If you’ve been hoarding packs of expired Polaroid film while waiting, not very patiently, for the day when you could once more buy new versions, it’s time to open the fridge. The Impossible Project, the team of diehard instant-film lovers that vowed to bring the format back to life, starts selling new film today.

When the holding company that owns Polaroid’s brand and patent portfolio stopped making instant film in 2008, it looked like the end for classic instant photography. But The Impossible Project, lead by Austrian artist Florian Kaps, vowed to bring it back. After taking over an old Polaroid factory in Holland, and getting help from both fans and former Polaroid engineers, Kaps managed to meet his “impossible” goal (along the way, he cut a licensing deal to use the Polaroid name).

The new film, branded PX, will sell alongside “classic” Polaroid film that Impossible guarantees as usable through the end of this year. The first two PX offerings are both black-and-white, and come in versions for the SX-70 and 600 series cameras, at $21 a pack. Yes, that’s over $2.50 a shot. Considering, though, that this stuff isn’t even supposed to exist, artists who work in the medium will likely buy up Impossible’s entire production run very quickly. Color film is expected later this year. We checked Impossible’s site this morning, and were only able to find the classics (repackaged with new labels like “Chocolate” and “Fade to Black”). So, keep checking back — and keep the fridge door closed until you see that order button.

the IMPOSSIBLE project

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