Cine film to DVD transfer in HD

8mm, 9.5mm, 16mm frame scanning

Why scan Cine Film in HD?
Archive quality, Sparkling high definition cine transfer

All cine film benefits enormously from a high definition transfer. It may look like a tiny little cell, but even 8mm cine film holds a surprising amount of data, and is not just equivalent to, but higher than, HD. If we were to scan your film in standard resolution (SD), we would essentially disregard a huge amount of information resulting in loss of fine detail and colour. When we scan your film in high def, we capture 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.

The fact is that resolution is only limited by the film grain size and the size of the frame. 8mm and Super 8 film have a maximum horizontal resolution of around 900 lines. 9.5mm has 1070 lines and 16mm film has a maximum horizontal resolution of around 1800 lines. Standard definition video is limited to 576 lines. our 2k film scanner (1556 lines) is the only process that can capture all the detail on your 8mm, Super8 and 9.5mm film.

We have been scanning cine film since 2000, andrecently replaced all our equipment with HD scanners. In May 2012 we made an industry-changing decision to supply every single customer with a High-Definition version of their film. As leaders in our industry we feel a strong responsibilty to set the standard of quality, and supplying orders with just a DVD is doing each and every customer a disservice. We have these amazing HD files in front of us, then we are asked to scale them down and reduce the quality for DVD - it just not logical.

Of course, we appreciate that many people don't yet have Blu-ray players in their homes, and want a DVD so they can enjoy their movie on their existing equipment. We've got you covered as all our films are supplied as a box-set containing a Blu-ray disc and a DVD
disc - at no extra cost.

And don't forget we also offer ProRes files for editing on your computer, and
Image Sequence files for taking still photographs from the film. These are also
supplied in full HD to give you the ultimate quality. More info »

• Move
• Close

See more of your film with Alive Studios You'll be pleased to know that with Alive Studios, our technology means we give you your entire picture without any cropping. Companies who scan in SD and provide your film in 4:3 ratio have no choice but to crop your film, losing much of your picture, and very often chopping off important titles. We present all our films in widescreen 16:9 aspect ratio. Cine film has a different "shape" and doesn't really fit either 4:3 or 16:9 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, and 16:9 output, you are guaranteed to see the whole picture. The example below shows you how much more of your picture you will see when using Alive Studios. 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. We really do give you more for your money than anyone else.

2013 Life Demo

Move Close Dear Customer, A common question since switching to HD is "CAN I JUST HAVE IT TO DVD?" After loads of feedback from our wonderful customers as well as the general public, we understand this is a common thought so I'll try to answer it here for you... The decision to go HD was not something we took lightly, but more in response to the growing demand for it. We have by far a greater number of orders for HD than for SD. The difference in the picture between the two formats is vast - it's quite amazing from such small film, but side-by-side it's astounding how much more detail you can see. So yes, cine film is definitely worth having in HD. That said, we totally understand that not everyone has a Blu-ray player in their home yet - I know that many of our HD customer don't have Blu-ray yet, but plan to in the future. The intention of the HD version is to ensure that the full, high quality picture we scan, is given to our customers, and that you get the best value for money. Not so many years ago, people had their films put to VHS tape. But of course, technology has moved on and those people are now paying again to have it transferred to DVD. We don't want our customers to find they're paying today for DVD, only to have to pay again in a few years when everything is HD. We are one of the few companies in the world who have HD film scanners so it seems wrong not to give that quality to our customers. As an incentive to get you all enjoying HD, we're giving a free DVD copy with all Blu-ray orders so you can watch it straight away on your DVD player, and put your Blu-ray safely away for the future. I hope I've given you some background to what we're doing and why, and would welcome your feedback on this exciting new step - feedback form is at the bottom right-hand corner of this website.... Thanks for reading, I hope to hear from you soon! Jennie Flowers Director

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 JPEG image files.

