Educational film magazine; (19-)

Established January, 1919 AL The International Authority of the Non-Theatrical Motion Picture Field Covering Educational, Scientific, Agricultural, Literary, Historical, Juvenile. Govermental, Religious, Travel Scenic, Social Welfare, Industrial, and Cultural Motion Pictures PublUhed Monthly at White Plains, N. Y., and SS West 4Snd Street (Aeolian Hall), New York City DOLPH EASTMAN, Editor and Puhlisher Vol. V. JANUARY, 1921 No. 1 WE BEGIN OUR THIRD YEAR EDUCATIONAL Film Magazine has closed its second year of existence and has entered upon its third. Looking back over that stretch of twenty-four months and the months of preliminary effort before the first issue timidly crawled into the light, we can heave a grateful sigh of relief that the period of struggle is about over. It was a steep grade and a rocky hill, but we climbed it. And now that we are at the brow of the hill and can see some of the surrounding coimtry and the vast expanse leading on and on, up still higher hills, into the rarer region of cloud-topped mountains, what shall we say of the future? Whither will it take us—whither are the educational motion picture and its sponsors headed? For, as we havfe said before, the future of the educational or serious-purpose film and the future of this magazine are inevitably and inextricably bound together. Whether we are to lead or to fol- low depends upon developments within the next year or two. Just now it looks as though Educational i Film Magazine would take the initiative in many I of the vital movements for visual education, insofar I as an organ of this character can and should. An 1 instance of this leadership is found in our recently I formed association with the General Federation of ! Women's Clubs, a national organization of 2,500,000 ' women represented by some 50,000 clubs through- out the United States. Their national chairman of motion pictures is editing our department "Woman i and the Film" and contributing to it each month con- i structively valuable ideas and suggestions to be ! brought before thousands of the leading women of ! the land. Another instance of our desire to serve, and not to be served, is the announcement in this issue, for the first time in motion picture and lantern slide history, of a Loose-Leaf Catalog and Information Service devoted to the complete, accurate, and up- to-date listing of all available films and slide sets in our field, producers, distributors, exchanges, ap- paratus and accessories of all kinds, and an indi- vidual service, necessarily limited to subscribers, on any subject or problem requiring more detailed or specific information. We hope that the efforts of our Catalog Department, Special Service Department, and Information Bureau, which have brought about this important innovation, will meet with the re- sponse from our present and prospective subscribers which they merit. Within the near future we expect to make other* announcements of keen interest and value to our readers and advertisers—forward steps which will, we believe, have no small bearing upon immediate and forthcoming developments in the non-theatrical motion picture field and in the growing movement for visual education. WHY DUPLICATION? IN the article on "The Educational Film in Ger- many" by Paul P. Foster, begun in our Decem- ber number and completed in this issue, it was stated •that "the producing companies are careful to avoid duplication, and if one firm plans a series of natural history subjects, for example, its competitors avoid that particular field and select another." Shall Germany, our late enemy, point the way for our educational film producers in this respect? Must the latter persist in needless and wasteful dup- lication of effort? Let them specialize, as the mem- bers of other trades and profession do, in that par- ticular line of effort which that particular individual or organization knows best or is best fitted to handle from training and experience directed towards such end. Let us not have duplication of even the smallest part of a reel, for it should be an easy matter to ob- tain the use of a bit of negative and intelligent co- operation is far better for all concerned than costly and wasteful competition.