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Project 4K80 (a WIP)

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Project 4K80 is ramping up. We have a nice new 4K scan of a 35mm fuji Empire Strikes Back print, as well as all the sources used for the Grindhouse Version, and also a nice 35mm to 16mm reduction print made in the 1980s with pretty good color:

http://www.thestarwarstrilogy.com/starwars/page/Project-4K80

If you enjoyed The Star Wars Silver Screen Edition, The ESB Grindhouse, Project 4K77 and Project 4K83, please consider donating $1 or more to project 4K80. We need to raise at least $600 more to get this 16mm version scanned, plus the Hard drives required to store it and work on it.

 

Mod Edit: for additional info…

Website: https://www.thestarwarstrilogy.com
4K77 Project Page: https://www.thestarwarstrilogy.com/project-4k77
4K80 Project Page: https://www.thestarwarstrilogy.com/project-4k80
4K83 Project Page: https://www.thestarwarstrilogy.com/project-4k83
Forum: https://forums.thestarwarstrilogy.com (you will need to register to see 4KXX project information)

^ Williarob has kindly provided you Rebels with the plans of the Death Star code to register at TheStarWarsTrilogy Forums:-

OT-21wceCpKFdYgD1FgHEkjSw4K77-80
 

The Some info & help for TN1’s 4K77, 4K80 & 4K83 projects of the Original Trilogy… thread in the General Assistance section of this site also has some useful links and information to threads on the 4KXX projects that feature here on the OT•com

OT.com Page for 4K77 : OT.com Page for 4K83

 

Info for Project 4K97 - the 1997 Special Editions, can be found on the TSWT forums - http://forums.thestarwarstrilogy.com

Info for 4K99, 4K02, & 4K05 - the Prequel Trilogy, can be found on the TSWT forums - http://forums.thestarwarstrilogy.com

TheStarWarsTrilogy.com.
The007Dossier.com.
Donations always welcome: Paypal | Bitcoin: bc1qzr9ejyfpzm9ea2dglfegxzt59tys3uwmj26ytj

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You got it, dude B)

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The work you all put in is greatly appreciated.

Very happy to make a donation.

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I can’t wait. Two years, huh? Well, I might actually get around to finishing my other projects and be ready to tackle the next set. Until then the grindhouse will have to do.

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Oh man, this is the one I’ve been waiting for! ALL of the projects (and especially the 4K projects) are absolutely invaluable to our cultural history [plus I just really really love having access to high quality copies of the original films 😉 ]. But Empire, as poita has mentioned before, was in the greatest danger of being lost forever and I am so incredibly happy to see this happening before it’s too late! Thank you guys!

I’ll cetainly send some help your way when I can.

Also, is one of the prints the one poita recently found (that he paid $5000 for)? Sure sounds like it, but it’s not explicitly stated.

Also also, If this is already, or would be better discussed on the other more private board I’ll happily head that way. I just frequent OT.com more so I saw it here first.

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Williarob said:

Project 4K80 is ramping up. We have a nice new 4K scan of a 35mm fuji Empire Strikes Back print, as well as all the sources used for the Grindhouse Version, and also a nice 35mm to 16mm reduction print made in the 1980s with pretty good color:

http://www.thestarwarstrilogy.com/starwars/page/Project-4K80

If you enjoyed The Star Wars Silver Screen Edition, The ESB Grindhouse, Project 4K77 and Project 4K83, please consider donating $1 or more to project 4K80. We need to raise at least $600 more to get this 16mm version scanned, plus the Hard drives required to store it and work on it.

Hi

long time reader, more recently a member. 77 and 83 was an interesting project and looking fwd to seeing what you can do with 80. Have a couple of beers for now.

