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Cine film frame scanning
Crystal-clear, super-sharp & flicker-free |
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The Phoenix cine film transfer system, which is exclusive to Alive Studios, produces a true
one-to-one frame scan from all cine film formats including 8mm, super 8, 16mm and 9.5mm.
Designed to handle very old, brittle film, we gently guide your film over our 2k film scanner and take digital images of each and every cell of your film. To fully understand the process, take a good look at your film and you will see that it is made up of a series of still photographs - usually around 18 images for each second of film (18fps or 'frames per second'). So your little 4 minute film roll is made up of around 4300 still images which, when shown one after the other, create a moving picture - or film. So you can understand the need to digitally scan each of these cells individually, in order to authentically recreate the film, at perfect speed with no flickering or interlacing. see our Reel Guide »
Once we have these images on our edit-suite, we can output them either as individual images (called an image sequence), or we convert them into a movie file suitable for a variety of uses including viewable discs like Blu-ray and DVD, but also a huge choice of computer-editable formats like AVI, Quicktime and Pro-res. View spec »
Phoenix HD Technical Specs - at a glance
- We use Phoenix for all our transfers inc 8mm, 9.5mm and 16mm
- One to one frame scanning (every single frame is scanned)
- Scanned at 2K Film Resolution (2048 x 1556)
- Available in a choice of Standard Definition or High Definition
- SD - Is output at 720x576 interlaced or progressive
- HD - Is output to 1080i or 1080p - 1080-24p true cinema & 720p
- Multiple media outputs (DVD, Blu-ray, Image seq, ProRes ect
- Sound is transferred with our Dolby Stereo sound head.
- Sprocketless technology (gently guide the film over the scanner)
- Enlarged gate so you can see the whole of your picture
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Perfect Speed
The biggest benefit of our one-to-one frame scanning method is, no matter what speed you shot your film at, the Phoenix system creates a smooth, flicker-free film running at a perfectly natural speed.
I.e. If you shot your film at 18fps (frames per second), we need to turn that into 25fps to work on your TV set. To do this, our software creates the missing frames for us. The difference at Alive Studios is that we use Optical Flow Technology, developed originally for Apple's 'Shake', which uses a reverse telecine feature to restore the original frame rate of a film by removing pulldown, so even on frame-by-frame playback, you will not get the unpleasant 'blurry' frame experienced by less powerful software. |
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| 8mm & Standard 8 Cine Film
Use this table to understand how much film you have. Don't forget to use the brand new quoting system to get an exact price then place your order.
| Reel Diameter |
8mm / Standard 8 |
3” dia. Holds approx. 50ft of film |
4 minutes |
5” dia. Holds approx. 200ft of film |
15 minutes |
7” dia. Holds approx. 400ft of film |
30 minutes |
9” dia. Holds approx. 800ft of film |
60 minutes |
What do you get for your money?
Production
We Scan every cell of your 8mm film at 2K film resolution (2048 x 1556)
Completely flicker-free
SD is output at 720x576
HD is output at 1920x1080 (true HD not upscaled)
Sound is transferred with our Dolby Stereo Sound head
Sound is output to Dolby Digital
Each scene is colour corrected by hand to enhance picture quality
Leader tape and blank footage is edited out
Reels are repaired and re-spliced as needed
Presentation
Archive quality Taiyo Yuden Watershield discs
Professionally screen-printed dvds
Professionally designed dvd cases
Generic menu page included on all DVD orders displaying your film title
Free professionally composed background music |
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| Super 8 Cine Film
Use this table to understand how much film you have. Don't forget to use the brand new quoting system to get an exact price then place your order.
| Reel Diameter |
Super8 |
3” dia. Holds approx. 50ft of film |
4 minutes |
5” dia. Holds approx. 200ft of film |
15 minutes |
7” dia. Holds approx. 400ft of film |
30 minutes |
9” dia. Holds approx. 800ft of film |
60 minutes |
What do you get for your money?
