Movie Makers (Jan-Dec 1953)

82 MARCH 1953 ON PICKING A PROGRAM The reception by our readers of ACL's new Top of the Ten Best program has been enthusiastic and immediate — as you can easily see by reference to The Reader Writes column in the front of this issue. We are, naturally, gratified by this good news. But we cannot say honestly that we are surprised by it. The reaction could scarcely have been otherwise among the active, aspiring and able amateurs who make up the ACL's membership. For, every intelligent movie maker has always been eager to see the good work of his fellow filmers — especially when those efforts have risen to the eminence of Maxim Award and Ten Best status. The ACL's management, on its part, has been equally eager that these fine films should be seen, enjoyed and studied by as great a majority of movie makers as was possible. But in the past there has been always the stumbling block of accurate and effective sound accompaniment. Well-scored films, poorly played back, would be an inspiration to no one; and their presentation in such a manner could be only an injustice to their able and sedulous producers. Today the magic of magnetic sound on film has changed all that. ACL is now able to present for the first time in the twenty three year history of the Ten Best competition a representative cross section of the winners. It should interest all to know how this program was picked. To begin with, there were those certain films among the Ten Best which, for practical reasons, could not be included. These were, clearly, the two 8mm. winners (Backyard Birding and Outsmarted Smarties, which will be saved against the coming of an 8mm. TTB program), and two of the three winners from overseas (Give Us This Day, from Australia, and Olvido, from South America) . This left for consideration six pictures from the first ten including, happily, the brief and bonny Muntre Streker, which was still in this country from its Norwegian birthplace. We turned then to analyze the subject matter of these six. There was first, in the Maxim Award winner, an outstanding family film. Good! And among its allied award winners we found a photoplay (Man With The Box), a musical tour de force (Poet and Peasant), a documentary (Bulbs and Beauty), a city study (The $24 Purchase) and an animated cartoon (the aforementioned Muntre Streker). And, so that the Honorable Mention award winners might be represented as well, we settled on the nature film, Birds of Washington, as of interest to all. Here, surely, was a variety and representative cross section of amateur filming unparalleled in its richness! We had then to consider the practical problems of program length. Allowing intentionally some screen time for the addition of local award winners at, say, a gala night screening, it seemed to us that The Top of the Ten Best should aim at about one hour and a half of integrated entertainment. But to achieve this aim it was obvious that not all of every film considered could be included. The longer ones, such as Bulbs and Beauty (1400 feet), The $24 Purchase (1600 feet) and Birds of Washington (2400 feet), would have to be represented in excerpt only — if indeed such were possible without changing the essential meaning of the film as the producer planned it. Such excerpting proved possible with all of these fine films save The $24 Purchase. Here, despite the most sincere efforts on the part of the producer and ACL's planning staff, it was not possible to excerpt Purchase within usable time limits. And so, The Top of the Ten Best program stands as you see it today. Here are six of the finest films from ACL's 1952 competition that it is practical to present in one package. We are proud of these six selections. And we know that all of you — clubs and individual members alike — will be proud to present them. THE AMATEUR CINEMA LEAGUE, Inc. Founded in 1926 by Hiram Percy Maxim DIRECTORS Joseph J. Harley, President Frank E. Gunnell, Vicepresidenl The Amateur Cinema League, Inc., sole owner and publisher of MOVIE MAKERS, is an international organization of filmers. The League offers its members help in planning and making movies. It aids movie clubs and maintains for them a film exchange. It has various special services and publications for members. Your membership is invited. Eight dollars a year. AMATEUR CINEMA LEAGUE. INC.. 420 LEXINGTON AVE.. NEW YORK 17. N. Y.. U. S. A. Walter 3ergmann, Treasurer Arthur H. Elliott Fred Evans John V. Hansen James W. Moore, Managing Director George Merz Stephen F. Voorhees Roy C. Wilcox the shaft thickness is also J/4 inch. The shaft must then be threaded halfway down with a standard % inch thread, and the hole on the other end should be drilled out to fit tight on the rewind shaft. If the fit is not adequately snug, a small hole can be drilled and tapped and the extender secured on the rewind by means of a small setscrew. In order to wind bulk film onto a magazine core easily, I recommend the following procedure. First get an old 16mm. or 8mm. projection reel of the aluminum type. Carefully pry it apart until the flanges come off the hub, as seen in Fig. 2. To assemble these for winding, put first on the rewind spindle the flange with the round hole; fol low it with a washer, then the core (which must be pre-threaded with film) and then the other flange. This unit will have three slots adjoining the center hole, into one of which will go the tiny protruding spring on the core. Lastly, I put a cup washer outside the flange and secure the whole assembly with a wing nut.