Lincoln Spector wrote:
At this point, no silent film (to my knowledge) has been released, or
announced for release, on Blu-Ray. But it will happen one day. (And for
those who ask "Why watch a silent film reformatted to 16x9?" I answer "Don't
worry. They will be pillarboxed to 4x3 with black bands on the sides.") But
what will be the first silent film to get this treatment?

My guess: The General. Here's why:

* It's a popular title likely to sell well.
* It's in the public domain, so the release won't be delayed by licensing
fights.
* There are excellent source materials in 35mm film (or so I've been told).
* There are several recorded scores to choose from.
* It's a visually beautiful film which will take advantage of Blu-Ray's
abilities.

Any other suggestions?

It might be an important silent as yet unreleased on DVD, like the
long-rumored "The Big Parade" or even "Greed". Combining first Blu-Ray
with first DVD release would get more publicity, I think.

Mar de Cortes Baja

www.mardecortesbaja.com<http://www.mardecortesbaja.com/blog

Donald4564 wrote:
On May 9, 10:22 am, Lloyd Fonvielle <navigareNOS... at (no spam) cox.net> wrote:
Lincoln Spector wrote:
At this point, no silent film (to my knowledge) has been released, or
announced for release, on Blu-Ray. But it will happen one day. (And for
those who ask "Why watch a silent film reformatted to 16x9?" I answer "Don't
worry. They will be pillarboxed to 4x3 with black bands on the sides.") But
what will be the first silent film to get this treatment?
My guess: The General. Here's why:
* It's a popular title likely to sell well.
* It's in the public domain, so the release won't be delayed by licensing
fights.
* There are excellent source materials in 35mm film (or so I've been told).
* There are several recorded scores to choose from.
* It's a visually beautiful film which will take advantage of Blu-Ray's
abilities.
Any other suggestions?
It might be an important silent as yet unreleased on DVD, like the
long-rumored "The Big Parade" or even "Greed". Combining first Blu-Ray
with first DVD release would get more publicity, I think.

Mar de Cortes Baja

www.mardecortesbaja.com<http://www.mardecortesbaja.com/blog

My suggestion based on my reputation for going over the top.

Seeing that Blue Ray is be perfection both in picture and sound - why
not firstly have film of the orchestra coming up out of the pit to
play the overture - then sink back down to play the film?
Alternatively if not an orchestra, an horgan? This part could be in
cinemascope and stereophonic sound with woofers and tweeters and be in
coloured high definition.

The film chosen would have to be one that is in the best condition and
I agree that "The Big Parade" would be a good choice.

What do peoples think?

Regards
Silents Please

Donald Binks

woofers and tweeeters in coloured high definition... what are you
smoking Mr. Binks? I think I want some...
A friend suggested that a "silent" newsgroup be one where nobody ever
says anything. Has that been considered before? Probably...

spiritus

At this point, no silent film (to my knowledge) has been released, or
announced for release, on Blu-Ray. But it will happen one day. (And for
those who ask "Why watch a silent film reformatted to 16x9?" I answer "Don't
worry. They will be pillarboxed to 4x3 with black bands on the sides.") But
what will be the first silent film to get this treatment?

My guess: The General. Here's why:

* It's a popular title likely to sell well.
* It's in the public domain, so the release won't be delayed by licensing
fights.
* There are excellent source materials in 35mm film (or so I've been told).
* There are several recorded scores to choose from.
* It's a visually beautiful film which will take advantage of Blu-Ray's
abilities.

Any other suggestions?

On May 9, 10:22 am, Lloyd Fonvielle <navigareNOS... at (no spam) cox.net> wrote:
Lincoln Spector wrote:
At this point, no silent film (to my knowledge) has been released, or
announced for release, on Blu-Ray. But it will happen one day. (And for
those who ask "Why watch a silent film reformatted to 16x9?" I answer "Don't
worry. They will be pillarboxed to 4x3 with black bands on the sides.") But
what will be the first silent film to get this treatment?
My guess: The General. Here's why:
* It's a popular title likely to sell well.
* It's in the public domain, so the release won't be delayed by licensing
fights.
* There are excellent source materials in 35mm film (or so I've been told).
* There are several recorded scores to choose from.
* It's a visually beautiful film which will take advantage of Blu-Ray's
abilities.
Any other suggestions?
It might be an important silent as yet unreleased on DVD, like the
long-rumored "The Big Parade" or even "Greed". Combining first Blu-Ray
with first DVD release would get more publicity, I think.

Mar de Cortes Baja

www.mardecortesbaja.com<http://www.mardecortesbaja.com/blog

My suggestion based on my reputation for going over the top.

Seeing that Blue Ray is be perfection both in picture and sound - why
not firstly have film of the orchestra coming up out of the pit to
play the overture - then sink back down to play the film?
Alternatively if not an orchestra, an horgan? This part could be in
cinemascope and stereophonic sound with woofers and tweeters and be in
coloured high definition.

The film chosen would have to be one that is in the best condition and
I agree that "The Big Parade" would be a good choice.

What do peoples think?

