Future Fuji Film

TiMo · 2012-09-10T04:33:56+00:00

Es ist schon etwas her, das erzählte mir der Kamerahändler vor Ort, dass Fuji wohl die Produktion für Kinofilm einstellen wird. Da sich dieses Gerücht jetzt...

TiMo

It’s been a while since the local camera dealer told me that Fuji was likely to stop producing photographic film. As this rumour now seems to be gaining ground and is increasingly being discussed on Japanese photography forums, the question naturally arises as to what the future holds for photographic film. Does anyone have any more detailed information? Best regards, Tim

AchimBauer

Hi Tim, I don’t think anyone knows for sure. But when I was about to start my little personal film test and began selecting my test films, there were already rumours that Fuji was planning to stop producing photographic film, so I emailed Fuji Germany to ask about the long-term availability of Neopan Acros 100. I actually received a reply (Kodak didn’t bother to reply) stating that the plan is to continue offering the entire range in the long term. But who knows what they’ll come up with at Fuji headquarters to reassure the shareholders. As for cinema film, whilst I was out testing film and standing in the civil war zone of Stuttgart with nine camera bodies taking photos, I got into conversation with an expert. We talked for two and a half hours about all sorts of things in photography. He told me that he works at a film school and that in the cinema sector, a great deal is still done on conventional film. But Kodak seems to be doing the bulk of the business there. Regards, Achim

klausdoblmann

Well, given the situation with Kodak, I had asked Fuji Austria about their professional films, as it seems that the 400H is now the only option available in 135 format. The answer is sobering:

135 format negative films currently available: Superia 135/200-36 single and x3 Superia 135/400/36 x3 Superia 135/800-36 Superia 135/1600-36 We no longer stock the rest of the range due to a lack of demand. We will also soon be discontinuing 800 and 1600 films.

It is unclear exactly what this means (I have followed up again regarding Acros and 400H and am awaiting a reply), which is why I have spent a long time considering whether I should share this response with you at all. Perhaps it is only Fuji Austria and their own distribution warehouse; the statements do not necessarily mean that the other products are no longer available globally or across Europe, but the response is certainly not reassuring. On a positive note, however, I would like to mention that Fuji Austria replied within two working days – no one at Kodak Austria made any effort to answer my enquiry a few months ago, when rumours about the discontinuation of transparency films were doing the rounds.

Zeze

Someone on the Aphog forum writes: "There’s plenty of good news to report from Photokina, for example that Fuji Neopan 400 is being relaunched this autumn! We’ll also be seeing other new films over the next 12 to 18 months." I can’t make head nor tail of it.

TiMo

"There’s plenty of good news to report from Photokina, such as the fact that Fuji Neopan 400 is being relaunched this autumn!

It’s always been available in 135 format, hasn’t it? At least since I started (just under two years ago).

ThomasPauly

The following products were showcased at Fuji’s Photokina stand: CN films for amateur use

C 200 (35mm)
Superia 200 and 1600 (both 35mm)
X-Tra 400 (35mm, RF) and 800 (35mm)

CN films for professional use

Pro 160 (RF) and 400 (35mm, RF)
Reala (RF)

Colour reversal films

Velvia 50 (KB, RF) and 100 (KB, RF, 4x5, 8x10)
Provia 100 F (KB, RF, 4x5, 8x10) and 400 X (KB, RF)

Black and white negative films

Neopan 400
Acros

Overall, the range of applications is therefore still well covered. This does not rule out the possibility that Fuji may tailor its range to specific countries depending on demand. The instant photography corner proved particularly popular – not just with Fuji; Polaroid and Impossible were also crowd-pullers. Photos on a physical medium (or even one-offs) clearly continue to hold a special appeal. tepe

Zeze

I must have had blinders on :)) Why are they talking about a 'reintroduction'? Time for a coffee first.

thomas_l

Well, that could well be the case, and Henning isn’t exactly the sort of person to make things up out of thin air. Given all the secrecy at Fuji, nobody really knows what’s going on, but as far as I can make out, it’s conceivable that Fuji initially ran out of stock and that they may now have produced a batch. Fuji also has the problem that they can’t just produce small quantities to match demand, so it’s quite possible that things won’t add up for a while. In truth, all we can do now is wait and see... let’s see what happens. To be honest, I’m more worried about the transparency films; we’ve got plenty of 400 black-and-white to choose from anyway.

TiMo

At an exhibition of vintage cameras, I was introduced to a gentleman who, until a few months ago – before he retired – worked in Fuji’s film division. He told me that the company is constantly keeping a very close eye on the film division and, should there be any signs of a further decline, is prepared to pull out of the business at a moment’s notice. When I asked whether hoarding transparency made sense in view of the impending withdrawal and the loss of development services, he said that he suspected the development service would probably continue until the machines broke down; in Japan, at least.