FilmIndia (1946)

Neena becomes Meera in "Meerabai" produced and directed by Mr. W. Z. Ahmed for Shalimar Pictures puts a stick here, to help a plant to grow straight, and cuts a branch there, that the whole tree may thrive better and a good harvest result. Of course, this way of directing requires in:elligent actors. At this point I would like to mention Mr. Paul Muni, whom I consider one of the most intelligent actors of our day. Imagine, Zo'a's tremendous scene in the courtroom was the first and only take! Contrary to the common opinion, I believe in first takes. When a scene is taken over and over again, the actor is tired and bound to become selfconscious. Then his acting is not at its best. So since intelligence is rare among actors, too, proper casting is one of the main factors of success. CAMERAMAN IN TUNE "Now, I take it you all know the significance of the camera. It is through this medium that the story is told. Since the camera is handled by a specialist, the director has to work closely with that man, which is the cameraman. This relationship can not be too intimate. He is really to the director what the brush is to tinpainter. It is through the technical possibilities of the cameraman that the ideas of the director can be transformed from abstract to concrete form. Therefore, director and cameraman should have almost the same phi'osophy of life, but by all means the same artistic viewpoints. Only then, the beautiful unity of conception and form will enchant the audience. ' In order to get this completeness, the camera should always be in the right position and should never move at the wrong time. Camera technique is what diction is to the writer — the director's style of expression. Yet two men never see alike, never react alike, and the tragedy of relativity is frequently discovered too late, in the projection room, and not all studios allow retakes, especially not for "technical reasons," That is exactly what the studio calls it when you are artistically not satisfied. That is of minor importance to them. But, if a kiss or a leg is not shown long enough, then you can be sure of retakes. "Only sometimes there are retakes asked for other reasons. For instance: the scene when Dreyfus leaves the prison on Devil's Island was at first not so well liked. I was asked to shoot it once more, showing Dreyfus closer and having him leave the prison directly, without going back and forth. I did as I was asked, to prove that the first form of the scene April, 1946 was right, and, in the end, my original scene was chosen. This proves to you the importance of a definite set up of the camera. The quality of your film depends nol only on what you shoot — but how you shoot it. This must be planned by the director and carried out by the cameraman. How \ou can make or break a scene through a set up, I will show you with another example: "The scene between Zo!a and his wife — so superbly performed by Miss Gloria Holclen — after Cezanne leaves Zola and he tells his wife what Cezanne had said to him and all his reflections on the break of this friendship. This scene was written to be p'ayed while walking from one room into another. That would have spoiled a beautiful scene, because not only had Zola walked with Cezanne through the rooms a few moments before, but after the tragic break the scene must come to a rest. "Therefore, I decided to play it as you have seen it: Zola with his wife sitting at the fireplace. Only in this way, the value the writer wanted was brought out. Very often, as in the case just mentioned, a scene may in itself read all right, but the picture as a who'e, and not the scene, has to be considered. This leads us to another vital point in motion pictures — the rhythm. And with rhythm is connected film cutting. RHYTHM OF A PICTURE "Cutting is not merely a method ot loining separate scenes or pieces, but is actual'y a method of deliberate and compulsory guidance for the spectators. It is quite obvious that such an important task should not be done without the director. Visua'ize, it you can. a major operation being performed by a first-aid man. He could not help cutting into the life-giving arteries and sinews, which only the surgeon knows how to avoid. The same goes for motion pictures. Only the director can avoid hurting the life of the story, so cutting should be done in consultation with him. "But film art is yet in its childhood. As time goes on, the motion picture artists, not the directors alone, will continue and eventually win their fight for creative freedom, for the benefit of better pictures, to enlighten intelligent audiences." (Cinema Progress). 45