How to add sound to amateur films (1954)

Climax and Interlude Every good film has a climax. If the film is bad, you must try to contrive one. If you have ever endured an omnibus edition of a serial thriller, you will know that it rushes from one situation to another with no breathing space between. A well-contrived plot emphasises the tenser moments by the introduction of quieter interludes. Without these interludes, the story is a monotonous succession of crises. By the end you are either worn out or bored stiff. In selecting music for a film, analyse the plot very broadly. Decide which points constitute the crises and which to treat as interludes. In a story film, see if there are two main themes : hero and heroine, or hero and villain. Many successful plots are constructed on the same plan as a sonata movement in music. There is a first theme (hero) and a second theme (villain). These are established separately and then you have an interplay or development of the two themes. This reaches the main climax, followed by a repetition of the original themes. In music this repetition is called the recapitulation. In the film it may threaten to be a decapitation. The hero, about to be lynched, reaffirms that he stands for all that is fine. The villain, apparently triumphant, declares that he will stoop to anything. Then there is a quick scuffle, a minor climax, and everything ends as it should. Learn to interpret a plot on these broad lines. Not only will you derive greater enjoyment from repeated screenings of a film, but you will be able to select music to convey that enjoyment to others. This is impossible if you do not understand "where the film is going". Coherence Not every film is a story film, of course. The majority of amateur films are concerned with summer holidays, or baby 111