Twilight Zone to be one of Images first HD DVD/Bd releases (1 Viewer)

[Radioman970]

I'm lacking in Sci-Fi Channel goodness. :frowning:

I haven't watched a VHS in many many months. Perhaps I'll put out the TZs today.

 

[Dave Mack]

Ok, marathon ended at 5am. I really should just go to bed!

 

[JulianK]

There's no reason why HD versions of the filmed Twilight Zone episodes shouldn't look spectacular. The quality of the film transfers in the SD sets is generally excellent (I've seen the PAL conversions of the SD master tapes).

I'd even go as far to say that the Twilight Zone might end up being one of the best-looking HD TV releases available, from any era. Bring it on!

 

[Dave H]

With the recent 20% off Deep Discount sale, I too thought about picking up the SD DVD set. But, I didn't because I remember the talks of these going HD.

 

[Douglas Monce]

The shows that you refer to were actually shot on an early video tape system. They were experiments to see if the quality was good enough to use the system as a budget saving measure. They tried several times in the run of the tv show and never felt that the quality was good enough, so they shot primarily on film.

As to TZ not being good enough for HD, I just don't agree. This show had simply gorgeous B&W photography. It was filmed on the MGM lot (all but the pilot) using many of the same MGM art directors, costume designers and other specialists who worked on MGM's features. Surely on a TV budget and time constraints some mistakes are going to slip by. However I've been surprised at how good this show looks on the new DVDs, and think it would benefit from the HD treatment

Doug

 

[JediFonger]

it doesn't look like TZ utilized a lot of comp. fx that star trek TOS (similar era) did. most of the fx were sets and filmed. i hope it comes out s00n =).

is image Blu-Ray exclusive?

 

[Douglas Monce]

I'm wondering if this title will revert back to CBS home entertainment as they are the original producers. I believe Image only has a license for this title and they don't own it. And CBS seems to be pulling all of their product in under the CBS home entertainment banner.

Doug

 

[Jason Roer]

So in other words, Doug - would that make it HD-DVD exclusive? I thought I read somewhere that CBS was HD-DVD exclusive.

Cheers,

Jason

 

[Douglas Monce]

No I don't think CBS is HD DVD exclusive. However they have said that Star Trek will come out on HD DVD first and then on Blu-ray at some point in the future.

Doug

 

[Jason Roer]

That must be what I read. Thanks.

Cheers,

Jason

 

[Dave Mack]

I think Image did all the recent work, making new HD masters (which the definitive edition was derived from...) I'm sure they will want to take advantage of all their hard work.
I believe the film they used was a specific type of high contrast, low grade stock that would translate best for the time for TV broadcast.
It will still look better in HD, but not perhaps as good as film shot for the theaters from the same time period...

(read that at some techie site...)

 

[Tim Glover]

Man, this thread is back from the dead. Fitting since it's about The Twilight Zone.

 

[Douglas Monce]

The film might have been printed on such a stock, but would not have been used to shoot with. These were the days when filmed TV shows were put on a telecine machine and broadcast live right from a film print of the show. No video tape involved. (other than the few shows that were shot on video for TZ)

In fact NBC shows on the east cost always saw a 16mm print of filmed shows because of the time delay in getting the print shipped to New York. For some reason the 16mm print was available quicker. The west coast saw a 35mm print.

Doug

 

[Dave Mack]

I'm just relating what this guy said who used to telecine old film stock of TV shows in this page...


http://talkback.zdnet.com/5208-11048...80&start=-9984

and

http://talkback.zdnet.com/5208-11048...88&start=-9984

"... The film stock of 50s television was shot at TV aspect ratios (4x5) on cheap low-grain stock, not in high-grain theater aspect ratios.... The film stock was not high-grain (modern, for detail work), but low grain, high contrast stock, which produces the widely varying light levels needed by early telecine: vidicon tubes were not as sensitive as modern CCDs and so a very large contrast vector was needed. Such conversions would look very odd and chunky as you pixelated upwards - even with a modified Steinberg algorithm..."

"...You cannot pick up more information than is there. If the stock is very good, then it'll have 8 lines of resolution for each NTSC line. If the stock is low grain, 1 or 2 lines; you'll never be able to sample more than 1 line per, or you'll end up taking really clear and detailed pictures of the silver lattice and the emulsion cracks. Television reels were typically shot in the 1-2 range..."

So, in short: yes, I'm sure. Very sure. I used to do telecine of old stock. I'm quite familiar with its myriad problems in modernizing..."

 

[Douglas Monce]

That sound correct to me, but I believe he is actually talking about the film stock that the shows were printed on, not the negative stock they were shot on. Now TV news in the 1960s used a high contrast reversal film stock that looked good when put on to a telecine machine. But that is very different from what would have been used on a TV show like Twilight Zone. A high contrast negative would be far to limiting in doing corrections to the over all look of the final image. But yes it would have been printed to a fairly high contrast, low grain stock for the final telecine.

Doug

 

[Dave Mack]

gotcha, Doug!

Well, they need to get this out there.

 

[Dave Mack]

Any further word on this...?
The DDD sale is rolling around next week and I'm awful tempted to get the complete definitive collection for $130.

 

[Douglas Monce]

I think CBS/Paramount maybe waiting to see how Star Trek does on HD DVD before plunging into another one. Might be a while before we see this on HD.

Doug

 

[Chris S]

If you pick up the SD version you won't be disappointed.

 

[Douglas Monce]

Agreed. I love the isolated score for every episode that had a new score!

Doug