Twin Peaks (and all other TV programps) are longer in USA (and Japan) than Europe.
Why ?
E L E C T R I C I T Y
In Europe, electric frequency is 50 Hz so 50/2 = 25 frames per second (FPS) on TV
In USA, electric frequency is 60 Hz so 60/2 = 30 but 30 FPS will be very fast on TV, there is a "3/2 pull down system" to reduce the FPS to 24 (24 FPS is the speed in all movie theatres in the world).
Conclusion : the same program is 4% shorter in Europe.
Twin Peaks Return = 17 hours in USA
TPR = 16 hours and 20 minutes in Europe
I've never heard of this before, and I watch a lot of British television.
Granted, it's on DVDs and streaming services here in the states, but an hour-long show in England is an hour-long show in the U.S. Have never heard of or witnessed any time compression occurring.
This is a capture of my computer, french Canal+ on demand episode 12, length : 52:32
I have the american Amazon download on my computer too, episode 12 length : 54:52
French broadcasting is 4% shorter !
Here is what is happening. (I work in television)
The show is shot and edited in 23.976 frames per second We will call it 24 fps for simplicity's sake.
American broadcast tv is 29.97 fps.
Final edited master has 3:2 pull down added to accomdate the difference in frame rate. Two out of every five frames is created by the blending adjacent frames. This does NOT affect the duration. Pretty much all movies, tv dramas and comedies are done this way in the USA. Not usually sports, news, in studio tv shows etc. They are shot and edited 29.97 frames per second.
European broadcast tv is 25 fps. European TV does not use 3:2 pull down, since the math is different than to get to 29.97. Getting 24 fps to be 25 fps can be done two different ways.
1) Play the 24 fps 4 percent faster so that it is now 25 fps. If you choose this method, the duration will change and the audio must be digitally pitch corrected or it will sound sped up. This method preserve perfect video quality, so it might be preferable for aesthetic reasons. It plays every frame as it was originally created, just a little faster.
2) Use a standards converter (software or hardware....hardware is better). This preserves duration with no change in speed. Frames are blended since 24 does not divide into 25 evenly. A high percentage of television programs use this method, but there is quality loss visually. If done well, with an expensive hardware converter, it's barely noticeable.
Internet streaming can (and should) be done at the original 24 fps. No need to convert to 29.97 or 25 fps. Computers don't care about frame rate. That's only needed for broadcasting over the air.
Ummmm, what he said.
I suppose I could have just said "He's right!" But given the other threads in this forum I just thought everyone preferred long convoluted explanations 🙂
The show is shot and edited in 23.976 frames per second We will call it 24 fps for simplicity's sake.
American broadcast tv is 29.97 fps.
Final edited master has 3:2 pull down added to accomdate the difference in frame rate. Two out of every five frames is created by the blending adjacent frames. This does NOT affect the duration. Pretty much all movies, tv dramas and comedies are done this way in the USA. Not usually sports, news, in studio tv shows etc. They are shot and edited 29.97 frames per second.
European broadcast tv is 25 fps. European TV does not use 3:2 pull down, since the math is different than to get to 29.97. Getting 24 fps to be 25 fps can be done two different ways.
1) Play the 24 fps 4 percent faster so that it is now 25 fps. If you choose this method, the duration will change and the audio must be digitally pitch corrected or it will sound sped up. This method preserve perfect video quality, so it might be preferable for aesthetic reasons. It plays every frame as it was originally created, just a little faster.
2) Use a standards converter (software or hardware....hardware is better). This preserves duration with no change in speed. Frames are blended since 24 does not divide into 25 evenly. A high percentage of television programs use this method, but there is quality loss visually. If done well, with an expensive hardware converter, it's barely noticeable.
Internet streaming can (and should) be done at the original 24 fps. No need to convert to 29.97 or 25 fps. Computers don't care about frame rate. That's only needed for broadcasting over the air.
Addressing the bits in bold:
That's not what 3:2 pulldown is. The opposite is true - the purpose is to leave frames intact and not blended. One frame is repeated 2 times, the next frame 3 times (after successful reverse pulldown).
It is a very small percentage, not a large percentage, of 50hz TV shows (assuming we are talking about film or film-look shows) that are created this way. Most are either recorded 25p and then encoded 2:2 pulldown, e.g. BBC dramas, or 24p and sped up.
Pretty much everyone creating broadcast-acceptable content is going to use an Alchemist (or converter with the tech). The main purpose is converting 50 to 60 and vice-versa.
It depends on the streaming service - some are nationwide, to be used with broadcast receivers, and have their own standards... some are tied in to hardware... or to a broadcaster e.g. Now TV discussed in this thread, is Sky UK, and streams the same sped up content, so Twin Peaks total runtime of 17h12m becomes about 16h30m less the cut from part 1.
ok i will not do maths but if it's not 18 hours, we will see a movie or movielike filming more? or has it already been filmed and they make us suffer to hell????
Wow, this thread exceeded my expectations! I was really just expecting a few people to tell me to shut and stop being pedantic. Instead, I learned something. However, I'm slightly disappointed I watched a slightly sped-up version, but also glad that I had a few minutes less time wasted on the slow scenes.
But now I want to re-watch the entire season at 1.5 speed. It will be worth it to hear what that does to Lucy's already squeaky voice. And also to see a faster version of the DougieCooper/Janey-E sex scene. Chipmunk style!
Fire walk with