American cinematographer (Jan-Dec 1963)

“INTERNATIONAL SHOWTIME” Continued from Page 288 time’s” executive producers and pack¬ agers, Lawrence White and Joseph Cates, found the mobility of 16mm equipment enabled the crew to get shots that would otherwise have been impractical to schedule. One of these was a high-wire act that was filmed with the camera high, near the top of the circus tent. The first complete color film show of '‘International Showtime” evolved from NBC’s decision to do a “color week” in October, 1962. Up to then, the show had been taped in black-andwhite. At the time, there were no color taping facilities where the show was being shot. Originally it was intended that the show be shot in 35mm color, but in a virtual last-minute switch in plans the producers decided to use 16mm color and the Synchro16 technique. A show in Ravenna, Italy, was the first recorded in 16mm color. Though previous shows were recorded on tape and the news film crew doing the photography had little knowledge of “International Showtime” production techniques, some remarkable photog¬ raphy resulted from their initial efforts. Using lighter and more mobile 16mm equipment, the crew was able to move around the circus grounds for interest¬ ing shots as the tents were erected. Overlayed with titles, these scenes in¬ troduced the show. “The color made it just as exciting as real-life,” Grant said. “And there were some locations where a live TV camera couldn’t go, but were accessible to the 16mm film camera,” he added. The one-hour Ravenna show took three days to shoot, and 12 days of editing, cutting, mixing and production of answer prints. With more experi¬ ence, the 12 days of editing probably could have been cut to four. However, from what the producers learned in Italy, later they were able to shoot five one-hour Japanese shows in eight shooting days. (A one-hour Hollywood-produced dramatic TV show, like “Bonanza” and “Empire,” takes five to six days to film.) Director of Photography Joseph Brun, ASC, was accompanied by a crew of three from the United States. The balance of the film crew was Japanese. Brun’s color photography brought new visual ex¬ citement to “International Showtime” on the February 1 broadcast of the EXCLUSIVE • NEW • EXCLUSIVE • NEW • EXCLUSIVE WHAT’S A MINI MONITOR? IT LOOKS LIKE THIS: ,<T Ta-% , „ Height— 2% inches Width— 4lA inches Depth— 3% inches Weight— 11 oz. Price 50 V IS IT A... • playback monitor for tape recorders (Stellavox, etc.) • sound reader, used with synchronizer • extra booth speaker • field amplifier • field sound reader • sound editing monitor • sound reader for 8mm magnetic • public address amplifier • field p.a. amplifier • phono amplifier, hi & lo impedance • remote speaker system • amplifier to drive auxiliary 8" speaker • CONVERTS YOUR OPTICAL ONLY MOVIOLA TO OPTICAL MAGNETIC IN 30 SECONDS THE ANSWER IS YES! And it has dozens of other uses, too! F & B MINI MONITOR. A miniature, transistor¬ ized, battery-powered (standard 9 volt tran¬ sistor radio battery) magnetic sound reader, complete with amplifier and speaker. A com¬ pact unit which will be the handiest gadget in the sound room, the editing room, pro¬ jection booth, or on location. Synchronizer Bracket & Magnetic Head Con¬ nector Cable . . $6.95 Moviola Magnetic Head & Bracket $25.00 Designed and Manufactured by BABB, INC. Serving the World's Finest Film Makers 68 West 45th St., New York 36, N. Y. • MU 2-2928 3AISmOX3 • M3N • 3AISm3X3 • AA3N • 3AISfnOX3 FOR THE ANSWER to your photographic problems, refer with confidence to the new AMERICAN CINEMATOGRAPHER MANUAL More than 400 pages of concise, practical and informative data and charts invaluable to every motion picture cameraman . $7.50 AMERICAN CINEMATOGRAPHER MANUAL, P.0. Bnx 2230, Hollywood 28 .California. AMERICAN CINEMATOGRAPHER, MAY, 1963 303