American cinematographer (Jan 1933)

January 1933 • American Cinematographer 7 Saved Us $ 17,000 by Harrison Wiley Art Director, Charles R. Rogers Productions that we had done so. Members of the company, in fact, have seen the completed picture, and failed to recognize the two sets as one. Had Mr. Stumar not been willing to co-operate with us in this, or had he been unable to readjust his light- The same set as above properly lighted so as to bring out all the photographic as well as production values. ing as he did, we would have been forced to build a new set. Still another important consideration is the painting of a set. If the Art Director and the Cinematographer do not understand each other thoroughly, revamped sets often have to be repainted—sometimes even after having been repainted once. If the Art Director, for instance, does not know what visual effects the Cinematographer is planning to achieve, he can easily have the set painted the wrong color, or the wrong way. If the Cinematographer does not co-operate with the designer, this situation can- not be helped. If, on the other hand, he does not know how to light his set properly, he can often force us to repaint a set anyhow. Yet it has been proven time and again that a great deal can be done in painting a set with light: the illustrations show this very clearly. The cap- able cinematographer can frequently use his lighting to avoid the expense of repainting a set—even one that really needs repainting. Improper lighting is glaringly demonstrated in this picture. It loses not only photographic values, but also production values. Here, by the way, I must pause and pay tribute to the ingenuity of the Paramount Studio Art and Camera Depart- ments. The respective heads of these departments—Hans Dreier and Virgil Miller—have evolved a systematized range of paints and colors so that not only can the shade for any given set or part of a set be specified by number, but certain shades can be obtained which, though giving a pleasing contrast visually, photograph identically. This is often important when working with certain directors and players, upon whom the psychological effect of the color contrast is considerable, but where such contrasts would be undesirable in the finished picture. The co-operation of the Cinematographer is of great value in the painting of backings and forced-perspective backgrounds. Very often I have had men like Sharp come to me with suggestions for painting such backgrounds, saying, “Now, if you can paint this so, I can light it better.” This co-operation is vital, for unless these im- portant portions of a set photograph naturally, the im- pression built up by the rest of the set is bound to suffer. If the Cinematographer can be given an opportunity to become familiar with the script before production, he and the Art Director can in many instances save a great deal. If you can be certain that only certain angles will be used, you need not repaint or revamp your set beyond those angles. If you can be certain, for instance, that some certain shots will not be reversed, you need not build wide walls or flats to protect the company on those pos- sible reverse-shots. If you can be certain that the camera will be used at only a certain height, you can often save in both construction and painting which would otherwise be required. If you can be sure in advance just where dolly shots will be used, and where they will not be, you can save again. If you can be sure that your sets will be lit understanding^, you can often save a paint-job. And with all due respect to Scenarist and Director, it is only the Cinematographer who can give you positive, author- itative information on such points as these. Therefore I am heartily in accord with the policy of calling in the Cinematographer farther before the actual start of shooting than is now the rule. Only thus can one reap the full benefits of the co-operation between the Cinematographer and the Art Director. These two individuals must co- operate now as never before, for in the major studios and the independent units alike, it is their co-operation that can effect some of the most urgently needed economies of the day.