Production
We Scan every cell of your Super8 film at 2K Film Resolution (2048 x 1556)
Completely flicker-free
SD is outputted at 720x576
HD is outputted at 1920x1080 (true HD not upscaled)
Sound is transfered with our Dolby Stereo Sound head
Sound is output to Dolby Digital
Each scene is colour corrected by hand to enhance picture quality
Leader tape and blank footage is edited out
Reels are repaired and re-spliced as needed
Presentation
Archive quality Taiyo Yuden Watershield discs
Professionally screen-printed dvds
Professionally designed dvd cases
Generic menu page included on all DVD orders displaying your film title
Free professionally composed background music
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| 9.5mm Cine Film
Use this table to understand how much film you have. Don't forget to use the brand new quoting system to get an exact price then place your order.
| Reel Diameter |
9.5mm |
3” dia. Holds approx. 50ft of film |
2 minutes |
5” dia. Holds approx. 200ft of film |
8 minutes |
7” dia. Holds approx. 400ft of film |
15 minutes |
9” dia. Holds approx. 800ft of film |
30 minutes |
12” dia. Holds approx. 1200ft of film |
45 minutes |
What do you get for your money?
Production
We Scan every cell of your 9.5mm film at 2K Film Resolution (2048 x 1556)
Completely flicker-free
SD is outputted at 720x576
HD is outputted at 1920x1080 (true HD not upscaled)
Each scene is colour corrected by hand to enhance picture quality
Leader tape and blank footage is edited out
Reels are repaired and re-spliced as needed
Presentation
Archive quality Taiyo Yuden Watershield discs
Professionally screen-printed dvds
Professionally designed dvd cases
Generic menu page included on all DVD orders displaying your film title
Free professionally composed background music |
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| 16mm Cine Film
Use this table to understand how much film you have. Don't forget to use the brand new quoting system to get an exact price then place your order.
| Reel Diameter |
16mm |
3” dia. Holds approx. 50ft of film |
2 minutes |
5” dia. Holds approx. 200ft of film |
8 minutes |
7” dia. Holds approx. 400ft of film |
15 minutes |
9” dia. Holds approx. 800ft of film |
30 minutes |
12” dia. Holds approx. 1200ft of film |
45 minutes |
What do you get for your money?
Production
We Scan every cell of your 16mm film at 2K Film Resolution (2048 x 1556)
Completely flicker-free
SD is outputted at 720x576
HD is outputted at 1920x1080 (true HD not upscaled)
Sound is transferred with our Dolby Stereo Sound head
Sound is output to Dolby Digital
Each scene is colour corrected by hand to enhance picture quality
Leader tape and blank footage is edited out
Reels are repaired and re-spliced as needed
Presentation
Archive quality Taiyo Yuden Watershield discs
Professionally screen-printed dvds
Professionally designed dvd cases
Generic menu page included on all DVD orders displaying your film title
Free professionally composed background music
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High definition cine film transfer
HD Cine Film scanning
Available for 16mm / Super 16mm / Super 8 / 8mm / 9.5mm
"Is my 8mm cine film worth scanning in HD?"
This is a very common question from our customers, so we thought we'd try to answer it for you here... Getting straight to the point - Yes, 8mm cine film benefits enormously from high definition. It may look like a tiny little cell, but your 8mm cine film holds a surprising amount of data.
8mm cine film is not just equivalent to, but higher than, HD - sounds unbelievable I know, but it's a fact. If we were to scan it at standard resolution (SD), we would actually disregard a lot of information resulting in loss of fine detail and colour. When we scan 8mm film in high def, we capture all the information that the camera originally recorded, resulting in not just a sharper picture, but much clearer, finer details, plus more colour information creating a richer picture.
More info »
See more of your film in HD!
The aspect ratio, or "Shape" of SD and HD are quite different. SD is 4:3 while HD is 16:9 but cine film has a different "shape" and doesn't really fit either SD or HD properly. You'll be surprised to know that your old projector doesn't fit your film either - they crop the edge of the film quite drastically meaning there's much more to your picture than has ever been seen before. With our enlarged gate, our SD customers do see more than their projector can, but you still don't see the whole story because of the 4:3 ratio. The only way to see everything is to order HD which is output in 16:9 widescreen.
