The Material History of a Nitrate Film, Part 2: Preservation - Text 4
It begins with the creation of a fine grain master (element 66). This is a necessary extra step with respect to the printing process from a positive: it is possible to make a projection copy directly from the archival negative, and some institutions do this as well (the quality of the resulting print can be exceptional if the negative is a first generation nitrate in good condition), but the goal of the preservation process is to generate a new negative on a more stable carrier for the future creation of new viewing copies. The intermediate negative (element G) made from the newly created preservation element (the fine grain master) is the printing source for the answer print and – if the negative has been approved – one or more projection prints.
In a narrow sense, a preservation negative (from a master positive) or fine grain master (if a negative is the best surviving material) is the minimum requirement for the protection of an endangered film. It is not “preserved”, as it cannot yet be seen in the absence of a projection print (the last part of the parcours will elaborate on this important aspect of preservation), but the risk of its complete oblivion has been temporarily avoided.
Digital duplication process
Nitrate film – positive or negative – can also be scanned directly into digital files and then left to its own destiny. The temptation may arise to take the digital route and forego preservation altogether; a response to this is given in the upcoming parts about restoration ethics and restoration methods, but it must be remembered that the tension between ethics and convenience is a leitmotiv of the debate on how to give film history the protection it deserves. The digital equivalent of the photographic duplication process is much simpler at its preliminary stage, as it basically entails the scan of the nitrate element and its transformation into pixels. Matters become far more complex in the ensuing phases, as data obtained from the ‘raw scans’ – the first outcome of the non-photochemical work for print duplication – are manipulated and translated into other digital formats (or new 35mm prints) that are suitable for exhibition and access. A simplified version of the process is shown in this diagram.
