Film and Radio Guide (Oct 1945-Jun 1946)

October, 1 945 FILM AND RADIO GUIDE 29 excellent educational feature (running time 84 minutes) are invited to address Allied 16MM Distributors Corp., 1560 Broadivay, Neiv York 19, Neiv York. Free FM Film The General Electric Company has a one reel Technicolor film explaining the technical mysteries and particular advantages of F-M. It can be borrowed without charge. Write to Mr. W. R. David, Electronics Department, General Electric Company, 1 River Road, Schenectady, New York. Rockefeller Subsidies for Film Center and Drama Study The latest annual report of the Rockefeller Foundation, 49 West 49th St., New York 20, covers its work during 1944. Among the financial expenditures for 1944 were $75,000 for American Film Center, Inc., New York, covering general support for a 4-year period; $15,000 for a Department of Educational Cinematography at the University of Nanking, China, covering general support for a 3-year period ; and $9,750 for work in drama at the University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada, covering support for a 3-year period. This is a report that all students of educational progress should peruse. How Many Projectors in Our Schools and Colleges? No accurate report of the number of film projectors in U. S. schools and colleges is yet available. However, since 1942 very few machines have been available for purchase b y schools. The survey of the U. S. Department of Commerce, compiled in 1941 by Nathan D. Golden, may therefore be taken as a guide. Mr. Golden reported that in the high schools and colleges there were 21,538 projectors of all kinds — silent and sound, 16mm and 35mm, owned, borrowed and rented. Of 16mm sound-film projectors, the most important type, 6,059 were owned and 2,788 were borrowed or rented. These statistics, it must be noted, do not include projectors in elementary schools. Paul Thornton, head of RCA Victor’s educational department, and other authorities, figure that including all schools and colleges in the U. S. and possessions, there are today approximately 15,000 16mm sound projectors in use. Edward J. Mallin, of the New York State War Council, estimates that during the war there were 1400 16mm sound projectors in use in New York State. This would mean that there were at least ten times as many in the country as a whole. Paul C. Reed, formerly of OWI and USOE, now returned to Rochester, N. Y., as director of visual and radio education, forecasts that within five years, there will be 100,000 projectors in the schools. His estimate was announced, according to The Film Daily, at the summer session of the University of Iowa. March of Time's New 16mm Series March of Time’s Forum Edition— which now has over two thousand subscribers — has added eight new subjects for its second year. These run about 20 minutes each : (1) New Ways in Farming, the question of big-scale, industrialized farming versus the small, family-sized farm. (2) The New South, the story of a dramatic change-over from a cotton economy to the industrial economy of today. (3) Men of Medicine, the story of a great vocation — the medical profession — presented so that young and old alike may comprehend what it is to be a doctor. (4) Sweden, an account of this Scandinavian country, in peace and war. (5) The Nation’s Capital, a very graphic portrayal of Washington, D. C., with glimpses of the President’s life and the workings of various departments of our government. (6) China, the struggle of that nation to modernize and to protect herself against Japan. (7) Russia at War, a typical day in the life of our ally during World War II, as told by 160 Soviet cameramen. (8) Ireland, the government, religion, and social life of the Emerald Isle, her charm and her problems. The first year’s series of eight subjects is also available : Brazil, New England, Portugal, Texas, Cayiada, South Africa, India, and Airivays of the Future. Available also are two special releases, Americans All and The French Campaign. Both series of 16mm sound films are available on a subscription basis : rental for one series is $30; for both, $55. Each film is shipped collect and should be returned prepaid. Films may be retained for a period of three days, beyond which a rental of fifty cents a day is in effect. Ten days in advance of rental date, a discussion outline on the film is mailed to the subscriber, to facilitate classroom discussion. Individual subjects and the two special releases may be rented for $5 C.O.D. {Editorial Note: It is to be hoped that critical vocabularies, defining all terms used in the March of Time reels, will be included in the discussion guides accompanying these subjects.)