Polaroid may have stopped production of its analogue instant film last summer, but such is the strength of the product's fan base that some have decided they won't take "no" for an answer. Specifically, a group of aficionados in the Netherlands has bought an old Polaroid factory and plans to bring the technology back into production later this year.
As part of what it calls The Impossible Project to bring back integral film for vintage Polaroid cameras, Impossible b.v. has signed a 10-year lease on Polaroid's Enschede-based film-production factory, which still includes everything needed to produce up to 100 million units of instant film per year—all fully connected and operational, and valued at about EUR 100 million. With support from Ilford Photo, the project has also engaged an experienced team of integral film experts from around the world. Among the team's challenges is retooling and modernizing Polaroid's integral film, in part to reflect the fact that some of its key components are no longer available.
The project website explains: "The Impossible mission is NOT to re-build Polaroid Integral film but (with the help of strategic partners) to develop a new product with new characteristics, consisting of new optimised components, produced with a streamlined modern setup. An innovative and fresh analogue material, sold under a new brand name that perfectly will match the global re-positioning of Integral Films." Impossible is seeking various types of support for its effort; one to get in on early...? (Related: Lush brings back discontinued products — Out-of-print books, printed on demand.)
Website: www.the-impossible-project.com
Contact: doc@theimpossibleproject.com
Spotted by: Elisa Barents
Hooray! Polaroid literally had a Unique selling proposition, and let it go to chase the mass-market digital camera customer. Fingers crossed this project works - for the sake of all us creative types who want instant printed images, in square format, with an integral writing strip.