The Cine Technician (1935-1937)

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130 The Journal of the Association of CineTechnicians Ffb. -March, 1937 as a producer think that this is the best method ? Tf stills are worth rriaking at all, they are worth making well. A little thought from you makes them worth so much more the money they cost you. Get the best man you can afford, and the cheaper the production the better the stillman is a good motto, and a good investment. At least, he will not advertise the fact that you are making a film on the most economical lines. If you are renting studio space, you are also paying for stills facilities, and it is only fair to you and your still-man that there should be adequate lamps available for portraits ; and dry and properly equipped dark rooms for the exclusive use of your stills staff. I have had to share with the resident still-man on more than one occasion because this point has been overlooked. This is often to the disadvantage of the producer, and frequently calls for more than a little tact on the part of the tenant's still-man to make stills at all. • The producer pays for all delays and failures in this direction, and the still-man is in no position to take the matter up with the studio executives. It must be done by the producer's company before the production starts. It is often a good plan to send your man to survey the conditions and report difficulties, if any. All this may seem an awful lot of trouble at the start, but it would save a much greater amount of trouble, during and after production, and would go a long way to ehminating two expressions I have heard, "What a lousy lot of stills," and 'T hope I don't make stills for that unit again." I am now going to take it for granted that all producers, having read my illuminating remarks on the subject, will forthwith hasten to arrange that all still-men in future will have a special chair on the floor from which to direct operations, and to invest them with sufficient authority to tell the director and camera staff that a satisfactory still has been secured, and that they may now proceed with the lesser duties of making the film. And now on the "Floor." Mr. Director, you are the gentleman whose time is measured with a stop-watch. You have a schedule to keep to, and no mention of the stillman is made on your schedule. NeA'ertheless, ^'ou know, or at least hope, that he is hanging around for some purpose. He stands and watches patiently. He hears the actors fluff their hues, or miss their cues. He notes that the camera jammed in the last take, and ran out of film in the take before. The mike detected a sound which no one else noticed, or "Sound" was reloading. All these things he notes, and he thinks : "What a lot of stills I could have taken if everything was as foolproof as my little outfit." Not your fault, Mr. Director. You can be forgiven for your look of pained indulgence when you permit the stillman to take the floor for a brief minute or so. Even that is taking time off your schedule, and you cannot afford it. If, on the other hand, the still-man had a credit of x minutes per day, authorised by head office, and allowed for on your schedule, the situation would be a little less haphazard. Although my long experience has taught me when and when not to attempt a still, I feel it is left a little too much to the judgment of the operator, and it becomes particularly difficult when a film is running behind schedule. However, on the whole, I have found directors \'ery helj^ful, and appreciative of this particular difficulty, although I maintain it should not exist at all. Next, for you. Chief Cameraman. You are usually the most sympathetic person for stills to deal with. At least you appreciate the photographic problems of lighting and laboratory work. But be you the best from a cine point of view, it does not necessarilv follow that your set-up is ideal for the still-man. Firstly, you light for action and movement of artistes from one place to another ; but you could not guarantee that any individual frame after the action has started would be perfectly composed and lit, yet the general effect on the whole will be satisfactory. Therefore, the still-man needs to move a light or two to get the same effect static that you get in mo\'ement. Then again, you use a much faster stock, and a lens with much greater depth than the still camera uses. So adjustments must be made wdien circumstances warrant. And that can only happen when you have finished a sequence. The worst experience of that I ever had was some years ago, when working with a foreign "Ace" (! ! !) Cameraman, when I had to re-light e\ery sequence almost entirely to make any still at all. I claim no medals ; the "Ace" was fired before the film was finished, and another cameraman brought in, but not before the "Ace" and m}'self had had a few words about moving lamps for stills. Mv experience of camera men on the whole is that the more they know of their jobs the less they interfere with others in allied branches. To conclude. I must mention the non-technical departments who co-operate with the still-men. I refer to the electricians, carpenters, painters, and property men, the originators of all the practical jokes on still-men, and of the remarks concerning their doubtful ancestry, which I believe are resented in some quarters. About them I sa\' that their valuable assistance, usually carried out in a cheerful spirit, has gone a long way to help me say "O.K. FOR Stills." Important Journal Developments This number sees the completion of \'olume 2. There are two important developments commencing with our next volume. 1. Publication will be every other month, tiiat is 6 issues per annum, instead of quarterly as heretofore. The first number of Volume 3 will therefore be published on April 1st. The size and price (9d or 6d to A.C.T. members) will remain unchanged, and the adjusted subscription rates in accordance with more frequent publication are 5/6 per annum, post free, or 4/ per annum, post free, to A.C.T. members. May we take this opportunity to remind all readers that the best way to ensure regular delivery is by placing an annual subscription. 2. Technical Abstracts, until now published separately and issued free to members, will in future (commencing with this present issue) be incorporated in the Journal. Index for Volume Two VoLL'Mii Two is completed with publication of this numl)er. An Index will be available by about the middle of February. A copy maj' be obtained upon application to the Journal offices, or will be included in x'olumes bound by the printers of tlie Journal, details of whicli arc advertised elsewhere.