Limited Time Offer: Buy Magic and Miracles and receive the Honor Roll book as a FREE gift!

Magic and Miracles: 100 Years of Moving Image Science and Technology

The Work of the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers

In 1916, expansion of the nascent motion picture industry was stymied by a lack of technical standards. Following two failed attempts by industry trade associations, inventor C. Francis Jenkins placed his professional reputation on the line and invited a number of his industry colleagues to form a motion picture engineering society, and the Society of Motion Picture Engineers was established.

Little did Jenkins know that 100 years later that his engineering society, now SMPTE (Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers), would not only still be in existence, but would have grown to include television, with a thriving membership across the globe!

The Society has facilitated the transition of the motion imaging industry to digital systems, championed its evolution to IT and enabled the ubiquitous availability of video content. 

As SMPTE enters its second century, the Society is developing next-gen standards and providing education to its members, as the industry is transitioning to IT-based infrastructures and implementing IP-based workflows.

Documenting a century of innovation fueled by SMPTE’s standards work, the richly illustrated hardcover book features more than 350 pages of historical photographs, movie stills, insider stories, and milestone events. Magic and Miracles is written for nontechnical readers and media pros alike.

Using essays contributed by SMPTE Members, descriptions of landmark events, insights into the Society’s standards development work, and archival material that documents the course of moving-image technology evolution, Magic and Miracles commemorates the work of the Society and its members in the development of motion-picture, television, and digital media technology.  

Documenting a century of innovation fueled by SMPTE’s standards work, the richly illustrated hardcover book features more than 350 pages of historical photographs, movie stills, insider stories, and milestone events.

A must-have for any friend of SMPTE or those interested in the history of imaging technology, this book reflects on the past with an eye towards the future!

* For a limited time only, buy Magic and Miracles and get the Honor Roll book as a free gift when you order direct from SMPTE.

Philip J. Cianci – Editorial Director

Magic and Miracle Hardcover - 391 pages - 9 x 11 inches - 4.8 lbs

Honor Roll Hardcover - 100 pages - 8.5 x 11 inches - 1.0 lbs

PLEASE SELECT SMPTE MEMBER OR NON MEMBER PRICING FROM THE DROP DOWN BELOW.

**** AS THE PACKED BOOKS WEIGH 5 LBS./2.25 KG, PLEASE CONTACT membership@smpte.org FOR PRICING ON INTERNATIONAL SHIPMENTS BEFORE PLACING YOUR ORDER