Tinting, Toning and Hand-Tinting

Absolut Panushka, Jan-Apr 1997.

Tinting, Toning and Hand-Tinting

These were three coloring methods for black-and-white film commonly used in the 1910s and 1920s before color film existed. Tinting involved dipping a filmstrip in a dye so that all the “white” areas would take on that color.

Toning entailed dyeing the emulsion on the film so that all the normally “black” areas would turn blue or brown instead.

Hand-tinting was the process of coloring shapes by painting with a brush on each frame of the filmstrip.

Each scene could be planned for a combination of these color effects. If, for example, a scene were toned blue and tinted red, any “gray” areas would come out purple; and by adding a painted bit of yellow to a blue circle, one could change it to green, thus getting four different colors (or more) in one frame.

Moritz, William. “History of Experimental Animation.” Website. Absolut Panushka, curated by Christine Panushka. (Jan-Apr 1997).