Regards
Silents Please

Donald Binks


woofers and tweeeters in coloured high definition... what are you

We don't say anything here at all, we all write intertitles!

Meanwhile, one positive step is that Criterion has just announced it
will release its first BR batch this fall.  I remember my decision to
buy a DVD player was based on their entry in to the DVD market, and
that that first player was WELL over the cost of a BR player right
now, but then times are different, and personally I'm waiting for
something under $200.

On Thu, 8 May 2008 22:00:34 -0700 (PDT), Donald4564
dbinks at (no spam) aapt.net.au> wrote:

On May 9, 10:22 am, Lloyd Fonvielle <navigareNOS... at (no spam) cox.net> wrote:
Lincoln Spector wrote:
At this point, no silent film (to my knowledge) has been released, or
announced for release, on Blu-Ray. But it will happen one day. (And
for
those who ask "Why watch a silent film reformatted to 16x9?" I answer
"Don't
worry. They will be pillarboxed to 4x3 with black bands on the
sides.") But
what will be the first silent film to get this treatment?

IF what is listed below is true, then silent movies on Blu-Ray
might take longer then one might think.

Blu-ray player sales down despite format victory
http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9932311-7.html?tag=nefd.pop

CUT TO THE CHASE

But more likely is what NPD's high-def video analysts have been
harping on for a while: that DVD
is "good enough" for most consumers. And that the picture offered by a
Blu-ray Disc and
accompanying player doesn't appear so overwhelmingly better than a
standard DVD and an
upconverting player that many consumers can't justify the dramatically
increased cost.
I don't expect Blu-Ray to enjoy the sort of market penetration that DVD's

Has there been much talk about releasing lesser-known "older" titles in
the Blu-Ray format? Aside from the standard classics, I can't imagine
we're going to see many silent releases coming from the major studios in
the Blu-Ray format...
I agree. That's why I predicted a popular pd choice rather than something

It might be an important silent as yet unreleased on DVD, like the
long-rumored "The Big Parade" or even "Greed". Combining first Blu-Ray
with first DVD release would get more publicity, I think.

On May 9, 3:04 pm, spiritus <NoS... at (no spam) mindspring.com> wrote:



Donald4564 wrote:
On May 9, 10:22 am, Lloyd Fonvielle <navigareNOS... at (no spam) cox.net> wrote:
Lincoln Spector wrote:
At this point, no silent film (to my knowledge) has been released, or
announced for release, on Blu-Ray. But it will happen one day. (And for
those who ask "Why watch a silent film reformatted to 16x9?" I answer "Don't
worry. They will be pillarboxed to 4x3 with black bands on the sides.") But
what will be the first silent film to get this treatment?
My guess: The General. Here's why:
* It's a popular title likely to sell well.
* It's in the public domain, so the release won't be delayed by licensing
fights.
* There are excellent source materials in 35mm film (or so I've been told).
* There are several recorded scores to choose from.
* It's a visually beautiful film which will take advantage of Blu-Ray's
abilities.
Any other suggestions?
It might be an important silent as yet unreleased on DVD, like the
long-rumored "The Big Parade" or even "Greed". Combining first Blu-Ray
with first DVD release would get more publicity, I think.

Mar de Cortes Baja

www.mardecortesbaja.com<http://www.mardecortesbaja.com/blog

My suggestion based on my reputation for going over the top.

Seeing that Blue Ray is be perfection both in picture and sound - why
not firstly have film of the orchestra coming up out of the pit to
play the overture - then sink back down to play the film?
Alternatively if not an orchestra, an horgan? This part could be in
cinemascope and stereophonic sound with woofers and tweeters and be in
coloured high definition.

The film chosen would have to be one that is in the best condition and
I agree that "The Big Parade" would be a good choice.

What do peoples think?

Regards
Silents Please

Donald Binks

woofers and tweeeters in coloured high definition... what are you
smoking Mr. Binks? I think I want some...
A friend suggested that a "silent" newsgroup be one where nobody ever
says anything. Has that been considered before? Probably...

spiritus

Perhaps my sense of humour is not to everyone's taste?

We don't say anything here at all, we all write intertitles!

Do you actually have a comment on the thread?

Regards
Silent Please

Donald Binks

At this point, no silent film (to my knowledge) has been released, or
announced for release, on Blu-Ray. But it will happen one day. (And for
those who ask "Why watch a silent film reformatted to 16x9?"
Wasn't "Napoleon" widescreen? Are there other extant silent widescreen

"Lincoln Spector" <notmyreal at (no spam) address.com> wrote in message
news:cZLUj.9283$iK6.6388 at (no spam) nlpi069.nbdc.sbc.com...
At this point, no silent film (to my knowledge) has been released, or
announced for release, on Blu-Ray. But it will happen one day. (And for
those who ask "Why watch a silent film reformatted to 16x9?"
Wasn't "Napoleon" widescreen? Are there other extant silent widescreen
titles?
Steve

P.S. As for Blu-Ray - aren't we going to be downloading all our videos
onto hard drives soon? Isn't Blu-Ray going to go the way of DAT, APS film
and Minidisc?
It will be sometime before we can download 50GB at a decent rate. I tried