Digital Conversion Helps Carolina Screen Retro Films

You think you know a lot about films? Odds are you don’t know as much as Jim Carl. The Carolina Theatre’s senior director is a master of film history, movie-making facts and cinema technology.

The Indy recently leaned on Jim’s expansive knowledge – and his experience in guiding the Carolina’s conversion from film to digital — in an article on the challenges area theaters face in obtaining old prints and switching technologies.

Per the Indy story:

Creating a digital copy of a film, designed to work a limited number of times for a particular theater, is considerably less expensive. Carl says most studios charge him $50 to $75 for the cost of the DCP, plus the regular screening fees. 

“Now I have no fear that I’m handling the last surviving 35mm print and I’m going to accidentally shred it and be stuck with a $10,000 bill from the studio,” Carl says.

DCPs have allowed Carl to program a number of older films that weren’t otherwise available.

Indeed, Jim added that “because of the conversion, (the Carolina) can screen House of Wax and Gaslight for the first time” on June 6.

Jim continues his awesome retro programming in June with the following film schedule filled with fun films and summertime faves:

June 13 – Smokey And The Bandit / The Sting

June 20 – Jaws & Tremors

As temperatures stay at sultry levels well into the evening during the long hot summer ahead in Durham, seeing a film inside the cool Carolina Theatre sounds like a great way to beat the heat.

Now if we can just get popcorn-flavored ice cream at the concession stand.