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Harry Styles’ Watermelon Sugar, Katy Perry’s Daisies, Chopard’s short film with Julia Roberts, Burger King, and more have used Super 8 footage to create a grainy, vintage, old-school effect. Aside from the enthusiasts scooping up used cameras to record their summers, some of the biggest names in entertainment are turning to film-and Super 8 specifically-for their creative projects. Today, the medium is still very much alive-and by many indications-both doing well and picking up steam. With its launch, Super 8 put the power of creativity in the hands of regular people. And in 1975, a magnetic strip was added to the cartridges to capture audio.
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These cartridges also convey to the camera important bits of information, like the film speed as well as filter information for B&W film. More cost-effective than 16mm or 35mm, Super 8 film is housed in inexpensive plastic cartridges, so it’s easier to handle and load, too. This led it to be positioned as the new movie-making format of the masses. Introduced in 1965 by Kodak, it was a step up from the 8mm film that came before it, both in terms of quality-thanks to its larger frame size-and usability. This format might just be the king (or queen) of home movies. Lead image courtesy of Noah Buscher on Unsplash. If it’s caught your eye, too, here’s everything you need to know about getting started shooting Super 8 film. But even outside of pop culture, the consumer-friendly Super 8 film format is winning the hearts of amateurs and the analog community. Super 8’s grainy, nostalgic look is having a moment right now, popping up everywhere from music videos to blockbuster TV shows.
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