American cinematographer (Jan-Oct 1925)

January, 1925 AMERICAN CINEMATOGRAPHER Five Photographing "North of 36" To handle the camera on "North of 36" called for something in the nature of a cross between a cinematographer and a cowpuncher. As is generally known this Paramount production, which was directed by Irvin Willat, was filmed in its natural locale — which meant pure location work under a broiling Texas sun from the start until the finish of the vehicle. The ten weeks of location served to thoroughly ground us in the fundamentals of the cow country, not the least of our learning being to live "close to the plains", at the same time being obliged to successfully cope with, despite numerous obstacles, the difficulties that challenged us to bring good camera work to the screen despite the conditions that surrounded us. In short, we were living the life of the first part of the last quarter of the last century— yet we were setting out to provide entertainment and education through the medium of one of the most modern of inventions. "North of 36" was strictly a location picture, so to speak. In the two and one-half months that we galloped over the Texas plains, sometimes shooting from a lofty platform and at other times from the lurching floor of a floating wagon, we were not only living under primitive conditions but, cinematographically, we were photographing under like circumstances. We had to depend on Nature, with its own light sources, to aid us photographically rather than to call in the artifi By Al Gilks, A. S. C. j» jgj Al Gilks, A. S. C. cial lights which have so revolutionized studio cinematography. We had to have our own laboratory unit on the field, necessarily without the facilities common to such a production center as Hollywood. But the entire under <J A triple-decked platform used to support cameras in filming action centering around cattle in "North of 36." as Plains Hot Enough to Melt Lenses as Big Production is Filmed taking was met by the company as a whole with a fortitude that made possible the results that bespeak for themselves. A major part of "North of 36" relates to the drive of the long horn cattle, fractious beasts from whom every precaution had to be taken to conceal the cameras. But we hat to be polite to the long horns, especially since they were the only herd that the very active efforts of the Paramount organization could find in the length and breadth of the land. Letter after letter and telegram after telegram went to the stockyards and cattle-raisers, inquiring if a herd of such a breed was available. The answer in each case was in the negative. Just when things looked blackest we received word from James East, who was aiding us in our search, that after weeks of hunting through Old Mexico and southern United States, he had located a herd of four thousand long-horns on an immense ranch about thirty miles out of Houston, Texas, By a coincidence, this herd was on almost the exact locale of the story as Emerson Hough wrote it and men from our location department immediately left for Houston to look over the grounds and arrange the final details. It was the first long-horn drive in almost thirty-five years and according to the owner of the cattle, Bassett Blakeley, there will never be another. Mr. Blakeley plans