Or first edit, I've heard there are fan edits out there, but I haven't seen any.

After seeing the recent blog post about The New Blood's deleted material, I've decided that I'd like to take it upon myself to try and create an all new fan edit of Part VII, using the missing material that's been provided from DVDs. Just a question for you Friday fans, does anyone have any idea where one could obtain a direct rip of the work print VHS? I've looked over the net and haven't turned up anything. Pulling the footage from the Ultimate DVD would work too, but it would be better to have the source be an actual VHS copy of the work print. Anyone know anyone that has it? Their contact information?

I plan to go all out on this. I'm going to take the suggestion in the blog and cut the work print VHS with a VHS copy of The New Blood, and essentially create a kind of VHS nostalgic experience. I'll complete the sound design and create sound where it is missing, all the while finessing the cuts and audio to try and create a new, seamless experience. It'll take time, but I'm set on giving it a shot.

So if anyone out there could help out in finding the best possible quality of the work print footage, it would be most appreciated. Thanks!

I'm pretty sure it's on the latest DVD, which would be the best cut. Will you attempt any restoring?

Yeah I have the Deluxe DVD and the Bonus Disc from the box set. Between both of those discs, it looks like different work prints were used for the feature, because some of the scenes vary in quality between the two. Very noticeably with Melissa's death. The footage on the box set bonus disc is rather beat up like the rest, but on the deluxe DVD, it's actually a solid looking rip from a VHS. Using the DVDs will be suitable for the edit, but if someone had direct access to the actual work print VHS, the quality would be a little better without having been compressed for DVD first.

As far as restoring goes, I'm going to work with filters to help improve the image, mainly in color correcting and brightness/contrast. I'll also try putting a smooth cam filter on footage that skips or jumps as a result of the VHS tape. In the end the whole thing will still look like a beat up VHS, but I'll hopefully have been able to do enough to make the cuts seamless.

The better one is probably the best there is in... existance. I think they may be two different VHSs. The last on is John Carl Buechler's copy, I think.

Kane Hodder and JBC have the only copies. Good luck prying it loose from them. Though, if we had the complete workprint there really wouldn't be any point in making a composite...

For the most part I assumed those two were the only ones to have a copy of the work print. Just wanted to ask in case I was mistaken.

Actually though, even if the work print was released as an entire unit, there would still be need for not so much a composite, but a finishing. The work print has loose edits, no music and no sound design. It would be cool to see it, but I think everyone would be left unfulfilled afterwords, wishing it was more completed. I'd love to see the entire work print just to see if there's anything else in it that was left out of the special features.

That's a great point, autumnsend!