Why should I order the Image Sequence?
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 (550KB per Image)

Image 1	Image 2	Image 3	Image 4

Our new DVD and Blu-ray menus bring your film experience to life with stunning visuals.
These menus have been designed to give our editors creative freedom to really go to town with bespoke features and personalise your order to the highest degree. Viewing the menus below, you see we use choice clips from within your actual film to create a flowing montage to backdrop your menu screen. Your editor will carefully select clips from your movie to thoughtfully represent the contents of the film. Beautiful music accompanies the graceful, fluid motion of the menu, as you're guided through the chapters within your film. If you're ordering a Blu-ray, you'll love to know we include pop-up features in your menu too!

Not only is the menu itself stunning, but we've improved the packaging and presentation too..
We take snaps shots from your movie and use them to design the cover and even place a scattering of stills across the back, along with details of the chapter names and content. This is a truly bespoke service, so you're welcome to send photos to be used on the box too..

I don't know what's on my cine films!

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.

Move Close 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 up to 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 - up to 30 photographs included (worth £30) On-screen dedication or poem to your loved one

At Alive Studios we don't think you should just watch your memories... We think you should get lost within them. An ordinary DVD or Blu-ray can't do this - only a bespoke, quality service from Alive Studios can give you this. From the moment you get your box in your hands, you will feel the quality.
From the high-quality print of your personalised cover, to the archive-quality Watershield discs, and top-of-the-range Amaray cases, no expense is spared.

You can even design your own box online, you can upload a photo, change the film title, even play with the fonts and alignment to create your own masterpiece and best of all - it's FREE! Upon inserting your disc, you're presented with one of our purpose-built introductions which are reputed to be quite stunning, adding a special cinematic quality to your film from the very start. We incorporate your chosen film title into this introduction to make it really personalised too.

All orders come with a themed Blu-ray/DVD menu which is just so Hollywood, and you can upgrade this by adding chapter names of your choice. Keen sound enthusiasts will love how enchanting the sound is as it flows into your living room in 5.1 Dolby Digital sound (where available). We really can't think of anything else we could do to make the product we send you any more impressive - the presentation of your film will just exude quality and style.

Presentation Video

Box Design Video

Home to over 13,000 customers we specialise in the transfer and restoration of old cine film, video and camcorder tapes, and 35mm slides. We work for archive facilities, museums, TV companies, documentary makers, historians and members of the general public.

We continue to innovate, and lead the industry, with state-of-the-art technology and a unique style of scanning. In 2012 we took the bold leap to go HD-only, making us the first of our kind in the UK. All our equipment is now HD, and every cine film to disc order is shipped as
a box-set containing both Blu-ray and DVD versions. We were the first to offer one-to-one frame scanning in the UK, and we are now the first to offer a completely HD service. We have been doing this for 12 years, and continue to be the best in our industry.

The most exciting feature of Karishma is seeing your cine films hosted online ready to share with your friends and family around the world. All orders have their own private gallery within your account, completely secure and protected by your password. If there's a clip in your account you want to share, just click the Facebook, Twitter or email buttons and you can invite friends and family to safely view the memory without even accessing your account.

There are no hidden costs, this amazing feature is free to all customers.
(This is limited to one hour of film, and remains online for 60 days)

Karishma Overview

Karishma in 30 Seconds

Concept Video

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

FREE 1 Hour Collection Service
We are happy to arrange our courier to collect your films from your work or home address. We'll provide you with a convenient one hour time slot by text and/or email. Collection is completely free so long as you spend over £100. If you spend less than £100 it's just £8.50 to collect. (up to 10Kg from any UK mainland address).

1 Hour Delivery Service
We now operate an exclusive timed delivery service that provides customers with a precise one hour delivery window. Read More »

• Move
• Close

1 Hour Collection/Delivery Service
Alive's exclusive timed delivery and collection service that provides customers with a precise one hour delivery window in which their goods will be collected and delivered. This new and exciting delivery method means an end to the "sorry I missed you" cards or even having to take a full day off work to wait for a delivery van. You are in control of the service so if you are not at home and therefore won't be in to sign for the package, simply text back and arrange for your goods to be collected/delivered on a more convenient date. How it works On the day of collection/delivery you receive an email & text message which announces a one hour delivery slot, if you are unavailable simply choose a different date and have your order re-arranged.