Editing How the West Was Won (film) (section)

==Restoration==
[[File:Westwon trailer Stewart.png|right|thumb|300px|[[James Stewart]] as frontiersman Linus Rawlings]]
In 2000, Warner Bros. assigned [[Crest Digital]] the task of restoring the original [[Cinerama]] negative for ''How the West Was Won''. As part of the process, Crest Digital built its own authentic Cinerama screening room.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.hollywoodheritage.org/newsarchive/spring01/cinerama.html |title=Cinerama Dome Moves Forward |publisher=Hollywoodheritage.org |access-date=May 14, 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130512134006/http://www.hollywoodheritage.org/newsarchive/spring01/cinerama.html |archive-date=May 12, 2013 }}</ref> [[Hewlett-Packard]] has led efforts<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.hpl.hp.com/news/2006/apr-jun/movie.html|title=HP Labs – Movie makeover : HP and Warner Bros. give old movies new life|website=www.hpl.hp.com|access-date=September 16, 2007|archive-date=January 3, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080103051749/http://www.hpl.hp.com/news/2006/apr-jun/movie.html?|url-status=dead}}</ref> to combine the three image portions to make the Cinerama image look more acceptable on a flat screen. This has finally been accomplished on the latest DVD and [[Blu-ray Disc|Blu-ray disc]] release. Previously, the lines where the three Cinerama panels join were glaringly visible, but this has been largely corrected on the Warner Bros. DVD and Blu-ray releases. However, the joints remain visible in places, especially against bright backgrounds.

The restoration also corrects some of the geometric distortions inherent in the process. For instance, in the final shot, the [[Golden Gate Bridge]] appears to curve in perspective as the camera flies underneath it whereas in the Cinerama version, it breaks into three straight sections at different angles.

The Blu-ray disc also contains a "SmileBox" version simulating the curved-screen effect.

Though the [[aspect ratio (image)|aspect ratio]] of Cinerama is [[List of film formats|2.59:1]], Warner's new releases of the film offer an aspect ratio of 2.89:1, incorporating much information on both sides that was not intended to be seen when projected. The Blu-ray-exclusive SmileBox alternative contains the intended cropping intact.

In 2006, [[Warner Bros.]] Motion Picture Imaging performed [[Film preservation#Digital Film Preservation|digital restoration]] on ''How the West Was Won''. The film was restored frame by frame at [[Prasad Corporation]] to remove dirt, tears, scratches and other damage, restoring the film's original appearance.<ref>From Grain to Pixel: The Archival Life of Film in Transition, note 189, By Giovanna Fossati</ref> The restored version has been shown on television since October 2008 on the [[Encore (TV network)|Encore Westerns]] channel.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2007-12-17/news/27688478_1_strategic-alliance-post-production-digital-restoration|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140911024456/http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2007-12-17/news/27688478_1_strategic-alliance-post-production-digital-restoration|url-status=dead|archive-date=September 11, 2014|title=economictimes, Strategic alliance for creation of digital intermediaries, Dec 17, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.glamsham.com/en/warner-bros-prasad-corp-form-strategic-alliance|title=Warner bros., Prasad Corp form strategic alliance &#124; News|website=Glamsham|date=August 7, 2021 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.prasadgroup.org/downloads/pg-restore-v9-1.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141013095312/http://www.prasadgroup.org/downloads/pg-restore-v9-1.pdf|url-status=usurped|title=prasadgroup.org, Digital Film Restoration|archive-date=October 13, 2014}}</ref>