American cinematographer (Jan-Dec 1942)

\ 16 MM BUSINESS MOVIES MORE THAN SHELTER Documentary, 1200 feet black-and-white, sound. Presented by San Francisco City and County Housing Authority. Produced by William H. Abbenseth; direct-16mm. recording by W. A. Palmer & Co. The term "documentary" is often used very loosely, and mis-used more often than not; but "More I'han Shelter" is a genuine documentary — and an excellent one. It is a picture which forcefully brings home to the citizens of San Francisco the fact that while that region prides itself on being "the city without slums," it still harbors far too many buildings which though modern enough fifty or sixty years ago, are now so thoroughly deteriorated and over-crowded as to give a very accurate facsimile of slum conditions. And unlike so many documentaries, this picture does not stop by merely posing the question: it shows what is being done to correct this condition, and thus ends on an inspiring note of hopefulness for the future. For what we understand to be his first attempt at a production of this magnitude, William Abbenseth has done a very fine job — one that shows very great promise for future achievement in the documentary field. Technical flaws there certainly are, but they are balanced by a strength and forcefulness in direction, and a sincere factualness in presentation, which make "More Than Shelter" a film well worth seeing. From the technical viewpoint, the picture is a very commendable job of direct16mm. all the way through. The picture was photographed on 16mm. reversal film, from which a dupe negative was made, with release-prints in turn made from this. There is, as might be expected, some loss in tonal values as compared to a reversal duplication job, but the overall quality of the laboratory work, done by Consolidated, is of the sort that is all too-seldom seen in blackand-white 16mm. There are some variations in exposure and contrast which might probably be more nearly equalized if the duplicate negative had been made to a lower gamma and a slightly lighter print made. The picture has an unusually interesting musical score, written especially for the purpose by Foster Cope and performed" by the 75-piece W.P.A. Symphony Orchestra under Nathan Abas. In general, this score is surprisingly good, especially when it is considered that neither composer nor performers were apparently familiar with picture scoring. In some sequences, however, it seemed to this reviewer that the music was a bit too modernistic and strident, and tended to distract attention from the visual phases of the picture. In some other sequences— notably the rainy-day sequence in the slum, just preceding the tenement fire — the music should certainly have been better coordinated with the action. In this sequence the pictured action — the repetitious drip, drip of water through a roof and into pots and pans — gives a cue for musical rhythm which should by all means have been followed. The recording is excellent. The score, we understand, was first recorded on acetate discs and then dubbed to film, while the narrative is direct-16mm. recording. We rather wonder why, in several scenes in which various of the slumdwellers (both men and women) are shown asking why nothing is done about things, other voices than that of the narrator were not used. It would have strengthened the efi'ect considerably. CHAMPIONS SIRE CHAMPIONS News-documentary film on cattle-raising; 1200 feet Kodachrome, sound. Presented by Roy J. Turner Hereford Ranch. Produced by Ramsey Pictures. In view of the fact that this picture was rather obviously made under catchas-catch-can newsreel conditions, with no opportunity of staging action or planning continuity, it stands as a distinctly creditable attempt. The producers have managed to give the picture a surprising lot of pictorial and production value. The picture as a whole gives a very excellent representation of a year's routine at this great ranch which specializes in the raising of prize-winning Hereford cattle. Particularly interesting highlights are the newsreel-type sequences showing the annual cattle-judging contests in which 4-H and Future Farmers' youngsters participate, and the annual auction of blooded stock. In view of the difficulties involved in filming such events, producer Ramsey has done more than ordinarily well with this. The color-rendition is excellent — a particularly important point in a film like this, where a slight difference in coloring (unnoticeable to the layman) can make a difference between a champion and a near-champion. Ramsey has also' brought in a number of pictorial shots of the ranch which are enough to make most of us totally revise our preconceived opinions of Oklahoma as a "dust-bowl" region. We still find ourselves in some slight disagreement with Ramsey as to the ideal technique for exposing Kodachrome, and as to the merits of 35mm. -reduction vs. direct-16mm. for sound, but none the less, the picture is an excellent one technically. We hope, however, that some day the sponsor may have a chance to see "The Story of Linnetta," a very similar picture made in California some years ago, and realize the possibilities in dramatizing the career of a cow from calfhood to a Grand Championship. MINNESOTA DOCUMENT Documentary, 35mm., synchronized sound. Produced by the University of Minnesota. Although the title of this picture lacks the glamor which its actual subject-matter might give it, "Minnesota Document" unfolds in monochrome a story of the growth and development of the State of Minnesota in a way that will be new and impressive to even the most sophisticated. Robert Kissack, Jr., head of the Visual Education Department of the University of Minnesota, directed the making of this 35mm. sound-film (produced under a grant from the Rockefeller Foundation), marshalled the historical facts about the state, and directed more than 750 non-. professional actors in a film which portrays the growth of Minnesota in terms of human sacrifice, perseverance, and frequently avarice and greed. His direction is good, especially when it is considered that none of the players were trained in acting before camera and microphone. This difficulty is especially apparent in the sound-recording, as some of the voices were rather low, while other speakers dragged their lines slightly. Re-recording would probably do a great deal to help this phase of the picture. However, the producers of "Minnesota Document" have relegated the inevitable production limitations to a place in the background by excellent cutting of the film, and by the introduction of a specially-written musical score which sweeps the picture along with a really professional flourish. Stark realism is the keynote of the camerawork, done somewhat in the manner of "Citizen Kane." The productioncrew travelled to all parts of Minnesota to record the scenic, industrial and agricultural sequence, and received notable cooperation from business and civic leaders for the special settings required. Paul Wendt was Chief Cinematographer, and Everett Miller recorded the sound, much of which was lip-synchronized. The musical score was composed by John Verrall of Hamline University, and the symphony orchestra was conducted by John Kuypers, of the same university. The film was produced at the University of Minnesota as a part of the work of a four-year experiment in educational film production under a grant from the General Education Board of the Rockefeller Foundation. K. 0. H I ( 220 May, 1942 American Cinematographer