American cinematographer (Mar 1933)

20 American Cinematographer • March 1933 WHEELS OF INDUSTRY • WALTER W. Bell and Cordon S. Ben- nett have formed the Pellex Film Co. of Hollywood. Under this firm name these two gentlemen will distribute the new 16 mm. reversal film under the brand name of Pellex. According to an announcement sent out by this newly organized company Pellex is a finer grain film than now available in this sub-standard size; it is claimed to have ample speed for all ordinary light conditions and is sharply contrasty, giving definite whites and blacks. The announcement states that the light yellow filter can be used with this film to advantage. While the film is not recommended for interior work, it has given very fine pictures, providing sufficient light is used. Among the things this new company claims is a one day service on the de- veloping of prints sent to their laboratory. Both Bennett and Bell have long been associated with the 16 mm. field. They are well known throughout the western states, where it is their intention to mar- ket this new film. • A NEW type of Spreader lens which has been adopted by Victor Animato- graph Corp. for use in the Model 10 Series of Projectors is said to give an in- crease in illumination when the projector is stopped for the still projection of single frames. The spreader lens is mounted in a safety shutter which automatically drops into place between lamp and film when the operating lever is moved into “still projection’’ position. By dissipating heat with the spreader lens and automatically increasing the flow of air through the lamp house, it is possible to show an unusually bright still picture without danger of blistering the film. • THE Eastman Kodak Company plans in March to begin supplying Eastman Super-sensitive Panchromatic Film in the form of “still” rolls and film packs of the most popular sizes. The emulsion offered will be of the same type as those which have found wide use on motion picture film, 16 millimeter motion pic- ture film, cut film, and plates, since their introduction two years ago. # THE Eastman Kodak Company has an- nounced the completion of two new 16-millimeter projectors, with illumina- tion, respectively of 500 watts and 750 watts. The Kodascopes K, Models 50 and 75, as the new machines are des- ignated, are said to set new standards for projection brilliancy. • LEICA announces a new self-timer. With this automatic self-timer it is claimed it is now possible for the Lecia camera user to include himself in any photographs desired. Exposures can be made from 15 to 60 seconds after set- ting the release. Also, according to the latest Lecia bulletin, that company is now equipped to convert the Model A and C Lecia Cameras to the very latest model with built-in range finder and automatic focusing. •A NEW Continuous Projection Attach- ment just announced by Victor is said to be the first device of this kind in which film breakage has been entirely eliminated and surface abrasion reduced to an absolute minimum. The Victor Continuous will be supplied in a standard model which will accommodate 400 feet of film, and special models can be sup- plied to accommodate even greater foot- age. It is the claim of the Victor Animat- ograph Company that the method of film motivation employed makes the un- usual performance of this machine possi- ble. It is described as having a series of lateral rollers placed in radial position in the bottom of the attachment which keep every inch of film constantly in motion. The compensating action of these rollers relieves the film from ten- sion, prevents binding and reduces sur- face to a minimum according to the report. An auxiliary feeding sprocket is said to obviate any possibility of strain being applied to the film when it is taken from the attachment onto the projector sproket. This continuous attachment is also equipped with a safety drop-switch which instantly and automatically switches off the electric current in any film emergency. • IN the newly announced 1600 foot Victor projector, the problem of equal- ized tension is said to have been suc- cessfully overcome by an intermediate take-up unit which employs the slip- friction principle to automatically con- trol the tension on any size reel. The regular Victor Model 10FH Pro- jector body and base are employed in this model. The 1600 foot reel arms, with pulleys attached, intermediate take-up unit, cut-out base-board, and special carrying case, may be attached and adapted to any Victor 10FH or 10RH now in use without interfering with its use as a regular 400 foot equipment. Changing the reel arms and attaching the intermediate take-up unit is said to be quickly accomplished by simply re- moving four screws. The arrangement of the friction clutch and the reel-arm slip pulleys is clearly shown in the illustration on this page. The industrial, educational, and reli- gious fields will undoubtedly welcome this innovation. The New Victor continuous projector . . . . and projector accommodating 1600 ft. of 16 mm. film.