Kodak to Pause Film Output, Doubling Down on Analog’s Growing Popularity Among Gen Z

Eastman Kodak CEO Jim Continenza announced the company’s plans to temporarily halt all film production during the firm’s Q3 2024 quarterly earnings call.

According to The Verge, Continenza said the shutdown will allow Kodak to modernize and upgrade its factory in Rochester, New York, to meet increasing demand.

The freeze isn’t expected to impact availability, as Continenza confirmed that production increased in the months before the shutdown, allowing Kodak to maintain healthy inventory.

Brighter Times for Kodak as Gen Z Embraces Analog Photography

Rochester, New York, has been home to Eastman Kodak since 1888, but a decline in film popularity saw the company file for bankruptcy in 2012.

Since then, increased demand for film following its recent resurgence has seen Kodak come a long way. Kosmo Foto reports that Kodak more than doubled its production of still photography films from 2015 to 2019.

Generations that grew up with digital cameras have embraced film photography’s slower, more methodical approach, from manually adjusting camera settings like ISO and shutter speed to carefully framing shots and the darkroom process of developing their own film.

Hollywood has also seen a resurgence in the use of film, with recent movies like Oppenheimer, Killers of the Flower Moon, Asteroid City, and Saltburn all shot on Kodak 35mm, large-format color, and black-and-white film.