The UK Film Council says it plans to install as many as 50 digital projector systems in cinemas by the end of year as part of a 13 million pound investment to help independent film makers reach wider audiences.
The cost of producing a digital print is much lower than creating a traditional 35mm print, meaning the new technology would put more cinemas in a position to exhibit an independent film such as "Dirty Pretty Things" or "Touching the Void."
Only about 190 screens worldwide now offer high level digital projection, the Council said on Monday. It plans to fund the system for 250 screens. The UK has approximately 3,200 film screens, three-quarters of which are in multiplexes.
The Council unveiled plans to have the network up and running by year's end at the 57th annual Cannes Film Festival where hundreds of independent filmmakers are exhibiting and shopping their films. It first announced the digital projection investment plans last July.
Critics say the quality of digital projection isn't yet up to par with that of film, and cinema owners complain that the technology is still far too expensive.
"We're using public money because at the moment the private sector views it as too high risk a proposition," UK Film Council Chief Executive John Woodward told Reuters in an interview. "If it works, the private sector will take it over."
The government-backed Council, which aims to stimulate the UK film industry, said that in exchange for providing the technology, it will ask cinemas to designate a certain amount of screening time for specialised films.
With the cost of creating a 35mm print of a film running at about 1,000 pounds, the number of copies of most small films is kept to a minimum. A mass-release film might have 1,000 copies while a typical small film has only 20.
"In Britain, and in any film market, the issue for specialised films is trying to compete with blockbusters," Woodward said. "The sheer cost of producing prints of the films can be prohibitive, which means you have limited numbers of prints and large numbers of cinemas who can't get the films."
The aim is to attract more foreign films and screening of film classics, too. It also could enable cinemas to screen more films fewer times in any given week rather than having to invest in showing one or two for a full week's run.
"This initiative is intended to make a broader range of films available to more people," said Peter Buckingham, the Council's head of distribution and exhibition.
The digital network will not replace 35mm projection systems, meaning that distributors will be able to use either format.
The cost of producing a digital print is much lower than creating a traditional 35mm print, meaning the new technology would put more cinemas in a position to exhibit an independent film such as "Dirty Pretty Things" or "Touching the Void."
Only about 190 screens worldwide now offer high level digital projection, the Council said on Monday. It plans to fund the system for 250 screens. The UK has approximately 3,200 film screens, three-quarters of which are in multiplexes.
The Council unveiled plans to have the network up and running by year's end at the 57th annual Cannes Film Festival where hundreds of independent filmmakers are exhibiting and shopping their films. It first announced the digital projection investment plans last July.
Critics say the quality of digital projection isn't yet up to par with that of film, and cinema owners complain that the technology is still far too expensive.
"We're using public money because at the moment the private sector views it as too high risk a proposition," UK Film Council Chief Executive John Woodward told Reuters in an interview. "If it works, the private sector will take it over."
The government-backed Council, which aims to stimulate the UK film industry, said that in exchange for providing the technology, it will ask cinemas to designate a certain amount of screening time for specialised films.
With the cost of creating a 35mm print of a film running at about 1,000 pounds, the number of copies of most small films is kept to a minimum. A mass-release film might have 1,000 copies while a typical small film has only 20.
"In Britain, and in any film market, the issue for specialised films is trying to compete with blockbusters," Woodward said. "The sheer cost of producing prints of the films can be prohibitive, which means you have limited numbers of prints and large numbers of cinemas who can't get the films."
The aim is to attract more foreign films and screening of film classics, too. It also could enable cinemas to screen more films fewer times in any given week rather than having to invest in showing one or two for a full week's run.
"This initiative is intended to make a broader range of films available to more people," said Peter Buckingham, the Council's head of distribution and exhibition.
The digital network will not replace 35mm projection systems, meaning that distributors will be able to use either format.
