# Wide-screen movies **URL:** \ **Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\ **Created:** [May 21, 2004, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wide-screen-movies/246347 "2004-05-21T12:49:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2004, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wide-screen-movies/246347/1 "2004-05-21T12:49:03Z")
Cecil’s recycled column [What’s the difference between Cinerama, Panavision, Super Panavision, etc.?](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a1_366c.html) was written in 1981. Have there been any developments in the last 23 years that require revising the article? For example, “Today most movies, wide screen or otherwise, are both shot and printed on 35mm stock.” Is this still true? ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2004, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wide-screen-movies/246347/2 "2004-05-21T20:08:45Z")
There has just been an excellent 3-part series about aspect ratios posted at [Box Office Prophets.](http://www.boxofficeprophets.com/) It’s still on the front page for now under “Intermittent Issues” but if it’s bumped off, you can find said IIs under the Columns menu. (Unfortunately, the columns don’t link to each other and the third isn’t yet listed on the II page, so no better link for now.) And yes, most nice-budget films are shot on 35mm. 70mm is rare with digital systems quickly gaining ground. ---
**Author:** ![tracer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tracer/32/20578_2.png) [@tracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tracer)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2004, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wide-screen-movies/246347/3 "2004-05-21T23:11:20Z")
The biggest recent advance relates not to the movies themselves, but to the widescreen TVs on which the movies are played in home theater systems. The advent of [anamorphic DVDs](http://gregl.net/videophile/anamorphic.htm) has been a huge boon to the resolution available in widescreen home theater systems. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2004, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wide-screen-movies/246347/4 "2004-05-22T02:17:53Z")
Of course there is [DLP](http://www.dlp.com/dlp_technology/default.asp) technology. It does away with the physical film altogether. I don’t know for sure, but I imagine that the computers could manipulate the digital image look good on any size screen. ---
**Author:** ![FilmGeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@FilmGeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FilmGeek)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2004, 5:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wide-screen-movies/246347/5 "2004-05-22T05:36:15Z")
DLP is a projection system, not a image capture system. You could shoot on 35 and project digitally (many people do). There are various digital ways to capture images, most ‘big budget’ digital films are shot using a 24p system (24 frame progressive) that imitates celluloid. I’m still a sucker for emulsion, though. ---
**Author:** ![jasg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f0a364/32.png) [@jasg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jasg)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2004, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wide-screen-movies/246347/6 "2004-05-24T21:05:00Z")
For more reading on this topic, I recommend the [American Widescreen Museum](http://www.widescreenmuseum.com/index.htm)