There are two ways to take an old 8mm film reel and convert it into a digital format. The easiest way is to obtain a film-to-digital converter. These resemble standalone video converters, but instead of analog inputs, they have spools on which to mount film reels and a hi-res scanner to record the image as the film plays.The second method is more involved. Basically, you need to play your film from a projector and use a separate digital camera to record the image as it plays.