Panavision Sells Efilm to Deluxe

By Jack Egan
Deluxe Laboratories has become the full owner of postproduction facility EFILM following a recent buyout of Panavision’s 80 percent stake in the digital mastering and processing firm. Deluxe had been a 20 percent partner but now completely controls EFILM, a big player in the burgeoning digital intermediates business.
No price tag was put on the transaction. Panavision, mainly in the business of manufacturing and supplying cameras to the movie and television industries, said it felt EFILM fits better in Deluxe’s portfolio of services. The proceeds of the sale will be used by Panavision to reinvest in its core area of expertise. Panavision president Bob Beitcher said the the company was “in the process of exploring acquisitions and investments consistent with this mission.”
Bringing EFILM fully into its fold is “a key element of Deluxe’s future strategy and, through its ability to generate digital masters, provides a high-resolution format for content conversion to all forms of media distribution,” according to Deluxe president Cyril Drabinsky.
EFILM’s sole focus on digital services complements Deluxe’s expertise in photochemical services. Deluxe processes some 5 billion feet of motion picture film each year for Hollywood’s studios, “It’s great to have a close relationship when doing the digital intermediate and the laboratory process,” said EFILM president and founder Joe Matza. The high-tech firm uses powerful scanners, proprietary digital color-timing systems and tools for image processing to work on everything from single sequences for a film to digital intermediates for entire movies.
“We’ve been lucky enough to do more digital intermediates than anyone in the business,” Matza added. EFILM has done a total of 48 DIs to date, and 18 so far in 2004, a quarter of the industry’s total. This year’s films include Spider-Man 2, utilizing 4K resolution for the first time, as well as Van Helsing and The Bourne Supremacy.
EFILM today has 100 employees, compared to 30 when the company was started in 1993. “Plans for future growth include introducing EFILM into the major filmmaking capitals around the world,” said Matza.