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1 revision imported: Film preservation organizations

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{{Infobox company
| name = Lowry Digital
| logo = [[File:Lowry Digital logo.png|Lowry Digital logo]]
| type =
| slogan =
| foundation = 1988
| location = [[Burbank, California]]<br />[[United States|USA]]
| key_people = [[John D. Lowry]], founder<br />Ramki Sankaranarayanan, President
| num_employees =
| industry = [[Film preservation|Film restoration]]
| revenue =
| products =
| parent = [[Reliance MediaWorks]] ([[Reliance Group]])
| homepage =
}}
'''Lowry Digital''' is a digital [[Film preservation|film restoration]] company based in [[Burbank, California]].

[[John D. Lowry]] gained industry recognition in 2008 for his computer-based proprietary algorithms used in the restoration of the [[NASA]] [[Apollo program|Apollo]] missions [[Apollo 16|16]] and [[Apollo 17|17]] films.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.apple.com/ca/pro/film/lowry/ |title=John D. Lowry, Restoration Software |last=Cellini |first=Joe |publisher=Apple Inc. |accessdate=2008-09-23 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20081026112500/http://www.apple.com/ca/pro/film/lowry/ |archivedate=2008-10-26 }}</ref> As of December 15, 2006, Lowry Digital had 700 [[Apple Inc.|Apple]] [[Power Mac G5]]s, a server bay with 700 [[terabyte]]s of storage and two $300,000 digital [[motion picture film scanner]]s. The company is becoming increasingly involved in work on digital [[3-D film]]s, such as ''U2 3D'' and ''[[Journey to the Center of the Earth (2008 Hollywood film)|Journey to the Center of the Earth 3-D]]''.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS108017+26-Mar-2008+BW20080326|title=DTS Digital Images Fine Tunes ''Journey to the Center of the Earth 3D'' for Upcoming Summer 2008 Release|date=2008-03-26|work=Business Wire|publisher=Reuters|accessdate=2008-08-04}}{{dead link|date=July 2021|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> Lowry Digital was instrumental in adapting existing technology and developing new image processing techniques that set a new standard for 3-D in the landmark film ''[[Avatar (2009 film)|Avatar]]''. The Burbank, California subsidiary was lauded in helping ''Avatar'' — the highest-grossing film in history — to earn its [[82nd Academy Awards|Academy Awards]] for technical achievement.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://entertainment.gaeatimes.com/2010/03/08/avatar-producer-lauds-reliance-mediaworks-for-its-oscar-98348/|title='Avatar' producer lauds Reliance MediaWorks for its Oscar|date=2010-03-08|publisher=Reliance – Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group|accessdate=2010-03-08}}</ref>

Lowry describes the restoration process as overcoming three obstacles: wear and tear, age, and multiple generations of optical copies. Each frame is scanned into a high-resolution digital format, where the computer first checks for standard problems like size alterations or jitter. Then the files go through the lab's [[render farm]] for speck removal, which is then eye-checked frame-by-frame. The system works natively in [[32-bit|32-bit floating point]], can process any format like [[High-definition video|HD]] and [[4K resolution|4K]], and outputs to a pristine [[digital master]]. Lowry Digital's advanced digital image processing is also used to minimize [[Film grain|grain]] in image quality without losing any quality, even in modern major motion-picture releases like ''[[Miami Vice (film)|Miami Vice]]'' and ''[[Zodiac (film)|Zodiac]]''.<ref>http://www.lowrydigital.com/noise.html</ref>

On 16 July 2009, in time for the 40th anniversary of the moon landing, NASA tasked Lowry Digital to restore original video footage of the [[Apollo 11 missing tapes|missing Apollo moon landing tapes]], at a cost of $230,000. Lowry president Mike Inchalik commented that the video "is by far and away the lowest quality," the company has dealt with.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090716/ap_on_sc/us_sci_moon_video |title=Archived copy |accessdate=2009-07-17 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090719134430/http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090716/ap_on_sc/us_sci_moon_video |archivedate=2009-07-19 }}</ref>

== Company History ==
John D. Lowry (June 2, 1932 – January 21, 2012) was a Canadian film restoration expert and innovator who founded Lowry Digital Images in 1988.

Lowry Digital Image was largely shaped by the needs of its first studio clients. Lowry described the restoration process as overcoming three obstacles - wear and tear, aging, and multiple generations of optical copies. The system works natively in 32-bit floating point, can process any format like HD and 4K, and outputs to a pristine digital master. Lowry Digital's advanced digital image processing is also used to minimize grain in image quality without losing any quality, even in major modern motion picture releases.{{cn|date=July 2020}}

The company was known as DTS Digital Images while it was owned by digital audio company DTS from 2005 to 2008. It then changed its name to Lowry Digital in April 2008, when it was acquired by India's Reliance MediaWorks, which is part of the Reliance ADA Group, owned by renowned businessman Anil Ambani. Lowry Digital was later acquired by Prime Focus Technologies (PFT) as part of a merger of the film and media services business of Reliance MediaWorks (the media & entertainment arm of Reliance Group) and Prime Focus Ltd (PFL), a public limited company.{{cn|date=July 2020}}

