International Review of Educational Cinematography (Jan-Dec 1931)

— 1057 In his preface he says that it was his desire to achieve the greatest simplicity of explanation, avoiding as far as at nil feasible all theoretical treatment and thereby making the book comprehensible even to those who have no technical knowledge. But the author's modest prefatory note was necessarily surpassed by his particular competency and knowledge of his subject. The volume deals with both the optical parts of the material and of the film in its various forms and sizes ; it points out the numerous causes of error in the negative process and in the apparatus and accessories themselves. The second part deals with the use of film material for turning, for makeup, for objects and for manusccripts. A full appendix gives information on the coloured film, the sound film for amateurs, a subject of the greatest and most up to date interest, on amateur cinemalographv in its various forms; it includes a short but valuable collection of photographic formulae. Mr. Cauda's volume is undeniably original. It is the work of a student and, above all, of a demonstrator of photo-cinematographic problems. This in itself would be sufficient to make the book exceedingly interesting and to guarantee it a well deserved popularity among all those to whom the cinema does not mean a commercial end but a simple possibility of artistic entertainment and persona! culture. Der Schvialfilmer, practial hints for small size films and short films (Kleinfilm), by Fr. Willy Frerk, Second revised and enlarged edition with 105 illustrations and two artistic supplements. Pbotokino verlag G. m. 5. H. Berlin, S. 14 Stallschreiber, strasse 33. One of the greatest achievements of Fr. Willy Frerk, who was among the first popularisers of the film for aitiataurs, is t» have made a collection of the various experiments in this field, completing them with remarks by com petent authorities, and offering the public a practical survey of one of the most interesting aspects of cinematography. Today there is hardly an amateur einematographer who is not acquainted with Freerk's book and a second edition of the volume had become imperative. Although no alterations have been made in the original text, the book has been enlarged by 113 pages and contains all information that may be useful to amateurs desirous of achieving accurate work. All innovations in cinematographical apparatus are accurately described. News' of a general kind such as a list of films accessible to the amateur follow, including all useful details regarding size, sensitivity, length, etc. There is also a list of foreign apparatus and projections and a price list of fees demanded by the principal firms for developing, printing, reducing, enlarging, captions, positives," etc. Scpp Algeier. The Search for the Image. A volume of 160 pages with 156 illustrations, published at Stockholm in 1931 by J. Engelhorn. It gives the results of eighteen years of filming in the Arctic regions and mountain districts. This is a very interesting book, which for the first time gives an idea in an accurate form of the infinite difficulties encountered by operators who are called upon to film the spectacles of nature. The spectator of a film, comfortably seated in an armchair of a cinema hall, does not always realise the whole range of more of less dangerous adventures which the cinematographic operator has had to confront, the exceptional nerve tension to which he is exposed and the heroism which is often necessary to enable the taking of a few metres of film in mountain or glacier districts. For the first time this work of Sepp Algeier, a cinematographic operator and ski champion, makes it possible for us to get a glimpse of the magnificent regions, bristling' with dangers where films of the