The rise of boutique film

As a film photographer I find it reassuring that there is still a healthy catalogue of both black & white and colour films available from the leading manufacturers. Indeed, Ilford, Foma, Adox and Kodak have either brought out new products or re-introduced previously discontinued lines in recent years. What has also been noticeable is the rise of smaller brands that either market films produced by other companies, convert existing film stock or even produce their own films.

Often classed as ‘boutique’, there is a surprising number producing a variety of different films. Most can be found at specialist online shops such as AnalogueWonderland.co.uk and PhotoBite.uk, including films from CatLABS, revolog, dubblefilm, Street Candy and Yodica amongst the more well-known names.

For this article, I spoke to three very different companies based in the US, UK and France, as well as trying out several of their films. While all emphasised the importance of distribution, marketing and being part of an analogue community, all had very different and fascinating stories behind their brands.

CineStill

Brian and Brandon Wright

Los Angeles-based photographers, the Wright brothers have worked in both motion picture and still photography. They started CineStill in 2012 with the ambition to make high-quality cine film available to photographers. cinestillfilm.com Instagram: @cinestillfilm

IN A RELATIVELY short time, CineStill has become an important and exciting brand in film photography. Through collaborations with manufacturers such as Kodak, brothers Brian and Brandon Wright have successfully produced and marketed a collection of films, bringing motion picture film