Please access detailed information on over 250 individual film color processes via the classification system on this page, display the Timeline of Historical Film Colors in chronological order, search via the tag cloud at the end of this page or directly on the search page, or see the contributing archives’ collections on the header slides.
This database was created in 2012 and has been developed and curated by Barbara Flueckiger, professor at the Department of Film Studies, University of Zurich to provide comprehensive information about historical film color processes invented since the end of the 19th century including specific still photography color technologies that were their conceptual predecessors.
Timeline of Historical Film Colors was started with Barbara Flueckiger’s research at Harvard University in the framework of her project Film History Re-mastered, funded by Swiss National Science Foundation, 2011-2013.
In 2013 the University of Zurich and the Swiss National Science Foundation awarded additional funding for the elaboration of this web resource. 80 financial contributors sponsored the crowdfunding campaign Database of Historical Film Colors with more than USD 11.100 in 2012. In addition, the Institute for the Performing Arts and Film, Zurich University of the Arts provided a major contribution to the development of the database. Many further persons and institutions have supported the project, see acknowledgements.
Since February 2016 the database has been redeveloped in the framework of the research project Film Colors. Technologies, Cultures, Institutions funded by a grant from Swiss National Science Foundation. Since 2016, the team of the research project ERC Advanced Grant FilmColors has been collecting and adding written sources. All the members of the two research projects on film colors, both led by Barbara Flueckiger, have been capturing photographs of historical film prints since 2017.
Please report errors or suggestions.
Follow the links “Access detailed information ›” to access the currently available detail pages for individual processes. These pages contain an image gallery, a short description, a bibliography of original papers and secondary sources connected to extended quotes from these sources, downloads of seminal papers and links. We are updating these detail pages on a regular basis.
In June 2015, the European Research Council awarded the prestigious Advanced Grant to Barbara Flueckiger for her new research project FilmColors. Bridging the Gap Between Technology and Aesthetics, see press release of the University of Zurich and information on the University of Zurich’s website.
Subscribe to the blog to receive all the news: https://blog.filmcolors.org/ (check out sidebar on individual entries for the “follow” button).
Contributions to the Timeline of Historical Film Colors
“It would not have been possible to collect all the data and the corresponding images without the support from many individuals and institutions.Thank you so much for your contribution, I am very grateful.”
Barbara Flueckiger
Experts, scholars, institutions | Sponsors, supporters, patrons of the crowdfunding campaign, April 23 to July 21, 2012
April 23 to July 21, 2012, $11,175 raised
*Note: Several donors prefer to remain anonymous.
Project Leader and Principal Investigator:
Prof. Dr. Barbara Flueckiger, baflueckiger@gmail.com
Team:
Research Management:
Software Development:
Assistants Film Analyses:
BA Manuel Joller, BA Ursina Früh, BA/MA Valentina Romero
Project Leader:
Prof. Dr. Barbara Flueckiger, baflueckiger@gmail.com
Team:
MA Noemi Daugaard, PhD Candidate, noemi_daugaard@access.uzh.ch
MA Josephine Diecke, PhD Candidate, josephine.diecke@uzh.ch
Data Management Timeline of Historical Film Colors:
MA Sabrina Züger, BA Manuel Joller, BA Jamie-Lee Moser, MA Meredith Stalder
We welcome researchers, archivists, film historians, film restoration experts to contribute texts, images, links or downloads to this resource.
Please contact Barbara Flueckiger to ask for the permission to get access to the authors' interface.
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Authors keep their rights on texts, images or any other information provided. All contributions are subject to a review process by the editor of this web resource.
Financing the Timeline of Historical Film Colors?
The development of the project started in fall 2011 with stage 1. Each stage necessitated a different financing scheme. We are now in stage 3 and are looking for additional funding by private sponsors. Please use the Stripe interface to pay conveniently online or transfer your financial contribution directly to
Account IBAN CH2509000000604877146
Account holder: Barbara Flueckiger, CH-8005 Zurich, Switzerland
SWIFT Code / BIC: P O F I C H B E X X X
Bank: PostFinance AG, Mingerstrasse 20, CH-3030 Bern, Switzerland
Clearing Nummer: 09000
Read more about the financial background of the project on filmcolors.org.
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Thank you very much for your financial contribution! Each sponsor receives a credit on the acknowledgement page: http://zauberklang.ch/acknowledgements.html
Thank you very much for your financial contribution! Each sponsor receives a credit on the acknowledgement page: http://zauberklang.ch/acknowledgements.html
1938 – 1958
Additive 3 color: Line screen (réseau), 16 mm, reversal
Louis Dufay, T. Thorne Baker and Charles Bonamico (Dufay-Chromex)
(see detail page on Dufaycolor)
(see detail page on Dufaycolor)
Klein, Adrian Bernhard = Cornwell-Clyne (1940): Colour Cinematography. Boston: American Photographic Pub. Co.. 2nd revised edition, pp. 193-195. View Quote
“Instructions.—The camera should be threaded in the usual way, but the shiny side of Dufaycolor must face the lens. There is a metal band around the spool to protect the film from unwanted light during loading. Do not remove this until the last possible moment. But do not forget to remove it. Loading and unloading should be carried out in a shaded place.
Colour Filter.—No filter is required for daylight photography. Filters are supplied by Dufay-Chromex Ltd., for various types of filament lamps.
Lighting.—To obtain the best colour pictures the light should be behind the photographer. However, side-lighting is often quite successful. A lens hood should always be used. Colour pictures taken against the light are rarely successful. Brilliant sunshine gives brilliant colours and hard shadows.
When sun is obscured open up one stop (e.g. from//8 tof/s-6). Slight over-exposure is preferable to under-exposure. When in doubt between two apertures use the larger.
Soft light gives soft colours. Less exposure gives deeper colours and hard contrast. More exposure gives light colours and less contrast.
Exposure.—Correct exposure is, needless to say, essential.
A reliable exposure meter should be used, such as the Weston, Model 819. A general indication of the exposures required is contained in Table 32, page 193.
The following (Table 33) are the speed factors [footnote 1: These factors do not apply to 35-mm. cine film, the speed of which is Weston 2.] for Dufaycolor reversal film given by the makers of the more commonly known still and cine exposure meters:
It is advisable to use a 3-in. projection lens. Do not use too much light. A powerful projector is only needed when it is required to show a picture several feet wide.”
(Klein, Adrian Bernhard = Cornwell-Clyne (1940): Colour Cinematography. Boston: American Photographic Pub. Co.. 2nd revised edition, pp. 193-195.)
Timeline of Historical Film Colors by Barbara Flueckiger is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
