The Cine Technician (1938-1939)

T || E (' I N E3 • T E (' II NIC] A N Jan. -Feb., 1989 frequently also advise on the lighting of the set-up in the studio, though that is not specifically our joh. The projector is fitted with Hell and Howell gate movement, of course, and the plate is printed with B. and H. sprocket holes, and Mitchell cameras only for shooting. The same degree of care is exercised with a moving background in shooting as with static ones. The camera is tied down solid with chains and tackle to achieve the utmost smoothness. Any extra movement other than the movement required is distracting, and to see, say. a countrj road jumping up and down through the rear window of a car makes the shot look less real than it need he. [f you get a plate that is not jerks enough for your liking there are always ways and means of getting the effect on the shooting ot the final scene without altering the background, or failing to take care to shoot the plate as smoothly as you can in the first instance. Back projection for "The Citadel" Animation and stop-motion shuts also take up quite a lot of our time. They have the advantage, in shots such as tracking from a large map up to a particular town, of achieving fair accuracy in one take. You can track from as far as 1.") feet up to one toot with dead accurate focus and movement without any real trouble at all. We had much work of this sort to do on "The Challenge," which was full of map shots and one-turnone-picture shots. They were tricky without being extraordinarily difficult, and were certainly effective. Finally, 1 have included here stills of only one or two of our recent shots, which give quite good illustrations of our ordinary day-to-day jobs. One is a back projection test for "The Citadel." The special effects department makes the plate and prints it, and then makes the first test, which in this case included some of the boys on the floor, where Robert Donat and Rosalind Russell were afterwards photographed. Only after he lias seen the result of the test does the director snoot. Another is a shot taken in two parts for "Q Planes." One is a miniature of a boat with a plane alongside. The backing against which this shot was photographed was not sufficiently pictorial, so we took the second shot of sky and clouds, taking care to have them well in the top of the frame. Howard then put the two shots together on the opt ical printer. The third was really a five-way shot for "Spy In Black," though only four of the stages are shown here. (Continued at foot of next eolitnin) SCHOLARSHIPS TO RUSKIN COLLEGE, OXFORD The Trades Union Congress General Council have decided to continue their scheme tor the provision of fulltime residential scholarships tenable at Kuskin College, Oxford. These scholarships are open to men and women members oi affiliated unions between the ages of 20 and 35 years. For the academic year 1939-40 four scholarships will be awarded. Each scholarship will be tenable for one year, and will bi renewable for a second year if the reports received on the student during the first year are satisfactory . Hiiring the first year of residence a grant of £1/50 will he made to each student, and this grant will cover i( es, hoard and lodging, and a partial sum for the personal c vpenses of the student. Jt is estimated that in addition a turtber sum of appioximately fc'io per student will be necessary to meet the total cost of the first year. Where scholarships are renewed tor a second year a grant of t7i) will be made by the T.U.C. and the award ol the scholarship will be conditional on the student finding sufficient additional assistance from other sources to enable him to remain at ltuskin College for the second year. All candidates will sit lor a written examination (which will take place in various centres throughout the country) and the awards will be made by the General Council on the basis of the examination results, plus evidence ot attendance at evening classes and of activity in local trade union affairs. Copies of the form on which application must be made can be obtained from: H. V. Tewson, Assistant Secretary. Trades Union Congress General Council. Transport House, Smith Square, London, S.W.I. * * # ACT') 1!S FOB PEACE. Robert Donat. Leslie Hanks, John Gielgud, and Emlyn Williams are among those who sign a letter, under the auspices of the National Peace Council, appealing for signatures to a petition "to mobilise public opinion in favour of a determined approach to the problem of peace." The main objectives of the petition are described as "large-scale measure of economic reconstruction; a solution of the Colonial problem, recognising the paramount interest of the native peoples; and, ultimately, a limitation and reduction of armaments." Petition forms and other material can be obtained from the National Peace Council at 39, Victoria Street, London, S.W.I. MAN WITH A MOVIE CAMERA ~" (Continued from previous column) The shot of the driving mirror is a genuine miniature, simply shot direct. A frame of this is carefully cut out and placed in the camera to see where to put the ai'tists so as to get them into the right position, remembering that they have to be placed on the opposite sides to their position in a straight shot, and have to do all their actions left-handed. This scene is then shot direct and optically printed into the miror. Finally a background plate is shot and placed in the vacant bottom part of the frame, to give the final composite shot. As a last word I might add that more of these shots would be possible were it not for careful preparation and forethought, and if thi' shooting schedule is clear for any one day then that time is occupied in testing or preparing lor that "missing scene" which the department will next have to manufacture.