ANH 1997 Inspired Regrade with SE Soundmix (Version 2 Released)

Howdy. This is the first big project I’ve contributed here, so patience is appreciated.
This is a 1997 Special Edition Regrade of A New Hope. I debated calling it a recreation, but I can’t in good confidence say it’s 100% accurate. However, I can say it’s an “approximate” recreation of what it looked like going off scans that are available of the 1997 version. I say this because I mainly used footage from the 2020 Disney 1080p Blu Ray bundled in the UHD release, which from what I understand has a color timing very similar to the 1997 release.

By default, the 2020 Blu ray is too de-saturated and the overall picture is too dim. Certainly a better effort than the 2004/2011 releases, but it’s strange how a dim picture is a reoccurring problem. In terms of the alterations I made, I gave the footage a 20-30% saturation boost and increased the exposure. To capture even more of the 1997 spirit, I included the 1997 DTS Soundmix.

Sources:
-2020 Disney 1080p Blu Ray
-Poita’s 1997 35MM Scans for color reference
-DrDre’s Technicolor Color References
-Harmy’s Respecialized 97 for audio source and shot replacement for the rocks in front of R2 and the 97 timing of the Han and Greedo shootout.

With version 2 finished, I’m going to be taking a break from ANH for awhile and move onto the other movies. I will likely make a version 3 with more adjustments if I spot something off or if enough people offer some constructive criticism. Same as always, PM me if you are interested in viewing it.

Here are two video samples of the regrade. They include the duel between Obi-Wan and Vader as well as the Death Star Attack. Aside from the saturation and exposure boost, I also changed the color temperature ever so slightly and gave the shadows a slight tint of Teal so that the mid-tones and highlights are preserved.

When it comes to the Death Star Attack…dear god. While I stated I wasn’t confident in calling this project a recreation, I knew without a shred of doubt the Death Star Attack wasn’t even close. For whatever reason the Death Star attack, which has always ranged between being mainly grey or blue depending on the release, was colored with an overwhelming amount of purple. Though it took me several tries, I was able to change the purple into more of a cyan shade using HSL secondary tools and slightly adding cyan into the highlights.

Obi-Wan vs Vader Duel: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1-HlThUZmAgc5yXYsussrypC1yrczLtID/view?usp=sharing

Death Star Attack: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ls2VcJxeufTKTTCaflGErgC_AkIPYEaC/view?usp=sharing

In these two samples, we have the Tantive IV boarding scene and Luke purchasing R2 and C-3PO.

Tantive IV: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1VcKC066d2dpQfoBK-1oXoHtSnv7VoJiS/view?usp=sharing

Luke buying R2 and C-3PO: https://drive.google.com/file/d/19IKscSdF839wHs2C2MXZUk8H4urRnxZ1/view?usp=sharing

Sure. Be my guest. Also, in regards to the footage looking like it’s from the 2011 blu ray, was that in reference to the Death Star Attack or one of the other clips?

Ah okay. It is kinda impressive to have some kind of similarities. I’d say my regrade is definitely brighter than the 2011 version. I guess so long as I can avoid the glaring problems of the 2011 version, I’m satisfied.

No worries.

Yeah, I can’t say how much of the green/teal shadows were in the original film, but from the various scans I’ve seen, they definitely show up. I was wondering if that was just from scanning problems, but I actually think they are part of the original grade, which I honestly kinda like. It has a neat look to it and helps break the image up from being entirely blue (or in the case of the default 2020 blu ray, purple for some reason).

Honestly, thanks for the feedback, my guy. Nice to know I have at least some interest in this project.

Currently clearing space to render out Version 1. I’ll edit the original post on additional information.

Version 1 is complete. I’ve edited the original post detail what I am going to improve and fix going forward with version 2. PM me if you are interested in viewing it.

I need some second opinions. Same as before, I’m having trouble with coloring the Death Star Attack. Everything is color matched, but what I’m struggling with is the overall color pallet. Because there aren’t many scans of the Death Star Attack, this is a section I feel I might have to take some creative liberties with. Below is a link to some screenshots that show the different coloring approaches I’ve taken. I’ve included the unaltered footage from the 2020 blu ray but kept the increased exposure so you can see everything in similar detail. The other two approaches include one with cyan replacing the shades of purple and the other one has warmer midtones.

Example 1:
-Unaltered https://drive.google.com/file/d/1QjUXYNDR0ocMfgovOrFRUU1CThljYeZA/view?usp=sharing
-Cyan only https://drive.google.com/file/d/1oL-mfT5Qx23i_CLFHl680qEvybAFAB-K/view?usp=sharing
-Cyan with Warmer Midtones https://drive.google.com/file/d/12GHPy2rsQ951dhIQF4l7jCNj643aupJa/view?usp=sharing

Example 2:
-Unaltered https://drive.google.com/file/d/1hZR5mrK0Z1QreWiyo2tr5olVMd__9XUo/view?usp=sharing
-Cyan only https://drive.google.com/file/d/1v3bvFSE7aqPaPvYTZj-LwdeAlKEnxOyd/view?usp=sharing
-Cyan with Warmer Midtones https://drive.google.com/file/d/1M1lAtrhsGWJ8-2-7gSG-vBxYlxCRXXeZ/view?usp=sharing

Example 3:
-Unaltered https://drive.google.com/file/d/1pfvXLhnLm7TD-bL8KKj9Z4Ym8NvmwTTq/view?usp=sharing
-Cyan only https://drive.google.com/file/d/1OS7e3saaAY0F6SnCn7H7YvdhKzGF-rH2/view?usp=sharing
-Cyan with Warmer Midtones https://drive.google.com/file/d/1sxVEIPw1LttGB6vAQatPNn1mw9pmzsw8/view?usp=sharing

Example 4:
-Unaltered https://drive.google.com/file/d/116ekRUDIEzDtGpzfT-rSLlqoAxxmLmEs/view?usp=sharing
-Cyan only https://drive.google.com/file/d/1XxXVhMcTEO3CUajtZ92TJvDJG9Ssngd2/view?usp=sharing
-Cyan with Warmer Midtones https://drive.google.com/file/d/17b_qIR6FJMR0C6tZ-q7iEDJ-8HKsqmLZ/view?usp=sharing

Hey everyone. Version 2 is out! I have to say, I definitely like how this version turned out. I feel there may be something I’ll want to change for a version three, but for now I’m going to be taking a break from A New Hope. I’ve spent a lot of time on ANH and want to move onto the other films.

Howdy. After taking some time away and recently having a look at 4K97IV and more Technicolor samples, I wanted to return to this regrade and bring even closer to how the theatrical 97 release of ANH looks. I’m currently loading the footage up and retouching it. The two big differences are going to be the Death Star Interior and Battle of Yavin. I’ve realized those two sections really need further touch ups.

So things are coming together and I have to say, this may be a helluva lot more accurate to the theatrical 97 release than I anticipated. Obviously not one for one, but i am confident 90% of it will be. On a side note, I also am working on a Dolby TrueHD version of the 97 DTS audio reels so that it is practically lossless. I just need to work on syncing it.

ZaneFlare92 said:

Sounds Awesome P.J, can’t wait!!! Did you get my message in regards to the Jabba Scene???

Oh my bad. I’ll respond in a jiffy.

Here’s a small glimpse at what version 3 of the death star attack is looking like right now. It’s still being worked on, but I’m close to locking this scene down.
https://youtu.be/5Wnvj2kCZjg