Motion Picture News (Sep - Oct 1926)

882 Motion P i c t H r e N c %v s Clean Film Makes Clear Pictures Lack of Proper Cleansing Equipment Largely Responsible for Blurred Presentations, Says Film Depot Executive By Trevor Faulkner In Charge of Film Depot, Famous Players-Lasky Corporation (Paper presented before the Society of Motion Picture Engineers) IX connection with a department of my firm which is concerned with the distrit)ution of positive film, I have been interested since very early days in the production of an efficient film-cleaning machine. The machine which I am about to defscribe to you has been installed after much experiment and is one which very satisfactorilv cleans and revitalizes dirty film. ■ " That film should become soiled is in the nature of things. In practically all cases the projection booth is in the most remote l)art of the theatre, where it is seldom under the care of a janitor or porter, and in too many cases is hardly ever inspected by the manager. This means the periodical accumulation of dust and dirt till -the operator is forced to have a "house cleaning." It is seldom that you will find the floor of a booth free from grit and oil, which is most harmful if the film has to be "spilled" to secure uninterrupted screen presentation during a minor accident. Constant Flow of Dust Again, on account of the booth being at the highest point of a theatre, and usually with an exhaust fan in it, most of the dust that arises from the constant stir of patronage is drawn into the booth and necessarily thrcnigh the port holes in front of the projection machines. So much for the conditions supplying dirt. Now let us consider our stock or ware and its handling. When positive film is first released, it is more sensitive to damage than when older, and consequently more care must be used in its handling. Regardless of any prior waxing the film may have iiad. to prevent this probable damage the Mr. Faulktier's ex peri merits tvilh ihr Divorsky uitichinr resulted in one tvhich does the required tcork quickly and inexpensively "operator" often .applies oil to the film. Then, there have been cases known where the unfortunate film runs through a continuous bath of lubricating oil. In one make of a projection machine, when the projector is tilted to fit the angle at whicii the light rays must be thrown to reach tiie screen, there is a receptacle created at tiie base of the mechanism that is capable oi' receiving and holding a sTifficient amount of drainage oil to give a long lowei' loop a steady bath. Sometimes the film gets a constant spray or sprinkle of oil through a worn intermittent bearing. It is also customary for the operator to have a pan placed on the floor under the projector to catch the oil drip from the mechanism, and often this pan, with more or less oil in it, will also catch 'the ends of the film as the operator is either threading uj) tlic machine or is taking the film out of the lower magazine. You can rightfully place the blame for oil on film to one or all of these conditions, for in no other way does film ever come in contact with oil. Motion picture film in its rapid passage through the machine may become charged by friction with static electricity which will enable it to attract and attach any dust in its vicinity. Consequently when the doors of an enclosed projector are opened or when the film is "spilled" it becomes plentifully coated with lint and dirt which it annexes permanently if there is any oil to act as a cement. Further passages through the projector rolls the mixture in until a very objectional layer coats both emulsion and base. W ash Fluids The projectionist is quite aware that a fiiu' sparkling picture can only be produced from clean film; nevertheless, in too many cases the presentation is marred because he has no equipment for securing this cleanliness. In considering cleaning maciiines, we have had in mind the importance of the wash fluid which is actually to do the work. It must be non-inflammable, give off no explosive or poisonous gases, and be fi-ee from any acids or alkalis that nnght attach the silver image, and furthermore it must be cheap. We have been fortunate enough to secure such a solution and are using it daily in our department with very satisfactory results. At this stage we were able to enlist the c()-operatio!i of the manufacturer then making the best machine on the market. He agreed over an extended period to exploit cei"tain of our ideas and make any changes necessary to carry them out. We are pleased to say that the experiments liave resulted in a cleaning nuichine which leally does the required work quickly and inexpensively. We find that our operators can clean twelve to fifteen reels an hour. As they come off the machine. th(>v ;ire lianded to the inspector, tlic reel hands are The film passes through flannel strips fed from reels R-1 and R-2 and are slowly driven in an opposite direction placed in position, and the work is ready to be placed in the vaults. The output is thus about one hundred reels a day per unit. Figures 1 and 2 show the actual machine, which is made by the Dworsky Film Machine Corporation. The film is first passed through a bath of the wash solution, contained in a trough A, about eight inches being submerged at a time. Felt brushes submerged in the liquid brush both sides of the film. The film then travels up through a series of four rubber wipers at B, suspended on a spring suspension at the same angle, which wipe the film very much in the manner that a window cleaning "sqeegee" wipes the water from a freshly washed window pane. The film then passes between flannel strijjs fed from reels Rl and R2 and slowly driven in an opposite direction to that in which the film is traveling. The points of contact with these strips are arranged at offsetting i>oints, so that the tension of the film is sufficient to polish it thoroughly on both sides. The film then passes through two rubber rollers at C, which simjily ])ull the film through the machine. The film is then wound on a reel by an autojnatic take-up similar to the take-up on the lower magazine of a projection machine. The entire operation re(juires about 4V2 niinutes to the thousandfoot reel of film. Filters Help The solution tank holds apj)roxinuitely one quart of tiie cleaning fluid, which is drained off into a filter after every seventh or eighth reel. After passing through the filter, the fluid can be used as often as it is thoroughly filteivd and freed from the dirt thjit it carries after it has cleaned the seven or eight reels. By actual measurements, this ti]t<'r from a ilav's work of