In a super shocking announcement being made today at CES 2017, Kodak is bringing back one of their iconic films: Kodak Ektachrome 100. The announcement goes hand in hand with the emulsion being available in both Super 8 and 35mm still formats. Back in 2012, Kodak discontinued the film citing sales that weren’t as strong as they needed. Last year, 2016, was the fourth anniversary of its discontinuance. Kodak Ektachrome was recommended as the replacement for Kodachrome, and for a short time was Kodak’s only available slide film. Then it disappeared, and Kodak had none available on the market.

But in Q4 of 2017, we’re getting Kodak Ektachrome back.

ROCHESTER, N.Y. and LAS VEGAS, NV January 5, 2017 – Kodak Alaris announced at CES 2017 that it would be reintroducing the iconic KODAK PROFESSIONAL EKTACHROME transparency film for professional and enthusiast photography. The new EKTACHROME film will support 135-36x camera formats and be available in fourth quarter 2017.

KODAK PROFESSIONAL EKTACHROME Film has a distinctive look that was the choice for generations of photographers before being discontinued in 2012. The film, known for its extremely fine grain, clean colors, great tones and contrasts, became iconic in no small part due the extensive use of slide film by the National Geographic Magazine over several decades.

Resurgence in the popularity of analog photography has created demand for new and old film products alike. Sales of professional photographic films have been steadily rising over the last few years, with professionals and enthusiasts rediscovering the artistic control offered by manual processes and the creative satisfaction of a physical end product.

“Film is our heritage and we remain committed to meeting the evolving needs of today’s film shooters,” said Dennis Olbrich, President – Kodak Alaris Imaging Paper, Photo Chemicals and Film. “We’ve been listening to the needs and desires of photographers over the past several years and wanted to bring back a slide/transparency film. In assessing the opportunity, EKTACHROME was the clear choice.”

KODAK PROFESSIONAL EKTACHROME is a color positive film, also known as “reversal,” “slide,” or “transparency” film. Unlike all of the other KODAK PROFESSIONAL Films available today, which are color negative films, EKTACHROME generates a positive image that can be viewed or projected once it is exposed and processed. This makes it ideal for high-resolution projection or presentations. It is also well suited for scanning and printing onto a range of professional grade photographic media.

EKTACHROME Film is developed using the E6 process, available in many professional labs today. Coincident with the Q4 launch, the KODAK PROFESSIONAL Film App will be updated to include Professional Labs where E6 processing is available in addition to labs where color negative and B&W film processing are currently featured.

Also at CES, The Eastman Kodak Company announced the reintroduction of KODAK EKTACHROME Super 8 Film to support the adoption of its recently introduced KODAK Super 8 movie camera. Eastman Kodak will produce KODAK PROFESSIONAL EKTACHROME Film for distribution by Kodak Alaris. The combined scale of EKTACHROME Super 8 and still film products creates a viable and sustainable business opportunity for both companies.