IASA 2017 Annual Conference

DPX is a digital target format used when scanning motion picture film. It is the successor to Eastman Kodak's CINEON format (ca. 1992). DPX was first standardized in by SMPTE in 1994 and updated in 2003. In their early development, CINEON and DPX addressed a then-new need: building a film-duplication workflow with a digital intermediate, i.e., film-in and film-out. CINEON files were intended to support the exposure of duplicate negative stock that would in turn be printed for theatrical release prints. DPX was designed to play a slightly broader role, although the core motivation was similar. In recent years, the industry has moved to more complex and sophisticated production, favoring terms like digital mastering and developing the Academy Color Encoding System (ACES). DPX can be used in the ACES context, especially when going from film negative and internegative to positive print stock for theatrical projection (now almost a thing of the past). These industry-tailored uses mean that DPX and the installed base of technology that supports it make a good-but-not-perfect fit for memory institution scanning. What adjustments to the DPX specification and/or scanning practices should archivists be thinking about as they increase preservation-oriented digitization of motion picture film?