Written by Katya Rowny
I will start by admitting I was influenced. I saw Eclectachrome’s video a few months ago where she was shooting a film I had never heard of by a company I had never heard of… and down the rabbit hole I went.
They are on a variety of social media platforms and have a wide audience from around the world. Please let me introduce The Celluloid Collective. They agreed to send me a few rolls of their motion picture film so I could test it out and see what The Celluloid Collective is all about.
About The Celluloid Collective
The Celluloid Collective was founded in 2023 by cinematographer Kenneth Keeler and director/educator Jerry J. White III. The Collective aims to demystify film photography and make it more accessible and affordable for everyone. They are an enthusiastic duo with a filmmaking background that have turned their passion into a supportive community for film photographers.
Based in Brooklyn, NY, The Celluloid Collective offers a diverse selection of film stocks, including rare and expired vintage films. If you’ve been reading my articles for any length of time, you know that I enjoy shooting vintage films–and TCC has an excellent and varied selection.
They believe that shooting on film shouldn’t be expensive, and source their expired film from around the world. They hand-roll bulk film into recycled canisters to reduce waste, and provide these unique films at affordable prices. Their mission is to foster a vibrant community where individuals can share work, exchange techniques, and reignite their passion for the visual medium.
Working with Expired Film
Beyond film sales, The Celluloid Collective provides educational resources such as articles, a podcast, and a beginner’s eBook titled “So You Want To Shoot Film?” They also have a series on YouTube called, “Will it Develop?” experimenting with expired film in unknown conditions, developing it with modern chemistry to see if it survived the test of time. Through donations from the community, they are able to stock a wide variety of rare films such as Aerochrome and Agfa along with rarer stocks of Fuji and Kodak.
If you’ve ever bought expired film, fingers crossed, you know it can be a bit of a gamble, but TCC does a lot of the work for you. We all know that sourcing different film stocks can be tricky; while some are donations from the community, other avenues are explored and pursued to find quality cold-stored discontinued film.
Kenny and Jerry also test the film themselves to check the quality before selling them to the public. Many of the films they sell are reasonably priced… except for the ones that aren’t. (Looking at you, Aerochrome!)
For this review, I couldn’t resist, and got three different motion pictures films from them: Kodak Vision 3 250D, Fuji Eterna 250T (expired), and Fuji Eterna 500T (expired). The images below were all shot on my Nikon F6.
Related: Experiments in Shooting Expired Film
Shooting Kodak Vision3 250D
Film Type: Vision 3 250D 5207 Color Motion Picture Film
Format: 35mm, hand-rolled into recycled cartridges
Exposure: 1 Roll / 36 Exposures
ISO: 250
Balance: Daylight (5600K)
Processing: ECN-2
First, we will start with the Kodak Vision3 250D.
This film is more readily available and a perfect companion on a summer’s day. Originally designed for motion picture cameras, this film has become increasingly popular among still photographers due to its availability in 35mm format.
Kodak Vision3 is a professional color negative film designed for ECN-2 processing but can also be cross-processed in C-41 with decent results. It comes in daylight-balanced options (50D and 250D) and tungsten-balanced versions (200T and 500T). Known for its wide dynamic range, smooth grain, and superb color and skin tone rendering.
A key distinction is its remjet backing—a black anti-halation layer that also lubricates the film for high-speed transport in cinema cameras. This remjet layer makes it unsuitable for standard C-41 lab processing without special handling. There are a few labs across the United States that offer ECN-2 processing, and it’s also possible to develop at home using different methods such as baking soda to remove the remjet layer. TCC has a list of recommended labs and, after further research, I chose to go with Brooktree Film Lab, based in Illinois.
Overall, I’m surprised it has taken me this long to try this film. It’s popular, easily available, and not that difficult to process once you find a lab that processes ECN-2. I’m pleased how true to life the colors came out, even though I accidentally overexposed some of the frames.
There is some vignetting on images due to user error; I used a crop sensor lens on the F6! I still like how they came out, but when I shoot another roll of Kodak Vision3, I will be using my full frame lens.
The Kodak Vision 3 motion picture film is a great choice for everyday adventures, and its availability in 35mm makes it an easy film to use in plenty of vintage cameras. Known for its outstanding skin tones and accurate color reproduction, this film also excels in reducing grain in shadows, allowing for excellent results even with underexposure.
You might think this means it thrives in lower light, and it’s not bad–but it really thrives in daylight. With its medium speed and daylight balance, 250D offers unparalleled performance in a wide range of lighting conditions. I shot some of the roll indoors and on overcast days and was pleasantly surprised how well the images came out!
