Home Movies (1954)

rents it out to mainland producers who save, in this way, transportation of their own equipment and living expenses of a sound crew. The truck is a Chewy 2-ton unit with overload springs, the interier finished and insulated with fibre-glass. The power supply is entirely self-contained and with it he can operate two 35mm cameras and recorder. He has a Westinghouse generator, 220 volt — 3 phase and 110 volt — 1 phase. His recorder will taken 16mm, 171/Qmm or 35mm magnetic film and runs at 36, 45 or 90 feet per minute. The track position is variable for centre, edge, or , FOR Rj^p Ryder placement. The truck also includes a 3-channel mixer with intercom, and this may be used in the truck or on the set; his recording channel may also be removed for portable use. "Right now I'm working an a 16mm Kodachrome electroprinter, and four 16mm magnetic dummies are in the planning stage — we are doing this so that we can do our dubbing right at the studio," Pitstick said. At present they can combine four channels for dubbing to a composite 16, 1714 or 35mm master — not a bad combination for a remote motion picture location, we would say. But a good idea, fresh material and excellent equipment is not enough to produce good pictures. Chuck Smouse and Dick Pitstick have all these attributes, plus a few more. Their pictures "Everybody Loves Bread" and "Life of the Party" contains that extra something which makes for outstanding films. The most important factor about their productions is that they recognize their talents as technicians and tread softly when they approach the problem of a story. To insure the success of their two features they hired a professional writer to do the script, and in this manner avoided many of the pitfalls waiting for the independent who thinks that he can also write. Let's fact the facts — many independents, while they may be excellent technicians — simply do not know how to write a script and know nothing about the elements of building up suspense, retaining interest and pinpointing the message inherent in any good commercial film. Luckily, for them, Smouse and Pitstick realized this in time and that is why "Everybody Loves Bread" and "Life of the Party" have turned out so well. The photography is excellent and Smouse has broken many rules to achieve a different effect in many sequences; the result is that the pictures hold the attention of the viewer right down to the last foot of film. How come? The answer is conflict. In essence it is the conflict of the subject "George" brooding about his function in society, the slow resolution of this conflict, with the final realization that he has his rightful place in the scheme of things and the picture ends. While this is fine for you and I, conflict alone will not fulfill the desires of a bread company who yearns only to push their product for all it is worth. Well, Smouse and Pitstick have done this too, for the subtle message of bread and the way it is made is subtly infused in the film, and it is not until the picture is finished does the viewer realize that while he has been part of a man's conflict, he has also learned about bread — and the whole thing has been painless and downright interesting. Most people leave the showing of the film with a symapethic understanding of "George", wishing him well, and at the same time accepting the reassurance that their own lives are not being wasted in what they do for a living. Pitstick has done an excellent job with the dialog and music and at some points has cleverly combined the pitch of a whining machine with that of a short musical sequence, both flowing and fusing in an unusual way. We can conclude this happy piece by saying that if Smouse and Pitstick, isolated by more than 2,000 miles of ocean can do the fine work that they have already achieved, then there seems to be little reason for lack of success for us who are right here on the doorstep of the latest discoveries in the field of motion pictures. CAMERA CLUB SECRETARIES When submitting copy for insertion in these columns, please make sure that your city, state and proper names are correct. Home Movies receives notices from clubs all over the world; in many cases, location and name of the organization is missing. Please make sure your copy is accurate. Taking Success EXTRA LENSES B&L F/3, 13/8 »„. TELE-type Lens, focus Inf. standard screw thread for 8mm Camera. Triple magnification of normal lens $24.50 Wray Semi-WIDE ANGLE F/3. 5, 20mm fixed focus Lens, standard screw thread, for 16mm Camera. 20% MORE coverage than normal lens $14.50 Schneider Xenon F/2, 50mm TELE-type Lens in Focus mt. (coated) standard screw thread for 16mm Camera. Double magnification of normal lens $52.50 Fully GUARANTEED— 15 Day Triol Offer. Write Mr. H. Hill for FREE Lens Catalog No. 154. BURKE & JAMES, INC. 321 So. Wabash, Chicago 4, Automatic Daylight Processing I DEVELOPING TANK • Processes up to 200 Ft. ■ • 8mm-16mm-35mm 3«* • Movie — X-Ray — Microfilm • Motor driven portable • Tough plastic tanks • uniform Density Assured • 70mm tank also available FILM DRYER • Motor driven — Heatvd • Speedy drying • Automatic shrinkage allowance • Stainless steel and aluminum construction • Easily assembled without tools . Compact, Portable 'Guaranteed. Write for Free Literature $11 Micro Record Corp. Dept. H 487 South Ave. Beacon, N. Y. Distinctive TITLES and Expert EDITING For the Amateur and Professional ! l6-8min Black and White Kodachrome | Price List on Request ! STAHL EDITING & TITLING SERVICE! 33 West 42nd St. New York 36, N.Y. KODACHROME HOME MOVIE SPECTACULARS Amenta's greatest scenic sights, Notional Parks! war, H Bomb, novelties-— (MM. FREE CATALOG! 16MM. WORLD IN COLOR PRODUCTIONS ELMIRA, N. Y. MODEL 202 OWNERS / 1-TWIN is the recommend W BELL & HOWELL The FONO-TWIN is the recommended twin-table for re-recording records onto your film. Investigate its exclusive features. Write gr-v GEO. K. CULBERTSON CO. rono-Twin _ T^sfe5,?6' > San Gabriel, California 477