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Taped Treasures

Some local stores specialize in repairing home films
and transferring them to videotapes and videocassettes.

RON GASBARRO

Special to The Jewish News

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THE JEWISH NEWS

HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE 1991

are is the occasion
these days when you
do not see someone
videotaping the activities.
Camcorders are more light-
weight and less expensive
than ever. So many people
now own one (2.3 million were
sold last year) that at any
given wedding or birthday
party, you will likely be
shooting someone who is
simultaneously shooting you.
Videocassettes are easy to
pop in the VCR and enjoy. But
what about the box in your at-
tic filled with celluloid
memories? Those dusty old
home movies of your parents,
your young children, pets
long gone, vacations you took
in your 1961 Ford Falcon.
When was the last time you
hauled out that clunky 16mm
projector and the screen and
painstakingly threaded the
decaying film through to the
other reel? Too much trouble!
Now you know why VCRs are
so popular.
About four years ago I took
my home movies and had
them transferred on to video-
tape — the best decision I ever
made. Not only did the com-
pany splice the broken pieces
back together, they also dubb-
ed in background music. I
have 12 hours of movies now
on a couple of cassettes.
I can watch 30 minutes or
so — up to the point where my
cousin Marilyn got married —
put it away for a few weeks
and then pick up at the spot
where my Uncle Frank split
his pants.
At the time, this cost $200.
You can transfer your
movies to videocassette too.
There are places around town
that specialize in that service.
And it's cheaper than it used
to be.
At Fast Photo in Southfield,
your films are sent to a com-
pany specifically equipped to
convert 8mm, super 8 or
16mm films to VHS cassette.
"We charge eight cents a
foot with a $39 minimum
charge," says Bernie Buch-
alter, of Fast Photo. "There is
no extra charge for the video-
cassette."
So for your $39 you can give
them 500 feet of film. How
much is 500 feet? The stan-
dard 8 mm movie camera us-
ed 50 foot spools of film run-
ning about 3 1/2 minutes. Ten
of those equals 500 feet.
The entire process takes
less than a week and a rush

service is available if you
want them faster.
Fast Photo will also set your
movies to music for an addi-
tional $15 per video.
"The music is designed to
fit the mood of the video," ex-
plains Buchalter. "Songs like
`Anniversary Waltz,' country
music, easy listening or rock."
They handle some film
repair and the charge
depends on how severe the
damage. But they generally
give you a better product than
you started with and they will
take your original film and
put it on one large reel for
easier storage.
Before you go dashing down
to the cellar and run out with
your box of films to be
transformed into neat video-
cassettes, you have work to
do.
Otherwise, the video pro-
duction house is not going to
know whether your 1958 trip

I can watch 30
minutes or so — up
to the point where
my cousin Marilyn
got married — put
it away for a few
weeks and pick up
at the spot where
my Uncle Frank
split his pants.

to Cape Cod came before your
Aunt Velma's baby shower or
after your cousin Arthur's
graduation from medical
school.
"It really helps to. decide
beforehand what sequence
you want your reels to be in
on tape," says Buchalter.
Therefore, you should spend
an evening or two watching
all the movies you have. Keep
a notebook in hand and jot
down each event as it hap-
pens on tape.
Not only will this help with
sequencing but with titling.
You can have a title inserted
at the beginning of the video
tape (e.g. The Smith Family:
1960-1966). Or you can have
as many of them as you want
through the tape to indicate
the action going on.
At Fast Photo, titles cost
$1.50 per line for 16 letters.
Computer-generated titles,
much more elaborate and
spectacular, cost more.
If your film is in poor con-
dition — brittle, broken or fad-
ed — the company does their
best to repair the damage.
But if the film is too far gone,

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