October 25, 2005 — 20th Century Fox, New Line Cinema, Sony Pictures, and Universal Pictures have committed to releasing 35 mm prints with cyan dye analog soundtracks, the Dye Track committee has announced. These leading studios now join dye track pioneers Buena Vista, DreamWorks, MGM, and Miramax in furthering the film industry's transition to the environmentally friendly print-manufacturing process.

Universal's first release with prints using cyan dye tracks is DOOM, which opened on October 21, while Fox's first title will be Grandma's Boy in January 2006. Sony's first release was Bewitched last summer, with each title since featuring an ever increasing percentage of dye track prints. New Line's first release to use the new technology was The Man in September, and it will be used again on prints of Just Friends slated for release on November 23.

Said Chris Aronson, Sr. Vice President, 20th Century Fox Distribution, "Fox will be releasing Grandma's Boy in January, 2006, as our first cyan analog soundtrack release. We are proud to be part of this successful industry technology transition."

He continued, "This joint effort between the studios and the exhibitors for the benefit of the environment is a very worthwhile endeavor, and with the problem-free cyan releases over the past year, we feel confident that the time is right for our participation. With the release of Grandma's Boy, we anticipate that all Fox films will be released with cyan analog soundtracks in the very near future. This is a great example of the entire motion picture industry working together towards a common goal, and Fox is proud to be part of that."

Said David Tuckerman, Distribution President, New Line Cinema, "We at New Line want to do our part, and this is an easy decision when you consider the environmental advantages to the technology change. We released The Man in September with cyan soundtracks without any problems. We're going to release Just Friends, a Thanksgiving release, with cyan soundtracks as well." He added, "We'll continue to release more titles with cyan soundtracks in the coming year and are happy to be part of this environmentally friendly technology change. This is win-win for the studios, the exhibitors, and the environment."

Mike Jones, Senior Vice President, Sony Pictures, said, "Sony Pictures has been releasing film prints using cyan analog soundtracks since the release of Bewitched. We are behind this industry initiative which has both environmental and technological benefits. We are proud to be a part of this global effort between exhibition and distribution, and support the world-wide transition."

The first film with dye tracks on all prints was Anything Else, released by DreamWorks in September of 2003, while Buena Vista was the first distributor to commit to 100% dye tracks on all releases worldwide, beginning in January of this year. Among the releases with cyan dye tracks so far are weekend box office champs: Pacifier, Just Like Heaven, Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit, and this past weekend, DOOM.

"With Fox, New Line, Universal, and Sony coming on board, nearly ten years of development and efforts to win over the film industry are reaching fruition," said Ioan Allen of Dolby Laboratories and chairman of the Dye Track Committee, a group of motion picture executives dedicated to replacing silver-applicated analog 35 mm soundtracks with pure cyan dye tracks. "With so many prints with dye tracks being issued and the vast majority of theatres being equipped to read them, the universal adoption of this environmentally friendly technology is now within reach."

Added Ted Costas, President of the Inter-Society for the Enhancement of Cinema Presentation, "We have come a long way since DreamWorks released Anything Else as the first 100% cyan dye track release in early 2003 — and that was after years of dedication from NATO and the exhibition community in getting their theatres "red-light ready" in time for the change. Eighteen months ago, Disney and MGM made 100% commitments on all future films to be released in this manner, and now almost all studios are releasing in this environmentally-friendly format. Kudos to all involved."