I have a client that we just finalized a $120,000 system for. (This is a big system for our comapny) Anyway, she had asked me if I knew of a company that can copy a Reel to Reel, to DVD. Any help would be great, thanks guys.

I can.

Of course, you're talking about R-R audio, right? DVD instead of CD for media density's sake?

No, this is a TV special that that the clients mother hosted in the early 80's. The media type is what you may have seen on a film projector in grade school.

Ah, cine. I can get ahold of one. It's a projector and video camera attached to a miniature screen.

Is it film?
Is it U-Matic ( an open reel format)
Is it 2" quad format?
Is it 1" 'c' format?

Automan, it's the first one - celluloid.

It is an open reel. Not sure of anything else. If it is a must have, I might be able to get more information from the film. It is very dear to the client, and she keeps it in her safe.

Larry, how do you know it's film?...the OP doesn't even know.

Because:

Sounds like 16mm film to me.

Sounds like someone's bum could be in a sling if the cat chews it before it's transferred.

This message was edited by djy on 12/06/04 16:14 ET.

We are all experts in certain areas, if this is not an area of your expertise I would suggest taking the reel to reels to a professional that does video transfers for a living (I.E. broadcast quality transfering equipment) and let them do it, it will probably turn out better anyway and be less of a hassle for you.

my 2 cents worth

I have some Super8 home movies from the late 1960s and early 1970s converted to digital by Ralph Morris and the results were excellent. I do my own video editing and DVD authoring so I just had Ralph capture the film to miniDV tape but he can take it all the way to DVD for you, too. He does all sorts of capturing, scanning, etc. services. Below is his description of the process he uses that he sent to me. Since I didn't want him to do the DVD authoring that part of the service is not discussed.

You can contact Ralph at rmorris21942@yahoo.com I highly recommend him.

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As you may have read in my post, I clean and lubricate all the film I do.
I use a Sony VX2000 MiniDV (3 chip) for capture, and all my transfers are fully attended, meaning that I monitor and adjust for changes in lighting, white balance, etc. My transfer device is a CineMate 20 from Moviestuff.

I frequently do transfers for people who want to do their own editing. I price by the minute rather than the foot because that is the only way we can both verify the quantity. My price equates to about 10 cents per foot for the transfer itself.

The applicable costs would be as follows:

Clean and Lube - No Charge. This also helps protect your film from mold.

Splicing - $1.50 per splice or repair needed (repairs are sometimes required for torn feed holes, broken old splices, etc. but most film is in pretty good shape. I've transferred film as old as 1940.) I leave some leader between spliced segments to help you ID the sections. If you don't want any leader left, let me know.

Reels and Cans - I splice to new 200 ft plastic reels. They are $3 each

Tape Stock Charges - I use Sony DVM60 tapes exclusively @ $8 each

Transfer Charge - $1.50 per minute.

Shipping and handling - Actual costs plus $5. I strongly recommend sending all materials via UPS/FedEx with a tracking number. I do not return transfers and originals in the same shipment.

Figure 3.5 minutes for a 50 ft reel, 14 minutes for a full 200 ft reel, 28 minutes for a full 7 inch reel.

If you can make a count of each reel size and estimate the percentage fill I can provide a very close estimate to costs, exclusive of repairs.

Thanks for the inquiry. If you have additional questions let me know. By the way, I'm located in Chantilly, VA.
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Thanks to Larry in TN for the kind words..

CincyRemoteGuy,

Your client's film is most likely 16mm, hopefully with sound if it was for a TV special.

As Larry in TN mentioned, I do 8mm transfers, but I also do sound 16mm and silent 16mm. Baiscally, the process is the same mentioned by Larry in TN. The prices Larry noted apply to 8mm but 16 is only slightly more expensive.

I would be happy to discuss a transfer with your client, but regardless of who she choses to do the work, it is important that she get it done sooner rather than later. Assuming the 16mm was on Kodak film stock, there was a problem with color fading on many of the prints made several decades back. The blue and green dyes faded rather rapidly, leaving the red pretty much intact. The result is the dreaded "pink film". Once the film has gone to pink, it's sometimes better to just convert it to gray scale than to try to recover whatever color may be left.

An additional caution to your client: Do not try to project valuable old film without first having it cleaned and lubricated. This can result in scratching. That's why my first step is always inspection, cleaning and lubrication.

Additionally, projecting it on the wall and shooting with a video camera is not the way to go, nor is the use of a $30 lens and mirror box. These approaches don't deal well with flicker, and they subject irreplaceable film to the problems of an old projector armed with a 750 watt bulb ready to melt film at the first jam.

Anyhow, enough blabbering on from me. I'm happy to converse with your client whether she choses my services or not. rmorris21942 at yahoo dot com

This message was edited by RalphM on 01/17/05 09:30 ET.