The educational screen (c1922-c1956])

Page 300 The Educational Screen One of the magic drawings made by the Cro-Magnons. he ties color areas together. When the magical pic- ture is finished the tools are replaced in the medicine pouch. The sorcerer recites his spell and they leave their pictured shrine. And today—after thousands of years—the composition of the deer is brilliant still." "Finally another artist draws what the magician told them would come true. In a forest stream the hunters found their game. With faith and skill they spear the fish. The leader sights the deer. With throwstick he brings down the deer. Homeward they go over the forest trails through rocky gorges, past long abandoned rock shelters. The women are glad to see them. Only when man has cared for his body does he turn to arts of narration and communication, and then, in play, he perfects his designs. Recording his skill as a hunter this man created narrative art, show- ing the deer, how and where he killed it. Thus art arose from diverse needs." QUESTION BOX ON SCHOOL FILM PRODUCTION Question: Can you give us some suggestions on making titles for a Kodachrome film? In our black and white films we have had printed titles made for us by a laboratory, but we would like something more artistic for our latest attempt, which is in color. Answer: There are several ways in which color titles can be produced by the amateur. There are numerous titling "kits" on the market. One type, for example, furnishes letters cut out of a sponge-rubber type of material. These are mounted on a suitable background, which may also be supplied in the kit. Other products supply the materials with instructions for making the letters and background. Some of these are intended for use in a titling device to which the camera is attached, while others may be photographed with a standard camera lens as one would photograph a poster, for instance. A variety of artistic effects may be obtained through the use of such com- mercially produced materials. Many amateurs have found it more ^satisfactory, as well as more economical, to use materials ana- devices immediately available. Most schools, particularly, have access to art materi- als and to people, students or teachers, with some artistic talent. Where this is the case, the procedure is quite obvious: an artistically drawn poster, with appropriate background and lettering, can be photographed as one would film any scene. A careful check of exposure and focus, and with some types of cameras, of parallax, is necessary. Some cameras are equipped with ground glass viewers by means of which one can look through the lens. If this is used, the parallox problem disappears. If your camera does not have the ground glass viewer, but the "finder" is in line with the lens, i. e. on top of the camera, the problem of parallox is simplified for the field actually covered by the lens is usually indicated by lines which indicate the vertical limita- tions of the scene. Where the viewer is on the side of the camera, although the field again may be indicated vertically, care- ful calculation of the horizontal parallox is necessary, for, in photographing near-by objects, the slight difference between the position of the lens and of the viewer becomes significant. The most certain way to check this is to mount the camera before loading it (we assume that a tripod is always used), and look through the lens to center the "shot". Then the film is in- serted, using great care not to move the camera. All titles can be placed in exactly the same position, and, if your original arrangement was accurate, they all will be centered. This "poster" technique can be most effective. It has the advantage of unlimited variety, suitable to the film subject, and lack of expense, plus the not inconsiderable significance of the creative opportunities it affords. A film on primary education, for instance, might well utilize typical child-created drawings, and even children's lettering. A very satisfactory adaptation of this system may be used where it is desirable to have all titles appear superimposed on a common background. The background, preferably dark, is first painted. (It should not be glossy, to avoid glare.) The lettering for each title is then done in white opaque paint on heavy cellophane, and each title is mounted over the background and photographed. Care must be taken to avoid any reflection of the light on the cellophane, but this is not difficult. In ex- posing such a shot, take the ''reading" from the background. If in doubt, it is better to slightly under-expose the background than to over-expose it. This cellophane-poster technique was recently employed with considerable artistic success in a film produced at Wesleyan University on the Navy Flight Preparatory School there. Rus- sell Limbach, the artist-in-residence at the University, painted an effective scene with a deep blue sky, and a black silhoutto of the "profile" of the "college row" (chapel spire, etc.) as the bottom border, and airplanes (also silhouetted) against the sky. A streak of light, presumably from an anti-aircraft search-light, runs diagonally across this dark background and "high-lights" the wing of one of the planes in the upper corner, showing the insignia. All titles, on cellophane, were photographed against this background, which symbolizes both the college and the flight school to which the college is "playing host." A common background such as this often aids indirectly in preserving the continuity of a film. For an illustration of another adaptation of the "poster" technique, w'hich was definitely designed for the purpose of continuity and symbolism, see Producing School Movies,^ page 37. In all such work, it is important to allow plenty of extra space around the borders of the background so that camera- inan may have some leeway in "matting out" the necessary amount. One other technique should be mentioned—the title super- imposed over an actual scene. This is simply a matter of double exposure. The scene is filmed, with the footage care- fully noted. The film is then rewound, and the title (either with light background, depei^ding on the lightjiess or darkness of the scene against which the letters must be read) is photo- graphed. Fades can by used as desired. The mechanics of making such double exposures have previously been discussed in this column in answer to a question on methods of producing transitions in film. In conclusion, let us urge that whatever method you decide to utilize, you do use color in your titles in all color films. Too often, an otherwise creditable production is dulled im- measurably by black and white titles, which, however skillfully done, are certain to look "shabby" in contrast to the brilliance of color on the screen. 1 Prodiicinc/ School Movies by Eleanor Child and Hardy Finch. Published by the National Council of Teachers of English.