
Alchemy in Technicolor
“As a kid growing-up with a particularly geeky fascination for color, it was rather serendipitous to spend nearly two decades of my motion picture career working on behalf of Technicolor. The name Technicolor conjured up a kind of wonderment. Working there only heightened my appreciation for what happened behind the curtain. Maybe it wasn’t the Land of Oz… but it did have its share of wizards!”


Joining Technicolor in 2001, and spending most of the next two decades working for the historic brand as Vice President of Marketing, Robert Hoffman presents decades of research and insight into the company’s celebrated history taking readers inside the “greatest name in color” at the height of its aesthetic dominance. Alchemy in Technicolor pulls back the curtains on the historic brand focusing on its seminal era within motion picture history.
Movie Alchemy Blog
I Wish I could talk in Technicolor
I wish I could talk in Technicolor – Ⓓ⓪④ One tends to embrace humor wherever it can be found. In early 2024, I encountered a bit of levity when my attention was drawn to a curious mention of Technicolor from the mid-1950s found within the January 29th issue of The New Yorker Magazine that ran a book review about the CIA – the review was written by critic Margaret Talbot in which she recounted an early and somewhat remarkable moment in American television history: the 1957 CBS broadcast of an acid test …50s television at its strangest. Under the clinical guidance of famed UCLA psychiatrist, Dr. Sidney Cohen, a young female
We’ll always have Paris…
We’ll always have Paris – ⓪③ I know that the line uttered by Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca was intended for an audience of one, his lost and found love, Ilsa, but having recently returned from that wonderful city I wanted to share a few thoughts that reflect my love of Paris. I ventured to Paris to speak at the Cinémathèque Française; the presentation was nicely received by the standing-room only audience. I also want to extend my heartfelt thanks to Laurent Mannoni, and his wonderful wife, Laure, for making me feel so welcomed. Being asked to talk about Technicolor’s relationship with The Archers, especially director Michael Powell and cinematographer
Best Seat In The House
Best Seat In The House – Ⓓ⓪② As most of us know, the movie set is a special place, and getting to work on a set is an honor – one that is generally hard-earned. The movie set is where the rubber meets the road; it’s where the production budget burn-rate is the highest; and it’s where the stresses are most intenseFrom decades working on and around motion picture sets, one observation I’d like to share is my great regard for those intrepid souls who hold the position of First Assistant Director. Great First ADs are so agile as to be able to turn on a dime when
Righting a Wrong
Righting a Wrong – Ⓓ⓪① In early August of 2017, a screening was conducted at Technicolor’s Hollywood digital hub on Sunset Blvd. The screening was arranged for a few select guests of director Francis Ford Coppola, and Zoetrope Studios. The audience that night was comprised mostly of actors, and most prominently actor-dancer extraordinaire Maurice Hines — everyone packed-into a small (12 seats) grading theatre on the first floor. The film being shown was the fully restored The Cotton Club, featuring performances from Hines and his brother, Gregory. In the film, they played competitive brothers, two dance master’s that performed at the famed nightclub in New York City, a club that was