American cinematographer (Jan-Dec 1941)

digging back into that ancient history. Technicolor and all of us who have been associated with it have come a long way in these last twenty years; but I think that all of us, from Dr. Kalmus right on down the line, are a great deal more interested in the achievements yet to be made than in anything we've done in the past. "That's not saying we haven't made progress! Even in the past six years, since the present three-color process has been in use, we've seen changes, not only in the process itself and the results we can get with it, but in the industry's attitude toward color. Six years ago, making a color feature was an adventure, and more; to the producer it was a gamble, and to the production crew on the set it was a headache. Today the industry has learned to take color in stride. The producer knows that color, intelligently used, definitely adds to the box-office appeal of a good picture. And the production personnel on the set know they can do anything with Technicolor that they can with black-andwhite — and do it more effectively because of the added element of color." Rennahan considers his long specialization in color a definite asset. "Of course I've shot some black-and-white now and then," he remarks. "I did, for instance, when we were recently down in Mexico City on location for my present picture, 'Blood and Sand,' and some monochrome background and stock-shots had to be picked up for the studio. As a matter of fact, I've shot just enough monochrome to know I can handle it better than I ever did before, just be WHEN you think about naturalcolor cinematography you think about Technicolor ■ — and when you think about Technicolor, you think almost as inevitably about Director of Photography Ray Rennahan, A. S. C, who for nearly twenty years has been the mainstay of Technicolor's photographic staff. Back in 1921 he photographed the first Technicolor feature ever released — "Toll of the Sea." Six years ago, in 1935, he photographed "Becky Sharp," the first feature made by Technicolor's modern three-color process. And almost exactly one year ago he received the industry's highest photographic honor — the Academy Award — for his participation in Technicoloring "Gone With the Wind." During the years between, he has specialized in color cinematography to such an extent that he has photographed or participated in photographing a great majority of the outstanding color productions made. But if you try to single him out with some such poetic title as "the granddaddy i if Technicolor cinematographers," Ray Rennahan is likely to rebel. He'll smilingly point out that at forty-five he's in the wrong age-bracket entirely for such a title. "And besides," he'll add, "I'm not actually the senior cinematographer in point of years with Technicolor: that honor properly belongs to Aces of the Camera III. RAY RENNAHAN, A.S.C. By WALTER BLANCHARD George Cave, A. S. C, who, though in recent years he has been a Technicolor executive, was for many years a cinematographer — and a good one. George photographed the firm's first tests, and their first feature, too, in the quicklyabandoned additive two-color process. I came on only after the two-color subtractive process had been developed to the point of being commercially feasible, and Dr. Kalmus came to Hollywood to make a feature. "But there's no particular point in cause of the training I've had with color. But I'm always glad to get back to color; it's so much more satisfying. "And," he points out, "there's a definite advantage to working as we Technicolor cinematographers do. We do get around! I think we get a greater variety of work and experience than almost any other group of cinematographers. It's not only that we're constantly working in different studios, on different pictures, and with different production cinema(Con+inued on Page 134) 108 March, 1941 American Cinbmatographer