The Cine Technician (1938-1939)

May-June, 1938 THE CINE TECHNICIAN 'J A iree and easy way of carrying on, though sometimes conducive to a product of pictorially artistic merit if in the right hands, is often responsible for an adverse balance sheet. This balance sheet is, however, of the greatest interest to American art directors and of growing interest to us in England, and I must say rightly so, for one must remember that the film industry is first and foremost a commercial concern endeavouring to pay dividends to its shareholders, and secondly an art. To illustrate the importance attached to the commercial angle in American studios, whilst on a visit to Hollywood some two yQars ago I mentioned to Hans Dreier, the chief art director to Paramount, a certain picture of theirs I had seen and greatly admired just before leaving England. All discussion on this subject was immediately dismissed with "We will not discuss that picture — we went 7,000 dollars over estimate in this department." I think that many of you will agree with me when I say that some of the best set American pictures are from the Paramount organisation, and any of you who picture the man responsible with a beard and highly coloured shirt will be surprised to hear that he started life in the cavalry of the Prussian Guard. Reputable producing companies would nowadays never consider the preparation of a film without consulting the art director assigned to the picture at least some weeks before actual turning began. This however has not always been the case. Not so many years ago the director would write two stories overnight and produce one before and one after lunch. Many of these would be Westerns or outdoor subjects requiring only one interior set such as a log cabin which could be used in both pictures. This set would have to be erected on a turntable in the open air so that it might follow the sun in his journey across the sky. No artificial lighting had been used tor the cinema at that time. (Perhaps the weather was better in those days). As the log cabin was painted on canvas, a windy day did not help the realism of the setting. Even during a later stage in the development of the industry when large greenhouses were being used as studios, with artificial light to help bolster up our too uncertain sun, the sets were still designed by scene painters and executed on canvas with door handles painted on the doors and a humble nail conveniently driven in the middle by which it was dragged open as required. At this time pictures were painted on the wall together with other props not required lor action such as chairs and tables, and even on occasion extra talent in the form of the butler holding a tray. Various other stages in development occurred before the more complicated organisation of the modern art department was evolved ; for instance, when sets in relief began to be constructed in timber the master carpenter was to a large extent relied upon to shuffle the stock panelled-room set into as many rooms as the picture in production might require. The times of which I am speaking are of course before the War, when England was the chief producing country of the world and a Western shot in Surrey would receive nothing but praise when shown in New York. I myself can remember the time, nine years ago, when property men provided all the plasterwork necessary for the most ambitious subjects produced in this country. Now the unions would very soon put paid to anything of that sort. Nowadays we have art departments working and organised on the lines of an architect's office, numbering among their permanent staff architectural draughtsmen, quantity surveyors, sculptors and painters, and including a comprehensive reference and periodical library, an architectural model-making department and printing plant. The probable introduction in the near future of colour and stereoscopy will no doubt add to the number of experts and incidentally to the worries of the art director and the nmeraman. It is, however, my opinion thai when colour is firmly established it will be found principally in the costumes of the artistes and very sparingly used in the background. This opinion will be found to be amply justified by those of you who have seen "A Star is Born", the first picture shot in Teclmicolour not to rely on outdoor spectacular scenes to put it across. It is still unusual, in this country at any rate, for the art director or the cameraman to be consulted on the design and colour of the costumes to be worn in the sets. I have found in my short experience with colour that this omission in organisation must he repaired, or the results can be disastrous. The composition of the modern art department consist firstly of the supervising art director who is responsible for its organisation, discipline and the direction of policy. In the ordinary course of events, depending upon the size of the company employing him and the importance of the subject being made, he will not personally art direct individual films ; this work will be carried out by the unit art director under his supervision. Each unit art director has his personal assistant who, with the help of one or more draughtsmen, depending upon the urgency of the subject, is responsible for the production of working drawings from the unit art director's sketches. The various shops, sculptors and decorative artists are also supplied with full-size details from this source. The floor manager is responsible under the supervising art director for contact between the art department and the various construction shops, such as those of the carpenters, plasterers, painters etc., and also for a most important duty, that of placing each set upon the stage in such a way that the progress of the production unit from one set to another max not he delayed l>\ what they have already shot being in the way, or preventing the erection of future sets to a schedule that has been worked out some weeks in advance. Great care must also be taken in making these arrangements that sufficient room is allowed around each set for the cameraman to place his lighting to the best advantage. This very necessary piece of organisation is carried out in the following way. Plans of the various stages and lots are drawn on wall board or other suitable material, tracings of working drawings for each set are made on detail paper and pinned over these plan boards in the position they are to take in the studio. When the time comes lor the set to be struck, its plan is removed from the board and a new set placed upon its site. It will be readily seen that studio space available and general progress on the stages can be gauged at a glance in this way. The art director's duties should begin directly the adaption for the screen of the selected subject is begun. It has always been my experience that much money can be saved and fewer hearts broken in the long run, if the practical possibilities in reference to what can and what