Why is it Called Film?

Our language seems to be full of anachronisms. I love the fact that on-line digital editors still refer to what they're doing as "cutting" and the finished product as "film". The whole notion of using the verb "filming" is equally amusing. This is hardly a novel observation, but there are few better illustrations of how language changes a lot faster than technology.

One of the things I'm excited about these days is the opportunity to actually shoot and edit real film. I recently acquired a Super 8 movie camera, projector and screen at a used charity store, and I'm in the process of hunting down film and developing facilities. It may be cost prohibitive, but it certainly would be a different experience to physically cut and paste pieces of film together. I'm sure it would give me an interesting insight into how the process of "filmmaking" (there's another anachronism) has evolved from the early 20th century 'till now.

I realize of course that the pros still shoot on 35mm film, but how long is that going to last? Even Superman Returns, I gather, was shot on 24p digital video. It's only a matter of time before "filmmaking" really passes into history.