End Of Motion Picture Film

The Hollywood Reporter says the distribution of motion pictures on film in the U.S. could be over before the end of 2013. Eighty-five percent of the screens in North America have already switched to digital as have 67% of those in Europe.

According to Michael Karagosian, president of MKPE Consulting 90,000, or 75 percent, of the world's cinema screens had gone digital by the end of 2012. Latin America continues to rely heavily on film distribution, as only 49 percent of its screens have been converted to digital,

On April 2, 2013 Fujifilm posted a statement on its website, stating that it had stopped production of the majority of its motion picture film products in March. It is believed that Agfa has also stopped producing film leaving only Kodak.



Kodak is emerging from bankruptcy protection and may not be allowed to continue producing motion picture film. The company is currently operating at 10-15 percent of its former capacity and it will be up to the bankruptcy judge as to whether it makes economic sense to continue.

Studios have welcomed the switch from film to digital since it is ultimately less expensive to distribute films digitally rather than have to ship cans of film around the country. Exhibitors were initially concerned about the cost of converting their auditoriums, but ultimately came aboard once the studios agreed to virtual print fees that have helped subsidize the costs of the transition.



Claude Gagnon, president of Technicolor Creative Services that today when a studio releases a title in North America -- sending it out to 2,000-2,500 theaters -- they typically make as few as 300 film prints.