Optical printing is reprinting already filmed images onto film. It is a way to move one film size and/or type onto another. It is a way to change the speed of a series of images, including moving film that was shot at silent speed (18FPS) to sound speed (24FPS) so that it projects at the speed the original action took place. It is a way to preserve fragile images by transferring them onto new stock. It is a way to create superimpositions, dissolves, traveling mattes and other optical effects. Until the advent of digital effects and compositing it was used extensively in the mainstream film industry to create title sequences and a whole variety of optical and special effects. bye.
