Some heritage brands nowadays are in fact ‘heritage’ in name only. Decades of history crammed into a logo that might connote quality and evoke a sense of nostalgia but, in reality, has been licensed out and slapped onto a product that bears little or no tangible link to the brand’s illustrious past.
And while I never thought Impossible Project’s acquisition of Polaroid fit that category, I had no idea just how much genuine Polaroid DNA courses through its modern films and cameras. A delightful documentary film by instant camera aficionado Ben Fraternale (In An Instant) takes viewers on a tour through the Polaroid factory, accompanied by his guide for the day, Senior Vice President of Film Manufacturing, Andrew Billen.
This isn’t just any old factory; it’s the world’s last Polaroid factory. A bastion of instant camera history that opened in the early ‘70s in the city and municipality of Enschede in the Netherlands. And while there’s a lot of new machinery, there’s still old machinery and throwbacks to decades gone by. Remarkably, although the company has replaced all of the old cassette molding machines, it still uses the original tooling.
Another thing that struck me is this modern iteration of Polaroid’s mantra regarding film. Andrew explains the complexities of the chemistry behind Polaroid’s instant film and that, despite incremental improvements being made to the formula every day, a generational overhaul is a huge, potentially catastrophic task.
One major upgrade to the formula can cause huge ramifications further down the line. As he puts it: “A generation change is multi-million, right? And it’s a huge commitment of resources; it’s not something you do lightly. You’ve got to prepare well for it, very clear scope, and then roll it out.”
Ultimately, Polaroid’s goal is to make the most user-friendly, robust and consistent instant film possible, but these aren’t changes that can be made overnight. The team is also aware that Polaroid film needs to look like Polaroid film; the goal isn’t perfect image fidelity.
And it doesn't seem like the team will be swayed by modern 'retro' aesthetics. As Andrew puts it: “When you photograph a red Ferrari it should look red, not orange, right? You can call it pastelly and analog, but we prefer it a little bit more red.”
What I’ve mentioned here is just the tip of the Polaroid iceberg, so make sure you watch Ben's full video to find out more about the production line and the incredible team of people that’s keeping Polaroid's unique brand of instant film alive.
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