In traditional filmmaking, the image is captured on 16mm or 35mm film that mechanically spools through a camera. In digital filmmaking, the camera captures on a silicon chip images that are then stored on a magnetic tape or hard disk. Those images can then be manipulated or edited on computer. The finished product then is transferred to traditional film so it can be projected in a movie theater. Computer-animated films are created entirely on computer before being transferred to film.
Lower cost is one of the advantages of digital cameras most often cited by filmmakers.
Not surprisingly, much of the current interest in digital filmmaking comes from younger filmmakers either in or recently out of film school. At the University of Southern California School of Cinema and Television, for example, this is the last semester that first-year film students will be using 8mm cameras in their introductory cinematography class. Some major filmmakers are saying farewell to 35mm-film cameras. Traditional 35mm cameras have a maximum shooting time of about 20 minutes before film cartridges have to be changed. Also, Panavision in April plans to begin selling its first-generation digital camera, which it developed jointly with Sony.