8 mm movies
8 mm movies are a motion picture film format with a film strip that is 8 millimeters wide. There are two principal versions: standard 8 mm film (also known as "regular" or "Double") and Super 8, which has smaller and more widely spaced perforations, allowing for a larger image area.
Compared to larger film formats, 8 mm movie film was relatively inexpensive to purchase and develop. It thus became a popular format for "home movies", and so many people have films of family history interest (and occasionally even wider historical interest) in this format that they want transcribed into some more modern digital format.
The availability of projection equipment in many homes also made this one of the first formats heavily used for retail sales of commercial movies, including short features, cartoons, and (especially) pornography. The "8 mm porn loop" was an early commercial success via direct sales to consumers as well as via exhibition in (sometimes coin-operated) "peep show" adult theaters.
References
- 8 mm film at Wikipedia
- How to Transfer 8mm Films to Video at WikiHow
- 8mm Film to DVD transfer (Do it yourself) a lengthy Photo.net forum thread with many equipment suggestions and tips/hints
- Library of Congress Recommended Format Specifications: Moving Image Works
- Center for Home Movies
