Boxoffice (Jul-Sep 1948)

16MM OBSERVES ITS 25TH BIRTHDAY It All Began as Amateur Home Movies and Wound Up as an Industry ROCHESTER — A phase of the motion picture business which at one time or another in the last few years has occupied the attention of every exhibitor organization in the country is 25 years old this week. It is the 16mm film industry. Come Monday, July 5, and it will be a quarter of a century since ‘“home movies” was first introduced and which since has developed into much more than the “hobby” purpose for which it originally was introduced. It was on July 5, 1923, that the Eastman Kodak Co. placed on sale in New York the first complete 16mm motion picture outfit — camera, film and projector — and announced The original Cine-Kodak model A in use, a quarter century ago. Since this camera was hand-cranked, it had to be supported on a tripod at all times. that it had developed the first amateur film processing service. This, the company added, would make movie making available to everyone. The succeeding quarter century has blown the “home movies” hobby into a full-scale industry — as an adjunct to the 35mm commercial theatre and as an aid to education, science, business and industry. Today, there are more than 1,100,000 families in the United States alone who own movie cameras. In the 16nun field there are an estimated 325,000 cameras in active use; and, in the Snun field, about 775,000 cameras. It is also estimated that approximately 950,000 families, or nine out of ten owning cameras, also own a projector of some type. About one-third of ail nonprofessional size cameras are used for other than amateur movies. The introduction of the 16mm equipment in 1923 ended a seven-year experiment at the Eastman laboratories. The job of producing an inexpensive method of making home movies began in 1916. In that year, George Eastman gave scientists and engineers the go-ahead signal to develop a new type of reversal film which would eliminate the two films — positive and negative — previously required in motion picture production. There had been attempts previously to adapt professional film-making techniques to amateur purposes. But all had failed. Eastman also told his research organization that he wanted a camera and projector which was built to precision requirements so that high-quality results would be assured, and that film of a noninflammable type be developed for the all-important safety factor. In 1922, Mr. Eastman was informed that the job had been completed. The war had caused long delays — but on Jan. 8, 1922, Dr. C. E. K. Mees, director of Kodak Research Laboratories, announced and demonstrated the new Cine-Kodak outfit and the first black and white “reversal” film for 16mm use. It was this reversal film — in which the image on the film was reversed from a negative to a positive during the development — was the prime factor which made home movie making economically practical. Amateur cameramen prior to 1922 had used a variety of product — 35mm film, some split from 35mm, or 35mm with two or more rows of pictures. There was virtually no limit to the widths used. There was 35mm, 28mm, 22mm, 21mm, 17.5mm, 11mm, and 9.5mm. And adding to the confusion, perforations varied in size, shape and location. Then, too, there was the terrific cost, since it was necessary in the early days to use a negative film in the taking of the pictures and a positive film for the projection. At the time of the development of 16mm reversal film it was estimated that the cost of 35mm professional film was $7.50 per minute of projection, while the new reversal film cost the amateur only about $1.50 per minute. Since that date costs to the amateur have been steadily reduced. Today, despite increased production costs, and the costs entailed in producing vastly improved and technically superior films, the cost to the amateur for 16mm black-and-white movies is well below that figure. The vast majority of today’s amateur mov A closeup of the Cine-Kcd,ak model A camera. Weighing 714 pounds, it was crank-driven and had to be placed on a tripod in use. Today’s spring-powered cameras weigh only a third as much. ies are made, however, in full color with Kodachrome film. Kodak introduced the first film for amateur motion pictures in color in 1928 with the Kodacolor process. Announced at a special party at Mr. Eastman’s house before a group of famous guests, including Thomas A. Edison, General Pershing, Hiram Percy Maxin, Sir James Irvine, Roy Howard, and Adolph Ochs, the process used a special black-and-white film with countless tiny lenses embossed on its surface. In addition, it employed special three-color filters on both the camera and projector to produce color pictures on the screen. Kodacolor motion picture film was supplanted in This is the Kodascope model C projector, an early piece of 16mm equipment which was popular in 1926. Nine or ten owning cameras now have their own projectors. 1935 by the present day Kodachrome film which by reversal methods and dyes in the emulsion resulted in a full-color film which was much easier for the amateur photographer to use. Other contributions made by Kodak to the 8mm and 16mm motion picture field include: In 1931 the first 16mm sound and magazine films for use with equipment designed by other manufacturers; in 1932 the first 8mm films and camera (which cut amateur film costs by more than half and brought amateur movie making within the reach of additional thousands) and the first extremely high speed motion picture camera; in 1940 the first 8mm magazine films and magazine camera; and in 1948 the first 16mm camera designed specifically for television recording purposes to be placed on the market. ON THE COVER: A dramatic 16mm undertaking in 1924. Up until this time, the amateur film-maker was unable to follow action because the handcranked camera required a tripod. Kodak in this year introduced an automatic crank and thus broadened the scope of activity for the 16mm film-maker. BOXOFFICE ; : July 3, 1948 19