Ever since digital techniques started to creep into filmmaking in the late Nineties, cinema purists have been warning of the "death of film". So they, along with Star Wars fans, might be pleased to hear that the forthcoming Star Wars Episode VII will be shot on 35mm – specifically, the Kodak film stock 5219.

The update has come from Daniel Mindel, the director of photography who has worked with JJ Abrams, who will be directing the film, due for release in 2015. Mindel has worked on previous Abrams blockbusters, including Mission: Impossible III, Star Trek and Star Trek Into Darkness.

Abrams and Mindel's dedication to celluloid suggests Star Wars Episode VII may evoke the Seventies feel of A New Hope. However, while 2002's Attack of the Clones was one of the first to be shot completely on a high definiton digital system and Revenge of the Sith followed suit three years later, fans won't be totally surprised at the move back to film.

Abrams has always made films in the classic format and explained why when making his Star Trek films. The director, who is yet to make a digital film, said he wanted Star Trek to "feel real" and that film gave "a familiarity and comfort, a real warmth."