Spielberg Says “No” to Indy in Digital

Posted by Chris Beaumont (chrisbeaumont@filmschoolrejects.com) on February 26, 2008

Have you seen a film projected digitally? Are you lucky enough to have a local theater specializing in this new projection format? Well, if you are and you happen to be anxiously awaiting the arrival of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (and honestly, who isn’t?), you will not be able to see Indy’s latest adventure in said format as reported over at JoBlo. It’s OK to sob a little, I know how you feel.

Digital technology has slowly been reshaping the movie business, from filmmakers like Robert Rodriguez and George Lucas shooting with digital cameras, to digital technology filtering down to the home user and thus allowing more and more people to try their hand at making movies, to home theater enthusiasts using gorgeous DLP projectors in their homes, not one area of film delivery has been left untouched. This goes right on through to digital projectors at your local theaters.

With all of this love for digital tech, including Indy creator George Lucas, one has to wonder what the thought process was that led up to this decision. Of course, the answer is as simple as saying Steven Spielberg. He retains his love for all things film, and prefers that his films be presented in their traditional format. By his decree, his latest film will not be available in the digital format.

I have only recently seen my first digitally projected film (it was 27 Dresses), and it was quite the gorgeous experience. It makes me want to see everything that way, so I am a little sad that Indy will not be seen this way, but in the end it does not really matter, as I just love movies.

However, if you live near an all digital moviehouse, you may want to drop them a line in case they have not heard already.

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Alex

Well, its not as bad as your article paints it out to be. One of the advantages digital projectors have at the movie houses is longevity. By no means are any of these digital shows in high definition. On opening day, you will not notice the difference between a film version and a digital one (save for the occasional cigarette-burn at reel changes). However, over time, the film gets scratched, dusty, what have you. The digital version will obviously show no signs of wear-and-tear, and will look "better" than it's film counterpart in, say, a month after opening night.

But do not go into the theater expecting a high-definition experience, because that is not what is happening.

Ryan G

Does this mean that theaters with the digital projectors won't be able to show the movie? Or does this mean that it just wont look as clear as some other movies?

Steve

I'm confused, why can't the movie company shoot in film and convert it over to digital for
the theaters that have the capability.

On a side note, there are a minority of people like myself that find digital very difficult to
watch. If you are a person who can see a 60hz CRT computer monitor flicker out of the
corner of your eye then you'll see the flicker of DLP in the theater. I've noticed it with
Talledega Nights, The Golden Compass, and that dancing penguin movie I got dragged to. I
had to squint.

C Weaver

Digital projection is nice in that the movie loks the exact same when played the 1000th time as it did the first, but it is very one dimensinal looking, overly sharp, and bright.
But don't misunderstand me, I do prefer digital. Not degrading is worth the limitations.

Jordan

I too can see the refresh rates on digital projections. However, film is even worse for me (film is 25hz). Whenever there is a bright white scene, I need to look away.

Its just the curse of good senses!

MonkeyT

One of the other capabilities of digital is that certain colors are simply outside the gamut of
film. The most notable example I've seen of this was with Star Wars Ep. II: Look in the city
shots for some blindingly vivid purples and oranges that were just barely there in the film
version. (Yeah, I saw that lame film twice. It was the first opportunity I had to see the
digital projector in action.) I can see why Spielberg doesn't want it with Indy, what with Indy
being a period piece and having been inspired by film shorts in the first place. From the
trailer, I don't second guess his decision at all. I expect him to go digital on his next small
to moderate size project, just to get the hang of it. He'll probably never go whole hog
digital.

No Way

If this is true, I will never ever watch that film, any Indy film actually, they will be dead to me. I don't even know where I'd find a theatre that still projects film...

Rob

My local theater has switched to digital projectors for all three of it's screens. The next movie theater is 90 miles away. I don't want to drive 180 miles just to watch Indiana Jones, screw you Spielberg!

Zack

Just so you guys know, quite a few cinemas that have gone all-digital still have film projectors available for this sort of thing. At the theater I work at, three screens out of ten are still set up for 35mm film in the event that we have a movie that's not available digitally. Of course, this only happens every once in a while. Since I worked there, I only remember three movies to come in 35mm: You Kill Me, The Darjeeling Limited, and Charlie Bartlett.

Pat

I completely dissagree with you. Yes, digital movies' white and blacks have a greater contrast, but I've noticed over-sharp edges resulting in rastering and often digital artifacts during action sequnces. The digital format is not yet ready for movie theatres.

Spielberg Says “No” to Indy in Digital

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