About Us
The Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE), is the leading technical society for
the motion imaging industry.
SMPTE members are spread throughout 64 countries worldwide. As well, over 200
Sustaining (Corporate) Members belong to SMPTE, allowing networking and
contacts to occur on a larger scale. Touching on every discipline, our
members include engineers, technical directors, cameramen, editors,
technicians, manufacturers, designers, educators, consultants and field users
in networking, compression, encryption and more.
SMPTE was founded in 1916 to advance theory and development in the motion
imaging field. Today, SMPTE publishes ANSI-approved Standards, Recommended
Practices, and Engineering Guidelines, along with the highly regarded SMPTE
Journal and its peer-reviewed technical papers. SMPTE holds conferences and
local Section meetings to bring people and ideas together, allowing for
useful interaction and information exchange.
SMPTE strives toward its goal through:
- Developing industry standards
- Enhancing education through seminars, exhibitions, and conferences
- Communicating the latest developments in technology
- Promoting networking and interaction
SMPTE History
In the early 1900's, the soon-to-be motion picture industry was
unorganized, lacking structure and leadership. Equipment was built
differently according to each manufacturer, and standard practice was
nonexistent.
At the same time, a world war was threatening, and the army saw a need for
motion pictures for training and recording military events. The U.S.
government attempted to bring order to this demanded industry by creating a
body to lead development in motion pictures. The government looked to an
inventor from Washington D.C. named C.F. Jenkins to chair the organization.
Jenkins had developed the first motion picture projector in 1895 along with
Thomas Armat, as well as several unique imaging devices, such as an
underwater camera, and a panoramic camera for aerial views.
After two unsuccessful attempts at starting this organization, Jenkins met
with two of his close colleagues to discuss a solution. Jenkins, E.K.
Gillett, and N.I. Brown gathered on the Boardwalk of Atlantic City one day
during the spring of 1915. They discussed past failures to generate an
organized group to lead the motion picture industry, while recalling the
successes of other engineering societies.
One year later, in July of 1916, the three men along with seven additional
engineers met in Washington D.C. A unanimous decision was made to create a
society of engineering specialists in the motion picture field. A
constitution was then created, and Jenkins was named chairman of the Society
of Motion Picture Engineers (SMPE).
In October of 1916, the group ratified the constitution, established
committees, and elected Jenkins as president.
The "T" was added to the Society in 1950 to embrace the emerging television
industry.
Today, SMPTE is recognized as the global leader in the development of
standards and authoritative practices for film, television, video and
multimedia.
To accomplish its educational goals, SMPTE organizes annual conferences and
seminars. It also publishes the highly regarded SMPTE Journal, which is
recognized around the world for its well-researched technical papers,
tutorials, practical application articles, standards updates and SMPTE
Section Reports.
