John Pytlak Honored At ShoWest
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
John Pytlak has enjoyed 37 years with Kodak, beginning his career with the company in 1970 as a photographic engineer. Since the beginning of his career, his heart has been in theatrical presentation: to provide the finest movie magic possible—and to endear himself to every projectionist and booth operator who has ever been the beneficiary of both his knowledge and warmth. Although John has long been a regular writer for film and motion picture publications and a primary contributor to projection and other cinema websites, his grassroots approach belies the accolades he has received in his luminous career.
In 2001, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences presented a Technical Achievement Award to John for his work in developing the Laboratory Aim Density System. His work in developing Particle Transfer Roller (PTR) film cleaning was recognized by the EPA with the 2003 Stratospheric Ozone Protection award for Kodak.
John joined the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers in 1970, and has been active in local and national SMPTE activities. In addition to his serving on the local Rochester SMPTE Board of Managers, he has served on the SMPTE Theatrical Projection Technology Committee since 1979, including eight years as Chairman. He was named a Fellow of the SMPTE in 1983, at the age of 34. John has presented multiple technical papers and tutorials at SMPTE meetings. John is also a member of the British Kinematograph and Television Society (BKSTS), and has served on the NATO “Blue Ribbon” Technical Advisory group.
John Pytlak has been an active participant and presenter at ShoWest since 1980. He was mentored in his Kodak career and Inter-Society involvement by Ken Mason himself. At Ken’s urging, John conducted an extensive study of film and projector damage. He presented “The Whys and Wherefores of Film Damage” at ShoWest in 1980, leading to improvements in film handling and equipment design.
At ShoWest 1983, Ken Mason and John Pytlak presented the Theatre Quality Evaluation Program, where SMPTE engineers would subjectively evaluate theatre presentation quality and provide confidential feedback to theatres nationwide to help improve presentation quality. Major elements of this revolutionary program were later incorporated into the Lucasfilm Theatre Alignment Program (TAP), the Kodak Management by Observation projection training program (MBO) and the Kodak ScreenCheck program.
Inter-Society Executive Director Terri Westhafer recalls her interactions with John Pytlak: “During my 18 years with Kodak, I cannot remember ever posing a technical question to John that he could not answer. The depth of his knowledge, ranging from the most intricate properties of film to its end use in projection booths, is boundless. As always, he wanted to make sure each and every projectionist received his undivided attention and benefited from the information he was so generous in providing. He would spend days researching whatever the issue was and let me know the background and how something came to be. I surely owe him a debt of gratitude for my own training! When I was traveling at a crazy pace with the Kodak MBO booth training sessions and didn’t have time to wait for detailed responses, I could always count on John to give me the correct and succinct answers immediately, even when I called him at home. He is one of our industry’s outstanding resources as well as my dear friend and one of the most genuine and affable people I’ve ever known.”
John helped organize the first side-by-side presentation of film and digital projection at ShoWest, sponsored by the Inter-Society. In March 1999, John was on stage at Ballys for each of the three standing room only presentations, describing key elements and differences in film and digital presentation during the demonstrations.
John actively served on the Inter-Society sponsored Cyan Dye Track Committee. His numerous contacts and postings on Internet User Groups dealing with projection and exhibition helped answer questions and gain acceptance for the conversion to red LED sound readers allowing the successful use of the environmentally desirable cyan dye soundtracks, greatly reducing the use of wash water and harmful chemicals in print film processing.
Active in Inter-Society activities and projects since 1979, John was elected Secretary-Treasurer in 2000, and President in 2002. His tenure saw Inter-Society membership grow substantially, and the beginning of the new and challenging era of Digital Cinema. The Inter-Society has taken a leading role in bringing together all facets of the cinema industry in exploring and developing the promise of Digital Cinema, while improving the quality of film presentation.
John and his wife Betsy live in Penfield, New York, near Rochester. They enjoy visiting their daughters in Boston and Buffalo, and just became first time grandparents.
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