The example below shows you how much more of your picture you will see in HD. the 16:9 example shows you how we use the full vertical height of the screen, and add black borders to the left and right to fill the screen to the edges without stretching your film sideways which would distort your film. HD really does give you more for your money.
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Back to top › Choice of Outputs
We offer a huge range of output formats
| Cine film transfer to DVD
This is a popular choice with customers who want to sit back and watch their home movies as a professional production. Your DVD transfer starts with a professional hollywood-style intro followed by your movie title, i.e. "The Williams Family Memories" shown as an opening title.
Each reel has a subtle fade into the next, and we place a chapter marker between each reel so you can easily jump from reel to reel with your remote control. Add a DVD menu to your order and you can name each reel, making navigation really simple.
DVD is compressed using the MPEG2 codec at 6.2 mbit/sec
| Disc Type |
Capacity |
Single Layer DVD
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1h 20 minutes |
| Dual Layer DVD |
2h 50 minutes |
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| Cine film transfer to DVD
This is a popular choice with customers who want to sit back and watch their home movies as a professional production. Your DVD transfer starts with a professional hollywood-style intro followed by your movie title, i.e. "The Williams Family Memories" shown as an opening title.
Each reel has a subtle fade into the next, and we place a chapter marker between each reel so you can easily jump from reel to reel with your remote control. Add a DVD menu to your order and you can name each reel, making navigation really simple.
DVD is compressed using the MPEG2 codec at 6.2 mbit/sec
| Disc Type |
Capacity |
Single Layer DVD
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1h 20 minutes |
| Dual Layer DVD |
2h 50 minutes |
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Cine Film transfer to Blu-ray
Blu-ray, also known as Blu-ray Disc (BD) is the name of a next-generation optical disc format. The format was developed to enable recording, rewriting and playback of high-definition video (HD), as well as storing large amounts of data. The format offers more than five times the storage capacity of traditional DVDs and can hold up to 25GB on a single-layer disc and 50GB on a dual-layer disc.
Crystal Clear Picture
Blu-ray Discs have up to 6x better picture resolution than DVD. Resolution refers to the number of horizontal lines there are to fill the screen – the higher the number, the better the picture quality. Blu-ray Discs and players display at 1080p resolution, which is the highest standard today.
Advanced Interactivity
Seamless menus allow you to navigate the disc without ever leaving the movie.
Backwards Compatible
All Blu-ray players can play DVDs.
What do I need to watch my cine film on Blu-ray high definition disc?
• HD Television Set (preferably 1080p resolution)
• HDMI cables (for the best picture quality)
• Blu-ray Disc player or PlayStation 3 (Blu-ray Discs will not play on DVD players)
Blu-ray is compressed using the MPEG2 codec at 25 mbit/sec
| Disc Type |
Capacity |
Single Layer Blu-ray
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2h |
| Dual Layer Blu-ray |
3h 50 minutes |
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| Cine film transfer to MiniDV & DVCAM
We are often asked to recommend a good backup system for your cine film transfers, and always offer mini dv or DVCAM tape. These highly versatile, high quality, long-lasting formats allow you to easily edit your films at a later date, and the nature of the tape is very durable and far harder to damage than a DVD or Hard Drive.
DVCAM is a professional variant of the DV standard that uses the same codec. However, the greater track width lowers the chances of dropout errors. DV-Cam produces excellent quality pictures and is frequently used within the media industry. Those without access to a DVCAM player should opt for miniDV tape. To play these back to your computer, you just need any miniDV camcorder that your link up using firewire, and you're away.
Whilst many customers order AVI files for editing, which are great, you will find a miniDV or DVCAM tape a better permanent storage format. If you want to safely store this important film for generations to come, then this is your best option by far.
MiniDV & DVCAM are compressed using the DV codec at 28.81 mbit/sec
| Tape Type |
Capacity |
MiniDV Standard tape
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60 minutes |
| DVCAM Varied |
12 up to 184 minutes |
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HDV (High Definition) Tapes
HDV is an inexpensive high-definition video recording format which uses MPEG2 compression to fit HD content onto the same DV or MiniDV tapes originally developed for standard definition recording.
