Amateur Cine World (February 1936)

~ The art of making-up seems so inseparable in the mind from the art of acting, that, in the view of women, at any rate, it is apt to dominate almost every other consideration. A woman who, normally, may not have a trace of personal vanity in her nature, will spend hours in front of a mirror, toying with her make-up cabinet and enjoying every minute of the experience. Yet that same woman, more often than not, waxes almost impatient if the director ventures to suggest that six rehearsals for a ‘‘take’’ are insufficient and she must go through her action yet once again ! Keep Make-Up Simple In so far as it is possible, always avoid using elaborate, time-taking make-up. I have provided my players with the very finest make-up accessories from Hollywood and with a professional expert to supervise the application ; and I have also provided them with a few cartons of ochre face-powder purchased at the toilet-counter of the inevitable store, with a few tubes of lipstick and an eyebrow pencil; and have applied the material myself to a dozen different features in less than half-an-hour. And, whether you believe it or not, the cheap make-up, quickly and_ straightforwardly applied, without any attempt at creating fancy effects, has invariably proved every whit as satisfactory from the screen point of view as the most expensive professional equipment! And the saving in cost is very appreciable, especially when one is dealing with a large cast. After having completed your preliminary tests of the players, either by means of individual _ rehearsals without the camera, or an actual photographic record ; and having thus mentally assessed their qualities and gained some idea as to what they are capable of—or not capable of—the next stage is to conduct a “ full-dress ”’ rehearsal under actual shooting conditions. And that means a rehearsal with the lights and camera in position. I do not know in what order you, as an individual director, may decide to shoot the scenes for The Unbidden Soul ; but I shall take it for granted that you will work on the conventional principle of photographing all scenes relative to one particular place or location at the same time, afterwards proceeding to another location and shooting all the scenes relative to that. In the present instance it would seem natural to commence with the scenes in Denham’s _ laboratory (where the story opens), ? so I will ask you to refer to the sample ‘‘ Shooting Script»”’ published last month and which embraced the Laboratory Scenes 1 to 8. I propose that we shoot these scenes all together (though not in strict numerical order), and when that is accomplished we shall have made a very fair beginning on the production. For Scenes 1 to 8° Denham and the Robot will be the only players to be called. Working, as we are, without any specially constructed sets, the questions next arise: Where are we to locate the laboratory ? What are its furnishings to consist of ? What properties are required ? Building the Set Throughout the play the laboratory is the only “ set that is likely to occasion some minor difficulty in designing, but a passable reproduction of a scientist’s workshop is not nearly so awkward to achieve as it may sound. In my own case I made use of a whitewashed outbuilding—fortunately, having the mains current laid on. A long work-bench was placed against the far wall and a few feet above this a rough shelf secured in position. Along the shelf we stood an array of bottles of all shapes and sizes and each bearing a conspicuous chemical label. The front of the bench was kept clear so that the Robot might repose upon it; but all the available space at the rear was filled with a miscellany of quite meaningless mechanical and_ electrical apparatus—tin boxes with odd lengths of wire attached to dummy terminals; old wireless valves set upright in inverted cardboard boxes, painted to look like metal ; a spherical glass ‘“‘ witchbowl,” witha dummy nozzle, to resemble a large retort, AUC Screwed to the edge of the shelf was a big voltmeter, about 6” in diameter, taken from the switchboard of an obsolete charging installation—a gadget that could be copied quite faithfully and easily in cardboard. A blue-print was tacked on the wall in a noticeable position; and the general effect was completed (and, incidentally, the set-limits conveniently defined) by two folding screens placed one at either end of the bench and covered with neutralcoloured curtains. Finally, a full and detailed catalogue of the various properties was prepared for the use of the “‘ script-girl.”’ (To be continued) Shots of this kind, relying for their effect on contrast or appositeness, are most valuable additions to a_ film. So ww