A concept for saving money on film stock by shooting each 35 mm frame in an area covered by three perforations rather than four.

The savings is more than enough to compensate for switching from 24 frames per second to 30. Three-perf naturally accommodates a 1.78:1 (16:9) aspect ratio and can be easily masked to the 1.85:1 common in U.S. movie theaters. It changes the shoot-and-protect concept of using theatrical film on television, however, from one in which the protected area is extended vertically to one in which the shooting area is reduced horizontally.