On Saturday, October 5th, my family and I had the privilege of attending a preview of the new “Color in Motion: Chromatic Explorations of Cinema” exhibit at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures. I was pleased to find a fairly comprehensive exploration of the history and evolution of color in motion pictures. The exhibit opens with early hand tinted and hand painted silent short films, and then shows the evolution of the color processes through some wonderful examples of glorious Technicolor, Kodak and Fuji Color negative, and modern digital image capture. The next room featured a fascinating selection of early color technologies, including a Kinemacolor projector (ca. 1908), a Gaumont Chronochrome camera (ca. 1912), and one I was unfamiliar with, a Doyen Trichrome camera and projector (ca. 1914).
I have read a bit about these cameras and projectors before, but this is the first time I had ever seen physical examples of them. I am much more familiar with the Technicolor 2-Strip and 3-Strip cameras. I restored a 2-Strip camera for the Fotokem collection and have done some general service on a 3-Strip camera that ended up at Disney. There was a lot of careful thought that went into this presentation, and I was glad to see so many examples of early color machinery on display. My one criticism was that I wish the signage was a bit larger as it had a lot of interesting and well presented information to share. This exhibit gives a glimpse into the complex science and technological leaps that have made movies as we know them come to life. Anyone who loves movies would enjoy this exhibit. “Color in Motion: Chromatic Explorations of Cinema” is open at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures now through July 13, 2025.