Celluloid : the film to-day (1931)

48 CELLULOID Working within set limitations to achieve a calculated purpose has often resulted in an artist producing his best work, and it is possible that these conditions are the most inducive of good results in the complex art of the cinema. The film medium is an ideal field for the exercise of technical, scientific and engineering interests. The constructivist nature of its principles makes it an admirable experimental ground for the logical, well-ordered mind. But film technique is so absorbing in itself that it may well satisfy the mind of the director without its purpose of expressing a given content being accomplished. So much lies between the film director and his eventual work on the screen that he is inclined to become interested in technical matters during production to the detriment of the content. A considerable lapse of time and the cooperation of at least half-a-dozen other persons is necessary before the creative director can see his completed work on the screen. A hundred technical devices conspire to thwart his expression of an idea. All in all, the einematographer experiences the greatest difficulty in concentrating upon his purpose of expression while yet retaining an intimate understanding of his technical resources. I am not sure, therefore, that a director would not be freer to become interested in perfecting his technique and exploring its attributes if his material content were allotted to him for expression. At least he would have a set purpose in mind and would be able to draw upon his storehouse of technical knowledge for its adequate representation. We know that much of the technique of the