What Is Backlit Film?

Are you printing a graphic that has to light up, and someone just said "use backlit film"? Here at Digital Media Warehouse, we believe in finding the best fit and the best price. Backlit film is a polyester media made to sit in front of a light. A lightbox, a kiosk, a trade show wall. The film holds a heavy ink load so the blacks stay dense when the light comes on behind them.

If you are not sure whether you need matte or satin, that is the whole decision. Call us at 1 (800) 576-8182 and we will walk through it.

What backlit film is used for

• Lightbox graphics
• Kiosks
• Trade show displays
• Outdoor displays that are built around a light box

Backlit film is not a hanging banner and it is not a stay-flat poster. A satin banner drapes. Matte polypropylene is the flat film for indoor signs. Backlit film earns its keep when there is a light behind the print.

Matte backlit film

8 mil matte backlit polyester film (QM-WRBLF) has a porous matte coating. It takes a heavy ink load, dries quickly, and gives you dense blacks with a water-resistant finish. In a backlit box, the color pops instead of looking washed out. It runs on most aqueous, latex, and UV wide format printers. The roll is 36 inches by 100 feet on a 3-inch core, and we stock wider widths of the same film when the lightbox is wider than 36 inches.

Satin backlit film

8 mil satin backlit polyester film (QM-SBLFM) uses a low-glare satin coat. It dries quickly and the prints are scratch resistant. You still get dense blacks and color that pops on a lightbox, with a little more surface sheen than the matte film. This one runs on most solvent, eco-solvent, latex, and UV printers. Same 36-inch by 100-foot roll on a 3-inch core, with wider widths available.

Matte or satin?

• Aqueous printer, or you want the flatter look: matte backlit film
• Solvent or eco-solvent printer, or you want the scratch-resistant satin face: satin backlit film
• Latex or UV: either film works. Pick the surface you want to look at with the light off.

Both are in our wide format media. Measure the lightbox before you order the width, and leave enough film to mount it. If you want a second set of eyes on the printer and the box size, call Digital Media Warehouse at 1 (800) 576-8182.