Eterna 500T: 35mm Vintage Color Motion Picture Film
Film Type: Eterna 500T 8573 Vintage Color Motion Picture Film (Year 2005)
Format: 35mm, hand-rolled into recycled cartridges
Exposure: 1 Roll / 36 Exposures
ISO: 500 (Recommend rating at 200-160 ISO)
Balance: Tungsten (3200K)
Processing: ECN-2
The next film I shot was Eterna 500T, a film by Fuji that was discontinued in 2013. I had never even heard of this film, but apparently it was quite popular back in the day, having famous movies such as “Slumdog Millionaire” (2008) shot on it.
This discontinued motion picture film is praised for its cinematic look, especially under tungsten lighting or at night. Known for moderate grain, accurate skin tones, and strong performance in both daylight and artificial light.
I would like to address the severe light leaks that I experienced with shooting the two rolls of Eterna. I reached out to The Celluloid Collective and confirmed that the batch I used encountered canister leaks due to the equipment that was used to bulk load. Since then, the equipment has been updated and fewer cases of canister leaks have been reported.
Eterna 500T was Fuji’s flagship motion picture film of its time and stood as a strong counterpart to Kodak’s Vision2 500T. Known for its distinctive color palette, Eterna 500T renders images with a rich, cinematic feel—particularly in low-light and nighttime settings.
As part of Fuji’s fourth-generation film lineup, it delivers outstanding performance in both daylight and tungsten lighting conditions, while maintaining natural-looking skin tones. The film handles overexposure gracefully, though slight color shifts can appear when underexposed. For seemingly making ALL the mistakes while shooting this film, I’m impressed how well it handled the different situations, preferring the greens and reds. I bought another roll of this film and am excited to use it in the future!
Eterna 250T – 35mm Vintage Color Motion Picture Film
Film Type: Eterna Vivid 250T Vintage Color Motion Picture Film (Year 2006)
Format: 35mm, hand-rolled into recycled cartridges
Exposure: 1 Roll / 36 Exposures
ISO: 250 (Recommend rating at 200-125 ISO)
Balance: Tungsten (3200K)
Processing: ECN-2
Lastly, I decided to try the Eterna 250T after seeing the sample photos online. Unfortunately, this film was also discontinued in 2013. Again, surprised how well the colors rendered although a bit neutral for my preference.
Fuji Eterna 250T is a motion picture film known for its rich color reproduction and excellent performance in tungsten lighting. It offers a slightly finer grain than its 500T counterpart, and it delivers a more neutral, balanced look, making it versatile for both indoor and low-light shooting conditions. Like other Fuji Eterna emulsions, it has strong skin tone accuracy and works well with overexposure.
Final Thoughts
In full transparency, I did reach out to The Celluloid Collective in hopes of trying some of their films in exchange for a genuine review. I ended up enjoying these films so much that I bought more and will continue to buy different stocks in the future so that I can continue to support this worthwhile effort.
I find delight in shooting different film stocks and figuring out how to best utilize them in different situations. Shooting these three new (to me) films has helped expand my knowledge base and given me more options to choose from. I’m so delighted with the Kodak Vision 250D that I ended up buying another roll to use along with another roll of Eterna 500T. I imagine these two films will accompany me on my adventures over the summer.
My hope is that this article will help sway you to try some of these unfamiliar stocks and help keep film alive. I am so grateful for businesses like The Celluloid Collective who are dedicated to preserving the art of film, and who made it so much easier to find these film stocks. I would highly recommend checking them out and trying a forgotten film stock today!
Thank you so much, Katya! Katya is a regular contributor for Shoot It With Film, and you can check out her other articles here, such as the Ilford Sporti Vintage Medium Format Film Camera Review and the Chinon Bellami Point and Shoot Film Camera Review.
You can also find more of Katya’s work on her website and Instagram.
Leave your questions about motion picture film or The Celluloid Collective below in the comments, and you can check out TCC here!
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Blog Comments
Rich
June 8, 2025 at 5:51 pm
I like the photo of the railroad tracks. The light leak looks like a futuristic vehicular crossing! Quite serendipitous!
john
June 10, 2025 at 1:33 pm
Thanks for the heads up about the Celluloid Collective and their cool films. Unfortunately, like many sellers of limited stock, they sell wholesale and in bulk which basically leaves the films nobody wants for the real film buffs and end users. Disappointing trying to purchase film but an interesting expose on how one might (with much luck) obtain some interesting film.
Katya
June 9, 2025 at 5:27 pm
Hi! Thank you so much! I’m obsessed with trains // railroads and so pleased how that image came out! : )