Cinema News and Property Gazette Technical Supplement (1924-1925, 1943, 1946)

January 8, 1925. Supplement to THE CINEMA NEWS AND PROPERTY GAZETTE. II PROJECTION AND TREATMENT OF FILMS. SOUND ADVICE TO THE EXHIBITOR. INTERVIEW WITH MR GAVAZZI KING. A chat with Mr. W. Gavazzi King-, the able and esteemed general secretary of the Cinematograph Exhibitors' Association, is always interesting. A man of keen observation, he has unique opportunities of gauging the weak spots in the industry from every standpoint, and at the proper time he has the courage to criticise them. But at the same time he, unlike most critics, is ready to make suggestions for remedying the defects. In short, he is a critic who is not only destructive, but constructive. And that is a combination rarely t ■) be found. Never anxious to force himself or his views in the limelight, Mr. King exercises a remarkable' influence in a quiet and yet very effective manner in the introduction of reforms which mean much in raising the evidence which I can obtain, there appears to be, on the whole, a much better class of patrons attending the cinemas now than was the case prior to the war. The whole attitude of the picture-going public to-day is infinitely more critical, not only as to the character of the features offered, but as to the manner in which they are shown. It is essential, therefore, to retain this patronage, and naturally, of course, to extend it. The first point, consequently, to consider is projection. Very much which prevails to-day is far from satisfactory. This may arise — and doubtless does arise — from defective machines, or machines which have not received that constant care and attention which is absolutely essential if good projection is to be secured. W. GAVAZZI KING. General Secretary, C.E.A. trade to that position which it has a right to occupy in the entertainment world. Not without considerable hesitation, Mr. King consented to give one of our representatives a free expression of his views upon a subject on which exhibitors are very frequently taken to task — in relation to what may be called the technical side of their business. Asked what he considered the most important questions demanding urgent attention, Mr. King replied : <4 To my mind, they are, at the moment — projection, the treatment of films, the saving of current through the use of arc mirrors, and a careful selection of carbons. There is unquestionably a need to-day in many instances for scrapping old projectors and installing the more recent and approved up-to-date machines. From all the THE LENGTH OF FILMS. " There are two elements," proceeded Mr. King, " which tend to make the projection of a picture unsatisfactory. The first, and most serious, is the steady increase in the length of subjects without any corresponding extension in the time occupied by each performance, whether it be in separate houses or continuous shows. The necessity for maintaining adequate variety forces the pace at which the film is shown to an extent that almost inevitably greatly affects the resultant projection. It has also another result — and one which is too frequently brought to my personal notice — namely, injury to the film itself, perhaps, in the first instance, through slightly buckling, and then, owing to further use, creating damaged sprocket-holes, with consequent scratching and jumping. It is quite obvious that if an operator is compelled to rush his subjects through without there being any possible opportunity for him to clean his gate and rollers and adjust joins, or, what is too often necessary, make joins, the result on. the screen must inevitably be unsatisfactory. " Now, there was a time when the cine-going public accepted the result of such defects with more or less indifference. They are now highly critical. To everyone, therefore, who wishes to see the industry advance — and more particularly to those who realise the necessity from the exhibitors' point of view of increased attendance— attention to this side of the business is deeply important. " THE NEED FOR CABEFUL EDITING. " Have you any suggestion to make whereby these difficulties could be surmounted, or, at any rate, minimised? " inquired the interviewer. " Well," responded Mr. King, " in my film report I emphasise on every occasion, where it is possible, the length of a film as one of the characteristics worthy of consideration by the exhibitor. I ought to say, however, that I am more impressed with the seriousness, and, at the same time, the difficulty, of this point, because I am glad to be able to confess that since the paper which I read at the Scarborough Conference there has been a marked improvement in the general character