The Cine Technician (1938-1939)

July-August, 1939 Edited by Frank Sainsbury T H B C 1 N E T E C UNI C J A N CLOSE-UPS Nc. 2.— ARTHUR ELTON THE first thing that struck me about Arthur Elton, tlic well-known documentary producer, when 1 weni to work for him as his assistant in 1935, was his eating capacity, and since then 1 have never seen it equalled in the film business. Anyone who's eaten at a Chinese restaurant knows the size of the meal they give von and how it fills you up. Well, I've seen Elton go right through a meal like that and then have the same again right away. His heard and hulk, with his appetite, complete the first impression of an imposing personality. At that time he was producing a programme of films lor the (las people, the first ever undertaken by a commercial concern. One of those films. "Housing Problems," about the people in the Stepney slums and new housing estates, has become in its own way a little classic of documentary. Elton had joined the old Empire Marketing Hoard film unit in 1929, just after the making of "Drifters." He had been out of work tor a year and saw the job advertised in the agony column of "The Times." In those days documentary films were only just starting in this country and the\ had very little to work on. either of previous experience or technical facilities. The w hob unit was housed in a room H ft. square, where all office work and cutting were done, including projection with a hand-turn projector. Elton's first two films for E.M.B. were "Shadow on the Mountain" about sheep farming in North Wales, and "Upstream" about Scottish salmon fishing. .Most of these early E.M.B. films went down well in the theatres although the public had seen nothing quite like them before (except the Secrets of Nature series), and in spite of the scorn poured on the documentary w orkers-they were called "litterati" in the Trade press. .Jack Miller was cameraman on both of these films of Elton's,^ind Elton still remembers gratefully how helpfully he worked, as Elton had until then never had anything to do with cameras and shooting. However, this was by no means his first experience o! the film business. He conies from a respectable counts family and when he leit Cambridge University in l'.rJT {Continued on next page) QUERIES — (Continued from previous pa^c) 3. 0— What proportion of cinemas in America are wired for push-pull? Are any cinemas so wired in England? A. — There are no records available from which an answer to this question can be derived. In the opinion of Western Electric, "a very small proportion of the total number of operating cinemas are so equipped, either in the United States or England.'' B. C. A. concur: "only a few key cinemas in America are so wired ... in England we are of the belief that the Empire, Leicester Square, is the only cinema so equipped. CORREX Developing Outfits FOR 16-mm. and 35-mm. CINE FILM Spooling frame showing film and apron being wound on to film reel. Th= "Correx" Apron is made with corrugated edces which effectively prevent both sides of the film coming into contact with the apron, the only point of contact be ng where the corrugations of the apron touch the edges of the film. The oiaration of using a "Correx" Cine Film Developing Outfit is very simole. Take the wooden frame with film reels into the darkroom, thread the film and aoron together on to the empty reel, and then rotate the reel so that film and aoron together are wound until they fill the reel. "Correx" Tanks are economical in regard to the amount of developer which is required. All the operations of developing, fixing and washing can be carried through without the film being touched. OUTFIT No. 109. for 50 ft. 16-mm. Film, consists of: One 50 ft. 16-m;n. "Correx" Apron, two Enamelled Developing D shes 10 in. diameter, two 10 in. Film Reels, one Film Reel without core, one Spooling Frame Price £3 10 0 OUTFIT No. 209. for 100 ft. 16-mm. Film, consists of: One 100 ft. 16-mm. "Correx" Apron, two Enamelled Developing Dishes 14 in. diameter, two 14 in. Film Ree!s, one F'lm Reel without core, one Spooling Frame . . Price £6 6 0 OUTFIT No. 108. for 50 ft. 35-mm. Film, consists of: One 50 ft. 35 mm. "Correx" Apron, two Enamelled Developing Dishes 10 in. diameter, two 10 in. Film Reels, one Spooling Frame Price £3 10 0 OUTFIT No. 208, for 100 ft. 35-m.m. Film, consists of: One 100 ft. 35 mm. "Correx" Aoron. two Enamelled Developing Dishes 14 in. diameter, two 14 in. Reals, one Spooling Frame Price £6 6 0 Distributors for Great Britain: SANDS HUNTER & CO. LTD. 37, Bedford Street, Strand, London, W.C.2