Business screen magazine (1938)

FILMS AVAILABLE for the school classroom screen and review information: streamliner or pictorialize the great system of signalling and dispatching. Autos might produce technical instructional films on engine design, metallurgy, or testing while a film on some of the social and economic results of the automobile in the last quarter century would be a valuable documentary. The exciting business of radio broadcasting offers dozens of opportunities for R. C. A.. N. B. C, Columbia. Mutual or General Electric. A series of dramatic, factually accurate shorts on heroism and life saving through telephone or radio use might be made. The insurance companies have a stake in public health. A series of documentaries on public health or preventive medicine would be a real contribution to education. A "Heroes of Health" series dramatizing some of the great historical landmarks in medicine might be made. These films could also be produced by great pharmaceutical houses like Eli Lilly and Company or firms like Johnson & Johnson. Some of the great paper companies might dramatize the excitement of modern publishing or the graphic work of publishing a metropolitan newspaper like the New York Daily News or AVir }'orA: Times. Some of the electric power companies might forget politics and concentrate on power for a change. Specialized instructionals on theory and mechanics of power service would find out lets in science and engineering classes, while an institutional fact-film on modern power can have immense excitement. Other Teaching Aids Business might well make films which would supplement laboratory experiments in physics, chemistry and biology. Films which not only show simple experiments with Boyle's law. the principle of Archimedes or other basic fundamentals might be amplified into present day film translations of those principles in action. This type instructional would be a contribution to the school, would gain goodwill for industry and would offer students improved learning devices good for an indefinite period. Illustrations might be multiplied ad infinitum. The responsibility for doing intelligent films is industry's; the responsibility for what our children see in the public schools is education's — both must work together if we are to gain the greatest good from the modern motion picture. Business is missing a genuine opportunity for doing good for itself and for the schools if it does not assume its responsibility in the production of straightforward, honest, entertaining and edifying films for the schools. * The social documentary type of film utilizes social data and with .such must perforce utilize premises which are .sometimes controversial. Hence this t.vpe of film is often charged with Ijeing a "propaganda"' film. The business functional film pictorializes processes, devices, and methods and hence is able to avoid the use of controversial data. REVIEWING THE LATEST NEWS WASHINGTON. D. c: Busitiess Screen correspondent advises that the United States Government, through the facilities of the Department of Commerce has made plans for a new federal agency to undertake to aid the distribution and showing of industrial films for "consumer education" purposes. Through co-operation with the national Chamber of Commerce the new program will extend the present distribution furnished by the Bureau of Mines. Only films of four reels and longer will be distributed through local committees on consumer education to be set up in cities and towns. Whether the newly established United States Film Service would figure in this program was not established but a centralized Washington distributing setup will serve the local committees with prints owned by the government and shipped under the Government franking privilege. The new organization is to be known as the Industrial Film Institute. CHICAGO. ILL.: A new filmslide technique coordinated with educational radio broadcasts was demonstrated at the Radio Education Conference held here at the Hotel Morrison on December 1st. A. R. Mayer, in charge of arrangements for a nationally syndicated filmslide service to be furnished in connection with the American School of the Air programs of the Columbia Broadcasting System, discussed the plan before educators in attendance. ROCHESTER, N. Y. The Eastman Kodak Company announces the perfection and sale of three new motion picture raw film stocks. Background X Panchromatic Xegative is highly desirable for key plates in the well-known projection background process and for outdoor takes. Plus X Panchromatic Xegative doubles the speed of Super X with a definitely finer grain and is ideal for studio and outdoor takes. Super XX Panchromatic Negative is three times the speed of regular Super X; suitable for takes at dusk, at night and in adverse lighting. CHICAGO, ILL.: United Films Service. Pacific Coast organization has opened offices in Chicago's Wrigley Building. Bruce Thomas, vicepresident, is in charge of new offices. NEW YORK city: Walter O. Gutlohn, Inc. has exclusive non-theatrical distribution of English documentary films made by the Strand Company and American distribution of French Films in conjunction with French Cinema Co. CHICAGO, ILL.: The Chicago Park Board films produced by Chicago Film Laboratory with commentary by Bob Elson are getting extensive theatrical distribution through Balaban & Katz deluxers. Recently voted best public relations accomplishment of all city parks. EDUCATIONAL ARTICLES ON BETTER FILMS IN THE SCHOOLS HEAT AND ITS CONTROL: Sponsored by JohnsManvilte, this -t-reel institutional produced by Caravel Films explains the physics of heat by use of h'storical background, diagrams, graphs. Subtle indirect advertising. V. s steel: first black and white 16mm. prints available of this documentary story of steel and the men who make it will furnish significant educational material. Prod, by Hollywood Ind. Pictures; also shown in 35mm. Technicolor in movie theatres. THE FIRST chair: 4-reeler sponsored by C. G. Conn, Ltd. and produced by Wilding for general consumers and dealers: advocates Conn instruments but principally band participation. Useful to music classes. Advertising general, entertaining story. f! ■ I