Home Movies (1953)

Movie Quiz By JOE REIMER (J. What is a common fault of many home movies? A. Most home movies are pleasing pictures as such but they lack planning, story outlines and continuity; they do not have sufficient audienceappeal. The remedy for this is study of magazine articles and good books plus experience in making home movies. * * » Q. Why is it bad camera technique to allow a subject to cross the extreme camera area at close range without also panning the camera to follow it? A. A subject that crosses the entire camera area at right angles from one side to the other is likely to result in nothing more than a confused blur — unless the camera is panned to follow il. Even then, panning on objects at too close range is not likely to result in the best pictures. * # » Q. In the making of my home movies, I am the director as well as the photographer. What is a good director supposed to do? A. Here are some of the requirements of a good film director: 1. He should have the story clearly in mind and be able to explain to the actors what they are to do. 2. Be able to invent and suggest bits of action that may make the picture more interesting. 3. Be able to inspire confidence in the actors and get them to do their best work as a team. 4. Be able to recognize good acting and help make the players forget, to a degree, the presence of the camera. 5. To get a balanced performance from all the actors and keep each character in his proper perspective with respect to the whole story. Wbi * * * Q. The action in my movies is sometimes too fast and sometimes too slow, ft hat is the correct speed to shoot to get natural action? A. Two different speeds, 16 f.p.s. and 24 f.p.s., will produce natural action, as long as the film is projected at the same speed that it was photographed. * * * (J. How much film does my camera use per second? A. In 10 seconds your 8mm camera will utilize 2 feet at 16 f.p.s. At 24 f.p.s.. it will need 3 feet. In 10 second your 16mm camera v.il lrequire 4 feet at 16 f.p.s. At 24 f.p.s. it will use 6 feet. • See QUIZ on Poge 198 short cuts in ANIMATION By HOWARD WYRAUCH I F you have constructed the animation stand described in the March issue and the frame and drawing board in this month's Cine Workshop, you are in the animated cartoon business. What's that you say? You can't draw! Well, nearly everyone can draw a little or knows someone who can. We must recognize from the outset that our productions will never provide serious competition to Mr. Disney. I have been making animated cartoon sequences for home movies and for industrial films for many years and while I get a tremendous thrill in seeing characters I've created cavort on the screen, I must confess that they are crude alongside the Disney masterpieces. Mr. Disney employs hundreds of specialists-animators, "in-bet weeners", story men, sound technicians and cameramen. But if you are planning a cartoon sequence, chances are you will fill all or most of these tasks. So some short-cuts are necessary. Space would not permit a description herewith of all the basic steps in animated cartooning. I suggest for the beginner, the two booklets on this subject in the Walter T. Foster series, "Animated Cartoons" and "Advanced Animation." Animated cartoons are first drawn on light paper using the afore-mentioned illuminated drawing board. Sheet size is 9l/£"xl2" with standard three-hole punching to register the drawings. When a sequence is completed, it is then inked in, or traced on celluloid sheets or "cells" as they are known in the trade, the same size as the paper with similar punching. These permit the central figures in a scene to move over fixed backgrounds. If each frame represented a complete drawing, it would be an impossible task to make animated cartoons. Let us take one of the illustrations for example, and in steps show how it was accomplished. The cave man. laboriously chiselling an invoice is a good example. First, the background was made of variously-colored sheets • See ANIMATION on Page 184 For a film showing the unnecessary steps taken by a plant operator in his job, this "flow diagram" was animated showing his route interspersed with live action shots of the worker in action. The cut-out arrow was moved a fraction of an inch for each frame taken. A simple technique, but very effective. Three frame enlargements from a film animated by the author show samples of cycle or repeated action .The cave man continually bangs his chisel, the monk writes with his pen and the cop writes his ticket while the wife rants and raves as thechild bawls, but all else in these scenes remains constant through the use of "cells". Only six drawings were required for each of these scenes. 183