The Lowry Digital Process was honored by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in the Scientific and Technical awards category held in 2012.{{cn|date=July 2020}}

==Marquee Projects{{cn|date=July 2020}}==
{{Div col|colwidth=20em}}
* '''The Simpsons:''' Upconversion from SD to HD in 4:3 and 16:9 with tilt and pan for 342 episodes of the epic animation series.
* '''NASA:''' Restoration of the original video footage of the missing Apollo moon landing tapes, in time for the 40th anniversary of the moon landing on 16 July 2009.
* '''Prometheus:''' In addition to grain reduction and image processing, all 3D related issues were fixed, and the Z axis was made acceptable for theatrical release.
* '''Star Wars:''' The first three ‘Star Wars’ feature films were all scanned at 4K with full restoration including stabilization, grain reduction, and dust & dirt removal.
* '''Avatar & Titanic:''' In addition to image processing and grain reduction, Z axis issues that had occurred during the original 3D shooting were fixed.
* '''Disney:''' Short films and platinum classic films like 'Dumbo', 'Snow White', 'Cinderella', 'Sleeping Beauty' and several others were scanned at 4K, color corrected and restored according to fixed specifications. Dirt and dust were removed from each of these films, and scratches and grains were cleaned up.
{{div col end}}

==Films worked on==
{{Div col|colwidth=20em}}
*''[[Avatar (2009 film)|Avatar]]'' (2009)
*''[[The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (film)|The Curious Case of Benjamin Button]]'' (2008)
*''[[Journey to the Center of the Earth (2008 Hollywood film)|Journey to the Center of the Earth 3-D]]'' (2008)
*''[[U2 3D]]'' (2007)
*''[[Zodiac (film)|Zodiac]]'' (2007)
*''[[Miami Vice (film)|Miami Vice]]'' (2006)
*''[[Aliens of the Deep]]'' (2005)
*''[[Die Another Day]]'' (2002)
*''[[Pokémon Heroes]]'' (2002, 2003)
*''[[Pokémon 4Ever]]'' (2001, 2002)
*''[[Pokémon 3: The Movie]]'' (2000, 2001)
*''[[Pokémon: The Movie 2000]]'' (1999, 2000)
*''[[The World Is Not Enough]]'' (1999)
*''[[Pokémon: The First Movie]]'' (1998, 1999)
*''[[Tomorrow Never Dies]]'' (1997)
*''[[Star Trek: First Contact]]'' (1996)
*''[[GoldenEye]]'' (1995)
*''[[The Lion King]]'' (1994)
*''Born Too Soon'' (1993)
*''[[Aladdin (1992 Disney film)|Aladdin]]'' (1992)
*''[[Beauty and the Beast (1991 film)|Beauty and the Beast]]'' (1991)
*''[[The Godfather Part III]]'' (1990)
*''[[Licence to Kill]]'' (1989)
*''[[The Little Mermaid (1989 film)|The Little Mermaid]]'' (1989)
*''[[Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade]]'' (1989)
*''[[Henry V (1989 film)|Henry V]]'' (1989)
*''[[Oliver & Company]]'' (1988)
*''[[Richard Rich (director)|The Animated Book of Mormon]]'' (1988–1992)
*''[[The Living Daylights]]'' (1987)
*''[[Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home]]'' (1986)
*''[[A View to a Kill]]'' (1985)
*''[[The Black Cauldron (film)|The Black Cauldron]]'' (1985)
*''[[Prizzi's Honor]]'' (1985)
*''[[Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom]]'' (1984)
*''[[Octopussy]]'' (1983)
*''[[Return of the Jedi]]'' (1983)
*''[[The Keep (film)|The Keep]]'' (1983)
*''[[The Fox and the Hound]]'' (1981)
*''[[For Your Eyes Only (film)|For Your Eyes Only]]'' (1981)
*''[[Raiders of the Lost Ark]]'' (1981)
*''[[The Empire Strikes Back]]'' (1980)
*''[[The In-Laws (1979 film)|The In-Laws]]'' (1979)
*''[[Moonraker (film)|Moonraker]]'' (1979)
*''[[The Rescuers]]'' (1977)
*''[[The Spy Who Loved Me (film)|The Spy Who Loved Me]]'' (1977)
*''[[Star Wars (film)|Star Wars]]'' (1977)
*''[[All the President's Men (film)|All the President's Men]]'' (1976)
*''[[The Godfather Part II]]'' (1974)
*''[[The Man with the Golden Gun (film)|The Man with the Golden Gun]]'' (1974)
*''[[Live and Let Die (film)|Live and Let Die]]'' (1973)
*''[[Robin Hood (1973 film)|Robin Hood]]'' (1973)
