International projectionist (Jan-Dec 1953)

VOLUME XXVIII JANUARY 1953 NUMBER 1 NATURAL VISION Another Step in the Right Direction NATURAL VISION'S initial presentation of their Polaroid thirddimension process was placed before the public in Los Angeles on November 26, 1952. The event took place in the form of two simultaneous showings — at the Paramount Theatre, Hollywood, and at the Paramount Theatre in downtown Los Angeles. Combined seating capacity of the two theatres totals 5,000. The picture was "Bwana Devil," an Arch Oboler production for Milton Gunzburg. Business the first week was beyond anyone's fondest expectations and, as this is written, they are still packing in the cash customers. This influx of paying patrons disproves the opinion, held by many in the trade, that the picture-going public would object to the necessity of wearing special Polaroid glasses in order to view a Natural Vision picture. Objections to date from the payees have been infinitesimal in comparison to the substantial increase in business at these two theatres. The Natural Vision Process The theory behind Natural Vision is neither new nor startling. For most of us it actually goes back many, many years. We can all remember stage effects utilizing Polaroid and, in more recent years — about 1936 — Pete Smith gave us Audioscopiks and red and green glasses with which to look at them. In the field of amateur photography, Seeming to prove again that the public of today wants something new, Natural Vision (a system of third-dimension projection that requires patrons to wear Polaroid spectacles), is an SRO sellout at two California .theatres. Natural Vision screen quality depends on the skill of the projectionist to a much greater degree than usual since exact superposition of two images is all-important. By MERLE CHAMBERLIN Supervisor of Projection, M-G-M Studios, Culver City, California stereo-realists are becoming quite common-place. Refinements to gear the process to the professional 35-mm show were bound to be worked out. This has been done — not all the way yet, but enough to give us NATURAL VISION. Photography of the picture in Natural Vision is theoretically geared to duplicate what is seen by our two eyes. The right eye sees the right picture and the left eye the left picture. These images are superimposed upon the brain, resulting in what we accept as a normal, well rounded momentary record of the thing in view. The Natural Vision camera set-up has two 'eyes' which are represented by two complete cameras. These cameras are not placed side by side; if they were, the distance between lenses would be too great to obtain the necessary illusion. Mirrors are used to correct this condition. The two cameras are mounted facing each other, appearing as if one lens was recording an image from the other lens. The image is actually photographed from front surface mirrors which are placed between the lenses at the required angle so that the ultimate photographic records on the negatives in the cameras are as if the same scene were recorded by two cameras 4" apart — 4" having been accepted as being the average distance between a pair of human eyes. This naturally results in two separate negatives, either of which is a complete record of the action. The only difference between these two negatives is the slight offset caused by the spacing of the front surface mirrors. Projecting Natural Vision Positive prints from these two negatives are then made and that is where we, the projectionists, come in. The projection of Natural Vision or any similar process is of necessity an extremely precise operation. The two prints, either of which can be shown as a separate, normal flat picture, are projected simul INTERNATIONAL PROJECTIONIST • January 1953