In the next edition of Post Break, the free webinar series from Post New York Alliance (PNYA), a group of industry leaders will reflect on the recently announced closure of DuArt after nearly 100 years of continuous service. Panelists David Leitner, Jane Tolmachyov, Tim Spitzer and Bob Mastronardi will join moderator Domenic Rom to reminisce about their years with the trailblazing company and celebrate its pivotal role in shaping New York’s post-production industry. The free event is scheduled for Thursday, December 16 at 4:00 p.m. EST.
Founded in 1922, DuArt was one of the oldest film laboratories in the world. Although it stopped processing film a few years ago, it helped to nurture virtually every innovation in lab, video and digital technology from the Silent Era through to the present day. Its chairman, Irwin Young, has been a champion of independent film and served as producer of such critically acclaimed films as Nothing But a Man, Alambrista!, The Maze, American Me and Caught.
Panelists
- David Leitner is an Oscar-nominated producer, director, and Emmy-nominated cinematographer with more than 90 film, television and documentary credits, including eight Sundance premieres. He is the author of The Filmmaker’s Handbook and Kodak’s Creating Better Video With 16mm Film, and has been a contributing editor to The Independent, Millimeter and Filmmaker, as well an industry consultant on camera design and film preservation. He is an active board member of IndieCollect and a Fellow of the SMPTE. He was on staff at DuArt from 1977 to 1985, serving as Director of Optical Printing and Director of New Technology, and responsible for innovations in liquid gate design, cine lens testing, film-to-tape transfer and Super 16.
- Jane Tolmachyov was born in Russia and studied at the Moscow Institute of Cinematography. After immigrating to the United States, she worked as a freelance assistant film editor in New York. Joining DuArt, she became a colorist and went onto work on scores of features and documentaries, including work for directors Frederick Wiseman, Ken and Rick Burns and Michael Moore and cinematographers Nestor Almendros, Fred Elms and Ed Lachman. Recent credits include 2nd Chance for producer/director Ramin Bahrani, and remastering/ restoration projects for the Cohen Film Collection, and the MOMA Film Collection.
- Tim Spitzer is Post Production Supervisor at Jigsaw Productions. His experience encompasses television, feature and commercial post-production from capture through deliverables. He offers expertise in the latest technological developments as well as in-depth knowledge of past analog and digital tools and media. He spent 18 years at DuArt as Manager of Optical Printing and in other technical and sales roles. His background also includes leadership post with Tape House and Goldcrest Post.
- Bob Mastronardi began his career as a customer service supervisor with DuArt in 1980. He later spent 25 years in the Motion Picture Division of Eastman Kodak Company where he managed sales, marketing and technical support for Kodak products and services. In 2007, as WorldWide Marketing manager, he coordinated and supervised the technical development and launch of Kodak Vision3 color negative products. As TV segment manager, he facilitated sales, marketing and technical support to episodic TV productions for high profile accounts such as The Sopranos, Law and Order, Sex and the City, 30 Rock and NFL Films. He is currently enjoying semi-retirement.
Moderator
- Currently Managing Director of Goldcrest Post, Domenic Rom has over 40 years of experience in post-production. He began his career painting stages and fixing lights at Unitel Video and later became a colorist. He joined DuArt in 1984 where he moved into management and eventually led the facility. He founded The Lab at Moving Images, which was acquired by Technicolor/Postworks. He served as Managing Director of Deluxe TV Post Production Services before joining Goldcrest in 2019.
When: Thursday, December 16, 2021, 4:00pm EST
Title: DuArt: How a Film Lab Shaped New York’s Post Industry
Sound recordings of past Post Break sessions are available here: https://www.postnewyork.org/page/PNYAPodcasts
Past Post Break sessions in video blog format are available here: https://www.postnewyork.org/blogpost/1859636/Post-Break
About Post New York Alliance (PNYA)
The Post New York Alliance (PNYA) is an association of film and television post-production facilities, labor unions and post professionals operating in New York State. The PNYA’s objective is to create jobs by: 1) extending and improving the New York State Tax Incentive Program; 2) advancing the services the New York Post Production industry provides; and 3) creating avenues for a diverse talent pool to enter into The Industry.