*''[[The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes]]'' (1973)
*''[[The Godfather]]'' (1972)
*''[[Diamonds Are Forever (film)|Diamonds Are Forever]]'' (1971)
*''[[THX 1138]]'' (1971)
*''[[The Aristocats]]'' (1970)
*''[[On Her Majesty's Secret Service (film)|On Her Majesty's Secret Service]]'' (1969)
*''[[Once Upon a Time in the West]]'' (1968)
*''[[The Mercenary (film)|The Mercenary]]'' (1968)
*''[[The Love Bug]]'' (1968)
*''[[The Jungle Book (1967 film)|The Jungle Book]]'' (1967)
*''[[You Only Live Twice (film)|You Only Live Twice]]'' (1967)
*''[[Doctor Zhivago (1965 film)|Doctor Zhivago]]'' (1965)
*''[[Darling (1965 film)|Darling]]'' (1965)
*''[[The Great Race]]'' (1965)
*''[[Thunderball (film)|Thunderball]]'' (1965)
*''[[Goldfinger (film)|Goldfinger]]'' (1964)
*''[[Mary Poppins (film)|Mary Poppins]]'' (1964)
*''[[From Russia with Love (film)|From Russia with Love]]'' (1963)
*''[[Dr. No (film)|Dr. No]]'' (1962)
*''[[One Hundred and One Dalmatians]]'' (1961)
*''[[The Absent-Minded Professor]]'' (1961)
*''[[North by Northwest]]'' (1959)
*''[[Sleeping Beauty (1959 film)|Sleeping Beauty]]'' (1959)
*''[[The Curse of Frankenstein]]'' (1957)
*''[[The Spirit of St. Louis (film)|The Spirit of St. Louis]]'' (1957)
*''[[Giant (1956 film)|Giant]]'' (1956)
*''[[Moby Dick (1956 film)|Moby Dick]]'' (1956)
*''[[Lady and the Tramp]]'' (1955)
*''[[The Rose Tattoo (film)|The Rose Tattoo]]'' (1955)
*''[[Them!]]'' (1954)
*''[[Peter Pan (1953 film)|Peter Pan]]'' (1953)
*''[[The Robe (film)|The Robe]]'' (1953)
*''[[Roman Holiday (1953 film)|Roman Holiday]]'' (1953)
*''[[The Importance of Being Earnest (1952 film)|The Importance of Being Earnest]]'' (1952)
*''[[Singin' in the Rain]]'' (1952)
*''[[Alice in Wonderland (1951 film)|Alice in Wonderland]]'' (1951)
*''[[Sunset Boulevard (1950 film)|Sunset Boulevard]]'' (1950)
*''[[Cinderella (1950 film)|Cinderella]]'' (1950)
*''[[Madeleine (1950 film)|Madeleine]]'' (1950)
*''[[The Passionate Friends (1949 film)|The Passionate Friends]]'' (1949)
*''[[Oliver Twist (1948 film)|Oliver Twist]]'' (1948)
*''[[Brief Encounter]]'' (1946)
*''[[Mildred Pierce (film)|Mildred Pierce]]'' (1945)
*''[[Gaslight (1944 film)|Gaslight]]'' (1944)
*''[[This Happy Breed]]'' (1944)
*''[[Casablanca (film)|Casablanca]]'' (1942)
*''[[Now, Voyager]]'' (1942)
*''[[Bambi]]'' (1942)
*''[[Dumbo]]'' (1941)
*''[[Citizen Kane]]'' (1941)
*''[[Fantasia (1940 film)|Fantasia]]'' (1940)
*''[[Pinocchio (1940 film)|Pinocchio]]'' (1940)
*''[[Gone with the Wind (film)|Gone with the Wind]]'' (1939)
*''[[The Lady Vanishes (1938 film)|The Lady Vanishes]]'' (1938)
*''[[Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937 film)|Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs]]'' (1937)
*''[[Young and Innocent]]'' (1937)
*''[[Sabotage (1936 film)|Sabotage]]'' (1936)
*''[[Silly Symphonies|The Cookie Carnival]]'' (1935)
*''[[The Scarlet Pimpernel]]'' (1934)
*''[[The Ghoul (1933 film)|The Ghoul]]'' (1933)
*''[[Little Women (1933 film)|Little Women]]'' (1933)
*''[[Manhatta]]'' (1921)
{{div col end}}

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?newsid=1159222 Analysis of the change of ownership from DTS to Reliance] at http://www.dnaindia.com
* [http://www.studiodaily.com/filmandvideo/tools/otherways/4755.html Inside Lowry Digital Image's Restoration Pipeline] at http://www.studiodaily.com

{{Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group}}

[[Category:Reliance Group]]
[[Category:Film preservation organizations]]
[[Category:Mass media companies established in 1988]]
[[Category:Mass media companies of the United States]]
[[Category:Companies based in California]]
[[Category:1988 establishments in California]]

Lowry Digital - Revision history

JJR: 1 revision imported: Film preservation organizations

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