International projectionist (Jan-Dec 1955)

VOLUME XXX TERN AT 10 HflHaiiiiHHHBl ■flUJUJWS JUNE 1955 NUMBER 6 Prevention of Damage to Prints By ROBERT A. MITCHELL I. Inspection and Repair of Release Prints NO MATTER how good the projection equipment may be, the results on the screen cannot be satisfactory if the film be defective or damaged. Print quality is not always as good as it should be, and complaints of "poor focus" are on the increase. Projectionists know that the picture on the screen cannot be clearer than the picture on the film. Scratches, torn perforations, and other forms of film damage also militate against good projection. Film may be damaged in many ways. Some of the causes of print damage are beyond the projectionist's control ; but we must face the fact that many injuries, some of them irreparable, are inflicted by improper handling in the projection room. And the term "improper handling" may be extended to include the use of worn and maladjusted projection equipment, thus mutilation of prints is not always the projectionist's fault. Shipping Damage It is usually easy to distinguish the effects of normal wear from the inevitable results of injudicious and careless treatment of film. Lack of adequate inspection of prints in the film exchanges, defective splices made by inexperienced examiners, and the continued use of bent reels and damaged shipping cases all contribute to film mutilation. The projectionist has learned from experience to look for broken and torn edges on prints that arrive at the theatre in shipping cases so badly crushed that they have to be opened with the aid of a hammer, and the reels extracted with pliers. Boxes of film are sometimes handled rather roughly in railway stations, so it isn't surprising that the reels and cases get battered up after years of use. What really embitters the projectionist, however, is the refusal of many film exchanges to repair or replace "dished" shipping cases and "sprung" reels. FIG. 1. Torn sprocket holes may be "notched" with the scissors to provide smooth passage of the film. Many authorities, however, disapprove of this practice. More than two consecutive torn perforations require that the film be cut and spliced. Thus the projectionist's day often begins on a sour note, and his mood is bound to darken when inspection of the film reveals defects which should have been repaired by the exchange. He is forced to make the best of a bad situation, and only in the worst cases refuse absolutely to run the film. Exchanges are supposed to supply prints in runable condition; but the projectionist who projects film from the shipping reels without prior inspection usually finds himself in serious trouble. Inspection Procedure Film is inspected by allowing it to run between thumb and forefinger while rewinding it for the first time. The film is cupped only very gently during inspection, inasmuch as severe cupping may split the perforation margins or even crack the film down the middle if the print be dry and brittle. The whole idea is to hold the film lightly in such a way that splices and torn places can be detected when they pass through the fingers. Whatever procedure is followed, great care must be taken to avoid scratching the film. Exchange "inspectresses" wear cotton gloves while inspecting prints, which may be one of the reasons so many defective splices apparently escape their attention. Most projectionists use their bare hands to locate defects which might cause film breaks and stripped gears in the projectors. There are many defects to look for. Torn perforations and small nicks in the edges of the film demand attention. Rough and nicked edges may be corrected by trimming the edge of the INTERNATIONAL PROJECTIONIST JUNE 1955