Occasionally, positive prints of these early movies are discovered, but often tend to be in poor condition. Even if the nitrate base is in good shape, the prints are scratched and riddled with splices. Whole reels may be missing. Modern archivists attempt to make new negatives of what is left, but sometimes fight a losing battle. As of now, only ten percent of all films made before 1929 still exist.
Sound films fare little better.
But here, only the original negatives are generally missing. New prints are made from existing prints, but cannot hope to match the quality of the originals. Color films are another tragedy of film deterioration. Here, the problem is not so much the decomposition of nitrate film as the fading of the original color dyes. Saving as many movies as possible is the primary concern of film preservationists.