British Kinematography (1948)

75 lis at an early stage and it would be injudicious to anticipate the decision of the Council at the present moment, particularly since the problems involved I are rather intricate. However, I must congratulate Mr. A. Wigley, of the Manchester Section, and Mr. ft. Turner, of the Newcastle Section, on the excellent work they have put in on behalf of their Sections. The Fellowship I come now to an item which has been tackled with extreme caution by your Council. I refer to the Fellowship. The finalised regulations for conferment of the Society's Fellowship have now been published* and an approved form of application will shortly be obtainable from the offices of the Society. I must add that, except in special circumstances, only five Members can be admitted to the Fellowship in any one year, and that its conferment must be considered as a high honour, not lightly to be attained. Upon the recommendation of the Fellowship Committee, the Council were recently pleased to confer the Honorary Fellowship Upon Mr. P. H. Bastie, our Honorary Treasurer, and Mr. A. G. D. West, our Past President, in recognition of their services to the Industry. Co-operation with other Bodies The British Kinematograph Society has always been interested in cooperating with other bodies for the purpose of raising the technical efficiency of our industry. At the present time, this co-operation is quite extensive and I feel that it should be more widely known. I have already mentioned our relationship with the British Standards Institution, and I believe that the Joint Meetings of our Film Production Division with the Association of Cinema and Allied Technicians are also well known. Our relations with the Royal Photographic Society are closely maintained, and here I should mention the Newman Memorial Award, handled jointly by the two Societies, as' is the annual Newman Memorial lecture ; both award and lectures are designed to honour the memory of the late A. S. Newman, one of the great pioneers of kinematography, who happily occupied a high position in the Councils of both Societies. We are well represented on the committees of the British Film Institute, with whom we closely co-operate on technical matters. Your Council has noted with pleasure and interest the formation of the British Film Academy, and it is expected that both bodies will co-operate on technical matters of mutual interest. The Society is recognised by H.M. Home Office as an unbiased representative of the Industry's technical aspects, and a committee is now finalising a report on the new draft Cinematograph Regulations. We enjoy excellent relations with the Television Society, whose library is temporarily installed at our offices. On the occasions of our Joint Meetings with this Society, the subsequent discussions have always been lively, entertaining and instructive. The Kinematograph Renters' Society and the Cinematograph Exhibitors' Association, both Patron Members of this Society, maintain an active interest in our proceedings. In the last year we have been able to be of service on the serious matter of film mutilation, and a B.K.S. Film Mutilation Committee presented a report which throws a new light on this thorny problem. The matter has now been taken a step further, and a series of booklets to be published by the B.K.S. , with the co-operation of the K.R.S. and the C.E.A., will shortly be prepared. * British Kinematography, October, 1947