Chris

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The first two reels of this 16mm print have now been scanned - these are from the mp4 previews created for us by the scanner:

Reel 1
Imgur

Reel 2
Imgur

We don’t have the raw scans yet as we still need to raise another $325 to pay for it…

TheStarWarsTrilogy.com.
The007Dossier.com.
Donations always welcome: Paypal | Bitcoin: bc1qzr9ejyfpzm9ea2dglfegxzt59tys3uwmj26ytj

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This project is based on a different print than Poita’s. This is a partial Fuji print, which
has less grain, and is sharper. The colors are slightly faded though. But as Rob mentioned,
there are plenty of other color references used.

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I’m very curious but I thought this was a 35mm scanned in 4K, cleaned in 4K and rendered in 4K, or are you using multiple sources? I like to know how you guys will make this a reality

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Have there been tests done with the Fuji scan to see just how far the colors can be pushed (at least approximately in the right directions)? I’m sure you’re choosing the best sources you’ve got, of course. Seems like something that you might have checked out before the restoration folks spend their many hundreds of hours on cleanup (thank you for your service).

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towne32 said:

Have there been tests done with the Fuji scan to see just how far the colors can be pushed (at least approximately in the right directions)? I’m sure you’re choosing the best sources you’ve got, of course. Seems like something that you might have checked out before the restoration folks spend their many hundreds of hours on cleanup (thank you for your service).

Not yet - I’m still waiting for the drive with the fuji scan on it to arrive…

TheStarWarsTrilogy.com.
The007Dossier.com.
Donations always welcome: Paypal | Bitcoin: bc1qzr9ejyfpzm9ea2dglfegxzt59tys3uwmj26ytj

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The drive is on its way, and after that we will come up with a plan for the restoration.

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How long do you think it might take due to how good the prints are? 4K83 had an amazing print so how good or bad is Empire?

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JonathanArthur19 said:

How long do you think it might take due to how good the prints are? 4K83 had an amazing print so how good or bad is Empire?

Unlike the pristine Return of the Jedi print which needed very little work, this project is expected to take at least two years - many of the sources are faded, and have at least as much damage (perhaps even more) as the Star Wars prints we were working with.

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I’m excited for this and I know this will be as fantastic as the others

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JonathanArthur19 said:

How long do you think it might take due to how good the prints are? 4K83 had an amazing print so how good or bad is Empire?

It’s not as clean as 4K83, but it’s in way better shape than 4K77.
Needless to say I am pumped for this one. 😃

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Those reels look so gorgeous I swear they could be from a Blu Ray. ❤️

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So, I’m still uncertain… Is one of the sources poita’s print? Yes? No? No comment?

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No. We do have the first reel of his German print, and we will be using that but the rest of it will be the new 4K scan of our Fuji print, this new 16mm print, and the various prints that made up the Grindhouse version will fill in any damaged or missing frames.

TheStarWarsTrilogy.com.
The007Dossier.com.
Donations always welcome: Paypal | Bitcoin: bc1qzr9ejyfpzm9ea2dglfegxzt59tys3uwmj26ytj

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This is quite fascinating to learn about the behind the scenes of restorations like this one.

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Williarob said:

No. We do have the first reel of his German print, and we will be using that but the rest of it will be the new 4K scan of our Fuji print, this new 16mm print, and the various prints that made up the Grindhouse version will fill in any damaged or missing frames.

From what I can see this 16mm transfer looks way better than puggo’s, which suffers from overblown highlights and crushed blacks.

Don’t have the screenshots to compare, but does this 16mm transfer have the same horizontal cropping as puggo’s or has the full screen of a 35mm frame?

Also, I think any frames taken from the Grindhouse will need some serious colour correction.

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Williarob said:

No. We do have the first reel of his German print, and we will be using that but the rest of it will be the new 4K scan of our Fuji print, this new 16mm print, and the various prints that made up the Grindhouse version will fill in any damaged or missing frames.

Cool, thanks for the info. So what are the details (what kind of print, where’d it come from, etc., etc.) of this 35mm Fuji print? Oh, and how are it’s colors?

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That Fuji print was the last of 4, that came through. It’s partially Kodak also.
It’s in the best condition, and has much less grain than the other prints.

The colors are faded. There are lots of samples, videos, etc, at the starwarstrilogy forum.