Narrow film digitization

Cine Film Digitization: Let History Be Present!

You probably weren't alive in 1890, even though it was surely a great year. That's when capturing moving images on film became possible!
Since the magnetic tape video cassette recorders that appeared later were unaffordable for a long time, this was the only way to record cherished moments for quite a while.
Because this is a process that is over 100 years old, we can run into many problems today when we want to watch these cine film recordings.
Unfortunately, time doesn't spare film reels either. Original colors fade, poor storage and temperature fluctuations cause the once-flexible film to dry out and become brittle, and the splices slowly let go. As a result, the beautiful memories on them are lost. Don't let this happen! We will help you save them!

What happens after cine film digitization?

• you can safely store the films with restored colors and without further quality degradation,
• they will be portable and playable on any computer or DVD player,
• you can cut and edit them at home,
• you can easily share the videos online,
• from now on, they will only take up space on your computer.

What kind of reels can we save?

Almost any! These are the most common:

How do we digitize cine films?

We digitize cine films using two methods:

- We married a modified projector with an HD video recording lens. We capture the running film directly from the film gate, ensuring an evenly lit image without flickering. This is followed by color grading, adjusting the colors so the historical footage can shine in its former glory. You can request the films to be saved in standard SD (720x576 pixels) resolution, which we can even prepare as a DVD with a menu.

- The other solution is frame-by-frame scanning. This achieves better image quality. Scanning is available in HD (1440x1080 px) quality, for both silent and sound films.

What should you do if you have a few reels whose content you want to see again?

1. Gather them in one place and label them.
2. Think about how you want to watch the videos later (e.g., on a computer, or with a DVD/Blu-ray player). We are happy to help you choose the right file format and digitization method right in the studio!
3. Book an appointment for Expert consultation and drop-off, or use the Fast Lane to drop your materials off in the store (or send them by post/courier), and we will take care of the rest! (Our postal address is: 1141 Bp., Cinkotai út 12., or you can send your memories via GLS courier, which you can order directly on our website.)

UH-OH Guarantee:

Technical accidents can happen to anyone, which is why we keep your materials for an additional 3 days after you pick up the recordings, giving you time to back them up to a safe place!

Lasting Experience Guarantee (L.E.G.)

Emlékmentő Kft. is committed to using and distributing high-quality data carriers, which is why we provide a special, lifetime Bit Rescue service for all data carriers created or purchased from us.

This means that if a CD or DVD written by us, or a data carrier purchased from us fails, and the data can be recovered via software, you will receive a 50% discount on the recovery price, regardless of when the data carrier was created or purchased.

Details and redemption conditions here!

"Our memories live within us forever, but sometimes it's good to see them again."

The price of cine film digitization:

There is a base fee for digitizing cine films, which includes the saving of 10 minutes. For example, if you bring 3 reels of 4 minutes each, and you request them in silent SD resolution (projected), the base fee will be 10,990 HUF, and at the end of the digitization, you will have to pay for the additional 2 minutes (2,198 HUF). If you bring 1 reel of 7 minutes, paying the base fee covers the entire digitization cost.

Films are set to 25 fps by default.

The full digitization price list is available here.

What happens after dropping off the reels?

• When you drop off your materials, we will ask for your details and contact information so we can notify you when the digitization is complete, or if any questions arise (e.g., if a film is in poor condition).
• By the agreed-upon time, we will prepare the digital material and package the original reels together so you can take them home.
• You can even take a peek at the finished material before picking it up!
• You will receive the saved videos on a DVD or copied to a flash drive, along with your original films.
• We keep the digital files for an additional 3 days so we can assist you in case of any issues.

Would you like to still be able to watch your grandparents' wedding 20 years from now?

Then choose digitization and visit our studio!

Have a question? Ask it here!

A few of our interesting projects:

The Hermann family's film

Károly is very lucky: as soon as 8mm filming became available in our country, his father immediately started filming the family, sparing no expense: he recorded every school play, sledding trip, and vacation, resulting in about 80 reels in total. Károly rolled the film archive into our office in a large plastic suitcase and urged us to give every reel the exact title listed in the accompanying squared notebook. His father was a meticulous man; he kept precise records of when each numbered reel was recorded, who was on them, and where the footage was shot. Since each reel allowed for about 4 minutes of footage, time jumps within a reel rarely occur, meaning generally one event equals one reel. So it was exciting to type all this into the DVD menu; it barely fit, but we managed in the end. The 80 reels were ultimately burned onto 5 DVD discs, and we even created complimentary custom cover artwork, so it looks absolutely fantastic.

In the service of the Church

Alongside many reel-to-reel audio tapes, our church client had us rescue dozens of 16mm films. The reels contained church services and religious audio lectures. They represent invaluable worth, as the lectures were given by renowned church dignitaries who passed away decades ago. For these recordings, it was crucial that the audio quality be as good as possible, so the audio track was given separately to our audio restoration specialist to get the absolute best out of them. We then synced this cleaned-up audio, free from background noise and hum, back under the video. The videos were prepared for a renewed church website and will soon be available online.

The Christmas job

Gábor contacted us two weeks before Christmas, absolutely determined to surprise his family with rescued 8mm films on Christmas Eve. We are usually completely booked around this time, and we had actually drawn the line that very evening, deciding not to take any more holiday orders. He called just in time; he couldn't make it to us from Százhalombatta, but one of our colleagues was able to drive out and pick them up, so the processing could begin. We delivered them to his home on the 22nd, and we had to arrive at the exact perfect moment, while the parents were out at the store, to hand over the finished rescue on a hard drive. We received a beautiful letter from him after the holidays, thanking us that he didn't have to settle for a cliché gift!