The Cine Technician (1939)

118 THE CINE-TECHXI C I A N Auo. -Sept., i,,;7 Revision of Subscription Rates Important revisions of subscription rates were made at the Annual Meeting. It has been felt for some time that many members, particularly those in the higher grades, would appreciate an opportuniy to pay their dues annually at a special rate. Therefore, in addition to a general reduction of subscription rates and simplification of the number of grades, a discount will be allowed to those members who desire to pay annually. The revised rates are as follows : — Subscriptions. Weekly Salary. Weekly. Annually. £5 and under ' ..." 6d £1 1 (f Over £5 and not exceeding £10 ... 1/ £2 2 0 Over £10 and not exceeding £15 ... 1/6 £3 3 0 Over £15 and not exceeding £20 ... 2/ £4 4 0 Over £20 2/6 £5 5 0 Entrance Fees, on the other hand, were increased, the view being that technicians who have not yet seen fit to join the Association will henceforth have to pay a larger Entrance Fee than if they had helped to build it up along with the earlier members. The new Entrance Fees are : — Weekly Salary. Entrance Fee. £5 and under ... ... ... ... £0 5 0 Over £5 and not exceeding £10 ... ... 0 10 6 Over £10 and not exceeding £15 ... ... 1 1 0 Over £15 and not exceeding £20 ... ... 1 11 6 Over £20 2 2 0 All in a Day's Work (continued from page 114) We went off in the pilot's cutter and after a very bumpy night at sea we eventually scrambled up the Jacob's ladder of the "Lapland." Then our troubles started. We had no authority to be on board ! We darted into a bathroom and locked ourselves in. Looking through a porthole, we could see the pilot's boat still alongside, and officers were heard scurrying about looking for us. At last the boat pushed off and the liner got under way again. Our cameras had been hoisted aboard with the pilot's luggage. Well, out we came — straight into the arms of an officer. "The old man wants you two on the bridge." We duly appeared before the captain, a real old salt, who proceeded to chew the English language into little bits. Mary Pickford's manager had arrived on the scene by this time, and between us we quietened the old mariner and proceeded to do our stuff with "Mary and Doug." A plane was waiting at Southampton, and within half-an-hour of the ship's arrival, I was back in London with films and plates, still wearing my Ascot kit ! The film was on view, and the Evening Standard full of pictures was on sale, before the famous couple arrived at Waterloo. I have been asked what is the most impressive sight I have ever photographed. Without doubt, "the total eclipse of the sun" at Giggleswick in Yorkshire. The grandeur of those awe-inspiring twenty-three seconds made an impression on me that I shall never forget as long as I live. In conclusion, may I remind the younger generation that we pioneers did not have the advantage of your up-to-date apparatus. Our equipment was generally a wooden camera, two lenses, and a fixed tripod. The trail has been blazed. It's now up to you to carry on the good work ! A.C.T. Members' Broadcast A.C.T. members are staking a permanent claim to Saturday evening broadcasting, firstly in "In Town ToNight" and now in "The A. B.C." Bernard Browne set the ball rolling when he brought Scruffy to the microphone ; Osmond Borrodaille followed with a talk on his location work in India on "Elephant Boy" ; and now comes VicePresident Kenneth Gordon fitting snugly into the letter X (for Newsreel) in the present B.B.C. alphabetical miscellanv presentation. Kenneth seemed just as much in his element as on General Council nights, driving his points home in his own inimitable style. He spoke of the fun and frolic, daring and danger, which all contribute to a newsreel and Gazette cameraman's screen journalistic work. What fields will he conquer next ? Members' First Directorial Effort Ralph Bond and Miss R. I. Griersox, General Council members, have received fine press credits for their first joint directorial effort. "To-day We Live" is a 2000 feet documentary presenting a vivid commentary on life in the distressed areas. Sponsored by the National Council of Social Service the film deals with the work of that organisation to prevent utter despair and stagnation filling the hearts of the unemployed, making clear, however, that such occupation does not provide the real work demanded by the unfortunate inhabitants of Britain's distressed areas. The direction has received general praise and To-dtiv's Cinema, for example, speaks of the imaginative direction. Paul Rotha was the producer for Strand Films, and every member of the unit was A.C.T. Self-Binding Journal Cases We have now purchased a supply of Journal Self-Binding Cases, which will enable readers to bind their Journals from issue to issue, thus obviating possible loss and mutilation through waiting till publication of the final number of a volume before binding. The binding case is made exactly thick enough to hold two volumes of The Cute-Technician. The principle employed is that of resilient cords around a firm centre-piece. It is only necessary to open a number of the Journal in the centre and slip it under the cords. which always remain taut and strong. The colour of cases is green, with The Cine-Technician neatly printed on the spine in gilt lettering. The price is 3 6 each, postage extra, and cases may be inspected and purchased from the A..< I". 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