If you are having your cine film transfer done in high definition, and you want a high quality, reliable archive copy which you can easily edit from later, then HDV tape is for you.
Output formats are: 1080/50i, 1080/24p, 1080/25p
(all transfers will be done in 1080i unless requested)
HDV is compressed using the MPEG2 codec at 28.81 mbit/sec
| Tape Type |
Capacity |
MiniDV HDV Tape
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60 minutes |
| DVCAM Large HDV Tape |
12 up to 184 minutes |
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| Cine film transfer to ProRes HD
ProRes is the perfect choice for those wishing to edit their HD cine film footage on a computer. All five versions of the ProRes codec share the same fundamental attributes. ProRes uses variable bit rate (VBR) encoding to minimise file sizes for storage efficiency.
It also optimises decoding to offer multistream, real-time editing performance and preserves the original frame width of HD so you won't have to reposition or resize graphics in a finishing workflow.
| Compression Type |
Data Rate |
GB/hr |
ProRes 422 (Proxy) |
38 Mb/s |
17 Gb |
ProRes 422 (LT)
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85 Mb/s |
38 Gb |
| ProRes 422 |
122 Mb/s |
55 Gb |
| ProRes 422 (HQ) |
184 Mb/s |
83 Gb |
| ProRes 4444 |
275 Mb/s |
124 Gb |
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| Cine film to AVI or QuickTime Editable File in SD
These formats are for editing the footage on your computer.
Both formats will work in all major editing applications, but as a general rule, AVI is best suited to Windows users & QuickTime is best for Apple Mac users. AVI & QuickTime use the DV codec so it's the same quality as miniDV and DVCAM.
For disc orders files are split into 18min files (no more than 4Gb in size)
Orders over 2 hours must go on a hard-drive that you provide.
Enter your reels into our order form and it will calculate how big a hard-drive you need.
| Compression Type |
Data Rate |
1hr |
DV Compressed Film
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28.81 mbit/sec |
13GB |
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| Cine film to an Image Sequence
What is an Image Sequence?
This exciting format utilises our scanning method to it's fullest by giving you, our customer, the individual cells of your film as individual photographs or 'images'. If you look closely at your cine film, you'll see it's made up of thousands of photographic cells - a small 50ft reel of 8mm film contains approx. 4300 cells! When we transfer your film, we scan each of these cells individually, and we're now able to give you these as separate image files.
We offer a choice of two styles for you to choose from which are explained below.
Why should I order the Image Sequence?
Because you will have an individual image file for every cell of your film, meaning you can extract any special moment from any point in the film, and use it in any way you choose...
Email them, print them, make a photo album - the possibilities are endless... and the quality is astounding!
In HD the image size is 1920x1080pixels
In SD the image size is 720x576pixels
And you can drop the image sequence into editing software to build your own movie…
The file sizes below are approximate:
| Compression Type |
8 Minutes HD |
8 Minutes SD |
JPEG |
6.2GB |
1.9GB |
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| Cine Film transfer to an Apple Mobile Device
We now offer full Apple compatibility for iPod Touch, iPhone, iPad and AppleTV, support so you can take your movies with you and share them with your friends and family wherever you are.
Mobile files can be supplied on CD/DVD disc or Hard Drive.
So easy to use, just import your movies to your itunes (exactly as you would import songs from a CD). Synch your device to your computer, and your movies will be right there ready to enjoy - it's as easy as that!
