TECHNES Encyclopedia Database

This period also saw the return of 70 mm film. It had already been used in the United States for some twenty films in the 1920s and 30s, for example Raoul Walsh’s The Big Trail in 1930. The standardization of 35 mm film by the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (the future SMPTE) on 2 October 1917 and the cost of shooting in 70 mm dissuaded the production studios from using it. Its use was further hampered by the fact that few movie theatres were equipped with a 70 mm projector, forcing the studios to shoot their 70 mm films with a 35 mm camera also in order to ensure wide distribution. The Todd-AO system was the first to return to 70 mm film, in 1955. This system was developed by Michael Todd, a participant in the Cinerama adventure. With Todd-AO he sought to avoid Cinerama’s drawbacks: a three-lens camera which was difficult to operate; the need to use a single focal length while shooting; and the visible separation between the three images (and sometimes their different colour timing) when projected. With 70 mm film, it was possible with Todd-AO to obtain a widescreen image (with a 2.2:1 ratio) of exceptional quality. The definition, depth of field and contrast of the image in 70 mm film were considerably improved compared to 35 mm. The process’s principal features are described in the advertising brochure shown in Insert 2. Fred Zinnemann’s Oklahoma (1955) and Michael Anderson’s Around the World in 80 Days (1956) were the first two films produced in Todd-AO. Another twenty or so followed in the 1960s and 70s. They were exhibited in movie theatres equipped with 70 mm projectors. Insert 3 shows an example of a 70 mm projector in a publicity brochure for the DP70 model manufactured by Philips.

Another system based on 70 mm film was developed in 1956 by the Panavision department of the studio MGM: the MGM Camera 65. The number 65 is a reference to the 65 mm reserved for the image on 70 mm film stock, as the remaining 5 mm were devoted to the sound tracks.^[2] The format obtained with the MGM Camera 65 was one of the widest (with a 2.76:1 ratio), because in addition to using 70 mm film, a special lens called the APO made it possible to anamorphize and de-anamorphize the image (like CinemaScope, discussed below).^[3] A few films were shot using this process, including William Wyler’s Ben-Hur (1959). Panavision later became independent from MGM and continued to use this process, improving and renaming it Ultra Panavision 70, and then Super Panavision 70 (without anamorphosis).