The art of sound pictures (1930)

CHAPTER II WHAT PEOPLE WANT People go to moving pictures to be made to weep or laugh, to be happy or unhappy as they watch what happens to the screen characters before them. They become completely absorbed in the screen action. They follow the story, willy-nilly. And in so doing, they are forced to feel the emotions aroused by the dramatic situations of the picture. So it is that the producer of motion pictures makes millions of people, day after day, feel glad or sad, courageous or fearful, righteous or angry. He can do this, that is to say, within limits, and these limits largely depend upon the story of the picture. If the producer has a powerful enough story, these millions forget themselves and their little joys and woes and escape into the scenes on the screen before them. Small wonder then, that, with such stupendous power over the thinking and feeling of myriads of men, women, and children, the moving picture producer is willing, even eager, to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars — or even a cool million or so — to secure and produce a picture for this world of movie-goers. But the story selected must itself have power enough to arouse the emotions of an audience. Excellent photography and good acting can help to carry successfully any story, but they can never put emotional meaning into a story that is built without emotional appeal. 13