To enjoy your iPad to it's fullest, you should consider having your cine film transferred in HD to take advantage of the High definition screen of your iPad.
| Device |
Data Rate |
1hr |
iPod Touch/iPhone in SD (640x480)
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1500 kbps |
675MB |
iPod Touch/iPhone in HD (1280x720)
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10000 kbps |
4.5GB |
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| iPad in SD (640x480) |
3000 kbps |
1.4GB |
| iPad in HD (1280x720) |
10000 kbps |
4.5GB |
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| Apple TV in SD (640x480) |
3000 kbps |
1.2GB |
| Apple TV in HD (1280x720) |
5000 kbps |
2.3GB |
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Ultrasonic Film Cleaning
Intensive repair and cleaning service new for 2011
Available for 16mm / Super 16mm / Super 8 / 8mm / 9.5mm
This system involves full immersion of your film in warmed dry cleaning fluid (Perchloroethylene) which is then agitated by ultrasound. The results obtained are far better than the more recent cleaners that use HFE solvent.
All cleaning services are performed by people with vast experience of film, with the resident film treatment expert, Stephanie, having spent many years at the British Film Institutes's National Film Archive at Berkhamsted.
All orders undertaken at Alive Studios benefit from our standard cleaning process which is carried out before scanning to remove loose debris. Standard cleaning is performed with a dry-dust system which removes a good deal of hairs and dust. Results vary depending on the original condition of the film of course, and it is to be expected that a certain amount of dust specs and/or hairs will remain as a natural element of the film. Both Ultrasonic and standard cleaning includes repairing breaks.
The ultrasonic cleaning system is available at extra cost, and provides a much deeper and more intensive clean than a dry-brush system can achieve, so is ideally suited for films being transferred for broadcast, professional or archive use,
such as museums and
documentary-makers.
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| DVD & Blu-ray Menu Themes |
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| Bring your viewing experience to life. £50 |
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For just £50 we will split your DVD & Blu-ray into chapters (1 chapter per reel for cine film, with it's own title of upto 30 characters) and create a personalised menu screen to access them. Not sure what a DVD & Blu-ray menu is? Just think about the index page of a book.
Touch the chapter you want to read and the book falls open at that exact page. That's how menus work. A functionally essential tool to help you organise your films, and a beautiful visual enhancement to enjoy for years, and wonderful if giving as a gift. |
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| Add titles to my cine film |
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| £2.50 per screen |
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On-screen titles are now available to really personalise your film. Perhaps it’s a dedication to a loved one, maybe you want to have the title of your film displayed such as “The Smith Family Films 1965-1975”
You can have upto 2 lines per screen, maximum 30 characters per line.
£2.50 per screen. |
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| Highlights |
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| A beautiful overview of all your memories for just £50 |
Imagine if your life flashed before you eyes... what would you see? Happy smiling faces, bursts of laughter, tears of joy, silly faces, hugs, kisses - pure happiness...
We call these "Highlights"
We are experts at sorting peoples precious memories, and we believe your digital memories should reflect the way your heart and mind remembers the good times... In short happy bursts.
Highlights Overview
A
short movie set to the length of one song (upto 8mins
in length), professionally planned and edited by one
of our senior editors whose backgrounds in film production
and advertising mean you get a one-off Hollywood quality
movie of your life! The theme of the film is entirely up to you... perhaps
it's a dedication to your wife showing her as a young
woman, then a mother, then a grandmother... Perhaps it's
in memory of a loved one you've lost... Perhaps it's
a celebration of your whole family's life together showing
the happiest times - Xmas, birthdays, holidays etc.
Whatever
your reason, tell us why you're producing this film
and who it's for and we will create something perfectly
fitting for the occasion. (If you don't know the content
of the films you're sending, don't worry you can tick
the "happy memories" option and we will simply
find the happiest pieces of film for your highlights
chapter. Your
price also includes inserting upto 30 photos to compliment
the movie. These can be interspersed throughout the
film, or added as a slideshow at the end.
Finally,
to truly personalise your film, why not add a written
dedication or poem which will show on screen at the
start of the film... for example: "To the most
wonderful Dad in the world - Thank you for 50 years
of Love! Kathy.
| What's included? |
| Slow-motion Highlight
film set to one song of your choice |
| Hand picked scenes chosen by your editor, with your input if you wish |
| Slideshow - upto 30 photographs
included (worth £30) |
| On-screen dedication
or poem to your loved one |
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| Draft Copy service |
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| I don't know what's on my cine films! |
We offer the "draft copy" service to help you organise your reels into the right order and choose appropriate names for the chapter headings. First, we transfer all your reels to DVD, making each reel it's own chapter - so if you have 12 reels, the DVD will have 12 chapters. At the start of each chapter, we tell you which reel you're about to view, and there is an on-screen display of the time counter, so you don't have to worry about how to get your TV to display this info for you, it is ever-present so you always know exactly which reel is playing, making it super-easy to tell us how to re-arrange your films for you.
