A release print is a copy of a film that is sent to a movie theater for exhibition.
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Release prints are not to be confused with the other types of print used in the photochemical post-production process:
In the traditional photochemical post-production workflow, release prints are usually copies, made using a high-speed continuous contact printer, of an Internegative (sometimes referred to as a 'dupe negative'), which in turn is a copy of an Interpositive (which were sometimes referred to as 'lavender prints' in the past), which in turn is a copy, optically printed to incorporate special effects, fades etc., from the cut camera negative. In other words, a typical release print is three generations removed from the cut camera negative.
The post-production of many feature films is now carried out using a digital intermediate workflow, in which the uncut camera negative is scanned, editing and other post-production functions carried out using computers and then an internegative burnt out to film, from which the release prints are struck in the normal way. This eliminates at least one generation of analogue duplication, and usually results in a significant higher quality of release prints. It has the further advantage that a DCP can be produced as the final output in addition to or instead of film prints, meaning that a single post-production workflow can produce all the required distribution media.
Film manufacturers, such as Kodak, Agfa, and Fujifilm, produce stocks of film specifically intended for use as release prints. A "deluxe" variety of these stocks may be used to provide a wider range of color reproduction. The person operating the printer on which the release print is generated must take several factors into consideration in order to achieve accurate color; these factors include the stock manufacturer, the color temperature of the bulbs in the printer, and various color filters which may have been introduced during filming or printing.
At the theater, release prints are projected through an aperture plate, placed between the film and the projector's light source. The aperture plate in combination with a prime lens of the appropriate focal distance determines which areas of the frame are magnified and projected and which are masked out, according to the aspect ratio in which the film is intended to be projected. Sometimes a hard matte is used in printing, to ensure that only the area of the frame shot in the camera that is intended to be projected is actually present on the release print. Some theaters have also used aperture plates that mask away part of the frame area that is supposed to be projected, usually where the screen is too small to accommodate a wider ratio and does not have a masking system in front of the screen itself. This may result in confusion for the audience when significant action appears on the masked-off edges of the picture. Director Brad Bird expressed frustration at this practice, which some theaters applied to his film The Incredibles[1].
Release prints are generally expensive: in the United States, it is not unusual for each one to cost around $1,500 to print and ship to theaters around the country. The cost of a released print is determined primarily by its length in feet, the type of print stock used and the number of prints being struck in a given run. Laser subtitling release prints of foreign language films adds significantly to the cost per print. Due to fears over piracy, distributors will try to ensure that prints are returned and destroyed after the movie's theatrical run is complete.[1] However, small numbers of release prints do end up in the hands of private collectors, usually entering this market via projectionists who simply retain their prints at the end of the run and do not return them. A significant number of films have been preserved this way, with the prints eventually being donated to film archives and preservation masters printed from them. The polyester film base is often recycled.