American cinematographer (Jan-Dec 1942)

", ' / '^'> ^^'^^'"'^^ ,./;<.<•■ Three frames of Technicolor cartoon negative: Top: blue-filtered frame; center: red-filtered frame; bottom: qreen-filtered frame. besides the regular camera-operator. The cell and background set-ups are shot flat, the camera mounted on a movable crane directly above. On each side are two banks of incandescent lights, adjustable to varying degrees of intensity. The cells are held in register over the background by a set of pegs exactly like those on the animators board. At the moment of shooting, a glass platen is lowered on the entire set-up and held tightly against the cells by air-pressure to prevent any wrinkling or buckling. Cartoons are shot with a black-andwhite camera, fitted with a revolving filter for the three color values, on a single negative by the successive-frame method. Each set-up is automatically exposed upon three separate frames of film, each frame registering one of the l)rimary colors of the Technicolor process. Synchronized to the shutter shaft of the camera is a revolving filter fitted with three filters — a blue filter which registers the yellow-printing values, a red filter for the cyan (blue) printing values, and a green filter for the ma genta-printing values. The three frames are exposed in that order by the camera operator pressing the button once. This successive-frame method has a decided advantage over the regular three-negative system as used in liveaction Technicolor in that it simplifies camera operation and processing because only a single negative is used. Any ordinary black-and-white camera can be converted for Technicolor simply by adding the filter-wheel. Of course, the successive-frame system obviously wouldn't work for live-action, but it is ideal for animated cartoon use. When completely shot, the scenes are again checked in the form of "color dailies"— similar to live-action "rushes."' These dailies are the first color prints that are returned by Technicolor, and are without sound. The layout-man, color coordinators and camera department representatives view these dailies and check them for technical correctness and color balance. If okay, they are cut into their proper places in the test reel in place of the black-and-white animation tests. Meanwhile, other departments are busy organizing the elements of sound and music that are to be added to the picture. The musician has already spent long hours composing a scoi-e, and longer hours arranging it. The timing of his musical sections is carefully checked against the final footage of the picture. As was mentioned in an earlier installment, cartoon music is of two definite types. One, of a pre-established timing end pattern, to which animation is fitted, and the other, in which music is written to fit the action. The former presents no problem to the musician. He can give free reign to his musical imagination, and it's up to the story man and animator to compromise to his harmonies. But on the other end of the line it's a different story. With story, animation and timing already set and unalterable, the musician must not only design his melodies to the feeling of the story, but also to adhere rigidly to the timing of the action. The musician will try to get a consistent overall tempo set for the picture before it goes into animation, and if he's lucky, it remains as such all the way through production, thus simplifying — • comjjaratively — his composing, and later, recording, problems. But if h6's not lucky, if the timing gets kicked around, a few frames added here, or a few taken out somewhere else in the interests of the animation, the final tempo of the picture is liable to vary considerably from sequence to sequence. This presents no unsurmountable creative hurdle, but it makes for finer musical feeling in a picture if a fairly consistent tempo can be maintained. The musician works on a score on which is indicated the exact footages of all the scenes, the positions of dialog and sound-effects, and pertinent information relating to the action. He might have the picture reel on a Moviola alongside his piano to refer to. Then, with BAMBI _ RELLIB Musician's score sheet for the scene from "Bambi," the animation of which was illustrated in the May and June installments of this series. the intent and purpose of each scene in mind, he begins sketching in the music on the score sheets, working back and forth between piano and pencil as he tries out chords, runs and harinonies, struggling just as hard to get a proper feeling of suspense in a certain passage or a fresher slant on a springtime theme, as a story-man or animator does to perfect the pictured action that goes with it. When all of these basic melodies and harmonies are sketched in, an arranger goes to work and breaks down the music for orchestration, scoring parts for the various instruments. The orchestration is then divided off into "takes" of various lengths ranging from a few feet upwards to a bundled, dejiending upon the phrasing of the music itself. Recording the music in short sections at a time makes the job of rehearsing and recording much easier all around. These various takes can be easily cut into sync with the picture reel according to their respective measure numbers. For the recording of music to a definite, unchanging rhythm, each musician (Continued on Page 380j 346 August, 1942 American Cinematographer