This service cost an additional £25/hr of your film
Draft Copy info
After watching the DVD with your family, you contact us with details of the exact order you want us to follow, deleting any reels you don't want included. At this stage you can also give each chapter a unique title for the DVD menu, and even add things like on-screen titles, dedications and messages for just £2.50. For an extra cost, you can not only swap around the running order of the reels, but make detailed editing requests to really fine-tune and perfect your final DVD or Blu-ray. Please call and ask to speak to someone about this if it's something you're interested in...
If ordering on Blu-Ray your final film will be produced on Blu-Ray but drafts are supplied on standard DVDs.
Here is an example:
Mrs Smith has given us 8 reels of cine film but doesn't know what's on them. We sent her a Draft DVD to watch, to which she emails us the following info:
| Current position |
New position |
Chapter title |
4 |
1 |
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2 |
2 |
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1 |
3 |
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3 |
4 |
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We now have everything we need to create the final DVD in the right order, with appropriate titles for each chapter. |
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From: Robert Moser
Date: 3 June 2011
To: steven@alivestudios.co.uk
"Steven's team turned 40 fragile, old, flickery movies into a wonderful HD experience that we can now easily share with family and friends around the world"
"Choosing HD meant choosing to capture all of the detail that remained on our old films - and being able to watch them in brilliant detail... a far cry from fragile films rattling through a 60 year old projector."
"Steven's HD service offers incomparable quality, reliability and value - he came recommended by the best, and 40 fragile films later we're delighted to recommend him again"
"Why anybody would record something in 'Standard', when you can have 'High Definition' for little extra money amazes me - you only do these projects once, so you've surely got to choose the best"
Robert
suffolk
Read more customer feedback comments |
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How to Order
getting your material to us
1) Build your order using the 'Build My Order' button below.
2) Print off the order-form.
2) Wrap your films securely and place in a box with your order-form.
3)
Send your box at the post office, or use our FREE collection service.
Order by Phone
You can order with us over the phone.
lines are open 8:30am to 5:30pm weekdays. Tel: 0800 0830561
How to book a collection
We are happy to arrange our courier to collect your films Collection is completely free so long as you spend over £50. If you spend less than £50 it's just £8.50 to collect. (upto 10Kg from any UK address)
There is an option on the form to request your collection day, or you can call 01803 873472 to arrange your collection by phone. |
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Why Choose us ?
We are the home of over 11,000 customers
We specialise in the transfer and restoration of old cine film, video and camcorder tapes, and 35mm slides. We work for museums, TV companies, documentary makers, archive facilities, historians and members of the general public.
Every customer is given a Karishma account free of charge.
All your orders and quotes are stored here, and Karishma will help you monitor the progress of your order through every stage of production, sending you regular emails to update you on our progress. Managing large collections of films and photos is so simple because Karishma helps you log and organise everything in our user-friendly interface. Karishma is available to you 24 hours a day, you can even chat and send messages directly to your editor.
Not only are your order details stored here, but very soon, the actual movie files will be there too! You will be able to view and share all your films with your family and friends via your Karishma Account. With built-in social networking, sharing your family history and precious movie moments will be right there at the click of a mouse! Karishma V2 is in development now and will be launched early 2012. You don't have to wait though, as you can tick the 'take part in K2' button on our order-form and we will save your movies to the development server today, so they are online on launch day.
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Get a quote & build your order
use the "save for later" feature to return anytime
| Standard Definition Cine Film Transfer is £40 |
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| High Definition Cine Film Transfer is £70 |
Price is per 30mins of your film to any format you like.
Add extra formats for just £12.50. |
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