「Attack in the Dark」	「Blood-stained Cross」	「Nakayama Yasubei」

（Photographs: Courtesy of Professor Yoneo Ota, Osaka University of Arts, Osaka)

"Paper Film: History and Preservation" by Fumiaki Itakura (National Film Center, Tokyo) and Natsuki Matsumoto (film collector and historian)

During the 1930s, projection of paper film in Japan was a popular form of entertainment.This film format came with an original method of projection. Paper film frames were printed using the off-set method.The film then would be projected once exposed to light. Major manufacturers of paper film included companies such as "Refcy" and "Kateitoki" but hardly any have survived the age of time. The National Museum of Modern Art Tokyo-National Film Center has only a limited number of paper film in its collection, but will continue in its preservation of paper film as documentation of cinematic history.

Photographs: Courtesy of Natsuki Matsumoto, Taiji Kozaki from the presentation, "The Oldest Japanese Animated Film and Toy Motion Pictures".

"Baby Talkie and Its Era" by Machiko Kusahara (Waseda University, Tokyo)

Made of steel, the "Baby Talkie" was a "picture box" where music and animation could be enjoyed together. It was set in the middle of a SP phonograph of the time making the "family talke picture" experience possible while listening to one's favorite piece of music. Baby Talkie material came in the form of items representing traditional Japanese culture as well western matereial such as Charlie Chaplin.

Photofgraphs: Coutesy of Machiko Kusahara, Waseda University