A film laboratory is a commercial service enterprise and technical facility for the

film industry The film industry or motion picture industry comprises the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking, i.e., film production companies, film studios, cinematography, animation, film production, screenwriting, pre-production, ...

where specialists develop, print, and conform film material for classical

film production Filmmaking (film production) is the process by which a motion picture is produced. Filmmaking involves a number of complex and discrete stages, starting with an initial story, idea, or commission. It then continues through screenwriting, cast ...

and

distribution Distribution may refer to: Mathematics * Distribution (mathematics), generalized functions used to formulate solutions of partial differential equations *Probability distribution, the probability of a particular value or value range of a vari ...

which is based on film material, such as negative and positive,

black and white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...

and

color Color (American English) or colour (British English) is the visual perceptual property deriving from the spectrum of light interacting with the photoreceptor cells of the eyes. Color categories and physical specifications of color are associ ...

, on different

film format A film format is a technical definition of a set of standard characteristics regarding image capture on photographic film for still images or film stock for filmmaking. It can also apply to projected film, either slides or movies. The primary c ...

s: 65-70mm,

35mm 35 mm may refer to: * 135 film, a type of still photography format commonly referred to as 35 mm film * 35 mm movie film 35 mm film is a film gauge used in filmmaking, and the film standard. In motion pictures that record on fi ...

, 28mm,

16mm 16 mm film is a historically popular and economical gauge of film. 16 mm refers to the width of the film (about inch); other common film gauges include 8 and 35 mm. It is generally used for non-theatrical (e.g., industrial, edu ...

, 9.5mm,

8mm 8 mm or 8mm may refer to: ;Film technology *8 mm film, a photographic cine film format principally intended for domestic use. The term may also refer to later variants: ** Super 8 mm film ** Single-8 film ** 8 mm video format, a type of video record ...

. The film laboratory managers can charge by the footage or by time used while in lab.

History

In the early days of motion pictures, films were processed by winding on flat racks and then dipping in tanks of solution. As films became longer, such methods proved to be too cumbersome.

Processes

Exposed

motion picture A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmospher ...

will be processed according to exact chemical prescriptions at measured temperature as well as over measured time. After processing there is an original, the camera or picture original, in most cases a negative. From it a first sample is exposed on a motion-picture film printer. Again after processing there is a positive ready for inspection by the production representatives, usually by projection in the dark just like one sees a movie in a theatre. The film ''lab'' thus needs various apparatus from developing equipment and machines, over measuring tools, cutting, editing devices, and printers to different sorts of viewing machinery including classic

projectors A projector or image projector is an optical device that projects an image (or moving images) onto a surface, commonly a projection screen. Most projectors create an image by shining a light through a small transparent lens, but some newer types ...

. Besides there are sensitometers,

densitometer A densitometer is a device that measures the degree of darkness (the optical density) of a photographic or semitransparent material or of a reflecting surface. The densitometer is basically a light source aimed at a photoelectric cell. It determ ...

s, analysers, and array of chemical laboratory items that will help maintaining a level of repeatability of operations. Auxiliary material is also encountered within a film laboratory, for example ''leader film'', plain plastic, to keep a developing machine threaded up.

References

Other Resources

FIAF List of Photochemical Film Labs From Around the World

Film production {{chemistry-stub