Le Courrier Cinématographique (Jun 1921)

\ _ D LE COURRIER CINÉMATOGRAPHIQUE 5 00002000000860, 000020000000, a D00000200000080 ee (C) si ° 8 39 8 °29000000000°% *°920000000000° © 88 8 °0900000000002°°° *°200000000000°° Paris Mystérieux GRAND SÉRIAL FRANÇAIS : : EN 10 ÉPISODES :: :: 00000000000000,, 90000000000000,., o o 020000, 80° 20, 8 900000000° 000000 2 LE 200000000° 00000000 HE 200 EX Se 20000009 5002000000, 8 °00000000° o 9, CE 0000009004 0009000004 0002 %09 0°° °00° (©) A 08 5003 5 2000900000000 °°0090000n0000° o00080000000°%° °009900080000°° The French Film World In Search of realism Louis Mercanton’s Latest production completed As a result of a flying visit to London, which combined pleasure with business, Louis Mercanton is prepared to contemplate the possibility of attempting production in this country. Says the « Kinématograph Weekly ». Such a plan, would become possible by reason ofthe mobile studio which Louis Mercanton uses in his work. This portable studio equipment consist of a fleet of fuliy-equipped five-ton motor lorries all com/ plete with dynamos and lamps for the lighting of any scene to the distance of a quarter of a mile! from the lamps. For Louis Mercanton’s recent productions, Miarka and Phroso, this mobile studio was constantly in use; in fact, had Mr. Mercanton been forced to confine his work to the ordinary studio,’ these two films would have been robbed of 90 per cent. of their realism. In Phroso, for instance, some of the most picturesque backgrounds imaginable have been secured and scenes shot on the actual locations of the story. Phroso is based on the famous novel by. Sir Antony Hope and those who have read the story will know of the importance of the secret underground passage. In the ordinary course of events passage would have been constructed in thestudio, * but Louis Mercanton was enabled, by means of the portable equipment, to secure scenes in a real underground passage. Many of the scenes were taken onthe Islandof St. Margarets, wich is about’ three miles off Cannes in the Mediterranean. It was necessary to charter four steamtugs at a cost of 12,000 francs, and the company had to, journey to and from the island each day on electric launches. This was the first time that motoy vehicles had ever been seen at the island, which is about eight miles in diameter and inhabited only by the Guardian of the Citadel and a few fishermen. The underground passage scenes were taken in a natural grotto near Grasse, which consisted of a wonderful series of caverns 300 fett below the earth’s surface. To get his mobile studio to this spot he had to have a special road constructed. When the contents of the lorries had been assembled, the cables connected and carried into the caverns and the arc-lights installed in theinterior, the effect of the illumination on the coloured stalactites was very vivid. Nine different nationalities took partin Phroso, which is now being edited and titled. The titlerôle was played by an American, Malvina-Longfellow, and the part of Lord Wheatley, by an Englisman, Reginald Owen, and other parts were interpreted by a Sicilian (M. lo Turco), a Frenchman, Corsican, Armenian, Greek, Russian, and Swiss. Louis Mercanton was educated in England and spent many years in this country, being stage LR CR RS RS TR TS TS RSS Em A — 2 2 FX Pr Vous êtes en peine d’une excellente voiture pour transporter vos artistes et tourner vos films? Notez l'adresse de CENTRAL-AUT 15 bis, Rue de l’Église NEUILLY-sur-SEINE Téléphone : NEUILLY 13-58 el souvenez-vous qu'il fait la location —= à la journée —=