Happy Holidays!

Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year to all our readers, generous advertisers, the filmmakers featured on our podcast and everyone we've worked with, met and talked to over the last year.

Have a safe and relaxing holiday and we'll be back with much more from the indomitable world of Super 8 and small film in 2010!

Giles

Neil Film-o-Clean

Here's another natty little gizmo via Wittner Cinetec - the Neil Film-o-Clean, an attachment for projectors that cleans the films prior to passing through the projection mechanism. No price as yet but available January/February 2010.

More details (in German) here.

Smallformat back issues

A communiqué from Germany...

One year ago, the last issue of smallformat magazine was published. We still have some copies of all issues (1/2005, 1-6/2006, 1-6/2007, 1-6/2008). If you are interested to buy some or all, this might be the last chance to do so. Just send me an e-mail.

The German issue, schmalfilm magazine, is still alive and healthy. Now this German publication is the last professionaly produced periodical for Super 8 and 16 mm. All the others have gone...

Save Super 8 - use Super 8!

Juergen Lossau

Cambridge - last call

Don't forget to get your films in for one of the bestest and biggest Super 8 film festvals anywhere on our fair planet - the Cambridge Super 8 Film Festival. Entries are free but must with the guys by 26th December 2009.

Hurry up! Enter now at www.cambridge-super8.org

A Super 8 Fimmaker's Journal

Out now and compiled by Don Diego Ramirez; 'A Super 8 Filmmaker's Journal' offers a comprehensive guide to the micro cinema community providing products and services to small gauge filmmakers. Based on Ramirez' personal experiences, this book will assist any one to become a Super 8 filmmaker in today’s digital age!

Comprising a number of articles from various sources, vintage adverts, photographs and imagery, the journal is a 100 page trip through every aspect of small film making.

Once regular contributor to Super 8 Today, Don Diego Ramirez is an often controversial an outspoken art figure. He is a critically acclaimed Fine Art Photographer, contributing writer award winning Super 8 Filmmaker (Trailer Trash: A Film Journal; Best Documentary, U.S. Super 8 Film Festival 2007) and currently lives in the dark woods of West Virginia.

A Super 8 Filmmaker's Journal, A Guide to Super 8 Filmmaking in the Age of the Internet, ISBN: 1449551491 EAN-139781449551490 and available at Create Space.

Accolade for Pro8mm

The Fall edition of Moviemaker magazine has on page 39 "The I-List", 25 companies every moviemaker needs to know. Listed amongst the great, good and essential is Pro8mm, LA's very own home to Super 8 film stock exotica and cameras.

Well done guys!

László Kovács & Vilmos Zsigmond documentary

Those of you with an eye for the detail and very long memories will remember the interview we did with cinematographer James Chressanthis, ASC a couple of summers ago discussing his love of Super 8mm.

Around that time he was using the format for cut-aways and other details on a major documentary he was shooting chronicling the lives of refugee cinematograpers László Kovács, ASC and Vilmos Zsigmond, ASC and their 50 year filmmaking careers.

The finished film "László Kovács & Vilmos Zsigmond: No Subtitles Necessary" has now been finally been released and tells the remarkable story of two men whose films have touched so many, whilst most don't even know who they are.

Find out more about the film here and reread our interview with James here.

Tim Burton's Super 8mm legacy

If you're in NYC over the holidays (or indeed anytime up to April 26th 2010) make sure you swing by the Museum of Modern Art and catch the Tim Burton retrospective. Amongst the examples of sketchbooks, concept art, drawings, paintings and photographs there are a few examples of his early Super 8mm works.

Read more at Art daily here
or, visit the MOMA mini-site here

Norwood at Cambridge

On Sunday November 8th the Cambridge Super 8 Group played host to renowned Los Angeles-based independent director Norwood Cheek, on his way home from attending the Sheffield Documentary Festival, with Attack Of The Fifty Foot Reels, a showcase of Super 8 work from the Flicker network in the US.

The programme included previously seen films such as Norwood's own 'Cold' and John Cannizzaro's 'Fifty Feet That Changed The World' as well as new and recent work, and an extensive question and answer interview was conducted by Cambridge Super 8 Group chair Thierry Bonnaud.

If you weren'y able to make the event in Cambridge, fear not as you can listen to a special three part podcast below;

Interview 1 (About Norwood's film Cold?)
Interview 2 (About Norwood's film Re:collection)
Interview 3 (About Super 8mm in general)