The Educational screen (c1922-c1956])

*" The Educational Screen @*" •••■■■••■•"■•IIMtlfllllMtllMMIKIHniMMI t*lll*IMIIIIIIUlllllllllllll IIIUIIIIIKI tllllMHMIIMItllllllllllHI "*ll**llllllllllllllMiMHMIHMinilllMIMII»tHINMIMMIIIMIIMtlHHIIlHIIMMHIMra AMATEUR FILM MAKING Coaduacd by Dwicht R. Furnbss | Director of Publicity, Methodist Episcopal Board of BJuctition I QlllllllllilllllllllMIIIIMItlllllllKMtMttlHMlMIIMUMIItMMIItlBIIII Editing Films Most amateurs look forward to a time when all their films will be edited and titled. A task that most of us put off for an indefinite millennium. Editing films is not a difficult job but usually takes more time than one thinks. The first thing to do is to run the reel to be edited and study each scene. Stop the projector from time to time and jot down notes for guidance in cutting and rearranging scenes. If you use a dictaphone you may talk into it as the film runs and later listen to the instructions through the head phone as you edit each scene. If there are many scenes to be rearranged a simple editing board will help. This can be made from a board two feet by one and :i half into which rows of finishing nails are driven about 2 or 3 inches apart. Next rewind the film and start at the beginning and cut out of the film each scene that needs shifting in sequence. Roll up each scene and place it over a nail on the editing board in the order in which it will appear in the finished film. When the scenes have been cut apart and put in proper order one is ready to start splicing them together. If titjes are to go in and have been made they may be inserted in their proper places as the film is assembled. Before splicing each scene in run it through the projector and see that only that part of the scene that makes a definite contribution to the development of the subject is included. ■iiiiiitiiiiii inillllllMIIIIIIMIIIHIIIMIIIIMIIIIIMIIIIItlllllllllllM "B Sound Films So far no equipment has be^n placed on the market with which the amateur can make his own sound pictures. Xor is it likely that inexpensive equipment with which he can do it will be developed in the near future. Sound accompaniment for motion pictures is produced in two ways. One way is to record the sound on a phonograph record synchronized with the action in the picture. The other is through an intricate arrangement by which sound vibrations are translated into light impulses that are recorded on the film itself alongside the pictures. The latter method is the more complicated of the two. The former offers more possibilities for the amateur inclined to experiment. If the experimenter is versed in radio he will first of all build a pick up arrangement for picking up sound recorded on the record like electric phonographs do, and amplifying it for a loud speaker. With a little ingenuity he will be able first to record the voice of a speaker, then after a few rehearsals photograph the speaker delivering the same speech so that the voice and picture synchronize. With a proper pick up, dictaphone cylinders may be used for recording or flat aluminum disc records now on the market for this purpose. As a project for a physics class the working out of a driving mechanism synchronizing the record and picture, so that both can be made at once, should prove inter esting. In such a case a radio microphone can be used for picking up the sound and the recording done electrically. Film Cement The average amateur uses film cement in such small quantities that the one or two ounce bottles sold by dealers last a long time. Should the amateur wish to make his oAvn cement the following formula will be found to work well on both flam and nonflam film. Amyl Acetate, 1/3 Acetone 1 /3 Glacial Acetic Acid 1/3 To this mixture should be added some film from which the gelatine emulsion has been removed with hot water. Otherwise the solvent action is too rapid and the film is weakened at the splice. The quantity can be determined by experiment. Two or three inches of 16mm. base for each ounce of cement can be tried as a starter. Shake from time to time until the film dissolves. Snow Pictures Snow scenes require much less exposure than ordinary landscapes. Stop down the lens to at least f 16 in sunlight or use a yellow filter to cut down the exposure. Questions and Answers The Educational Screen through this department will be glad to answer questions in regard to the problems of the amateur movie maker.