The Motion Picture and the Family (Oct 1934 - May 1937)

4 THE MOTION PICTURE AND THE FAMILY March 15, 1936 "Foiled Again" Satire Made In Doylestown It is doubtful if any photoplay appreciation class in the country has made more progress or enjoyed its work more thoroughly than that of the English department of Doylestown High School in Doylestown, Pennsylvania. The reason is largely because only a few weeks after the class was started the students undertook the production of a motion picture of their own, written, directed, costumed and photographed entirely by the club. To borrow the phraseology of Miss Margaret Kidder Lehman, head of the English Department, who writes of the experiment for The Motion Picture and the Family, "In the course of production the scenario underwent many changes. Having studied the directing of such genuises as Sternberg, Lubitsch and King Vidor and the acting of Charles Laughton, Lionel Barrymore, Fredric March and others, the students sought to incorporate some of the techniques of all of these personalities into their film." Describes Vicissitudes Miss Lehman further describes the trials and vicissitudes of the group as follows : "The scenario started as a tragedy, but after they had laughed sufficiently at the proposed plot the realization came to the writers that artistry was not so easily achieved as had been thought. "It was then agreed that the movie should be a satire on the usual western. The scenery included a lovelorn heroine about to be married, a villain who tied the shrieking damsel to the railroad tracks, a hero who arrived in the nick of time and the usual 'hearts and flowers' conclusion, accompanied by the suicide of the much moustachioed villain. "A farm with delightfully motheaten horses, a denuded buggy, a watch tower and nearby railroad track furnished the location for the combined efforts of the various committees. "After experimentation with various types of lighting it was decided that daylight was best for outdoor scenes. A 16 mm. camera was used and we discovered that practically all types of shots used in professional films could be used in modified form with even this simple apparatus. "The scenario was written with the intention of producing a talking picture. After several-days' experimentation the sound effect (Continued on Page 5) FILMS FOR THE PUPIL AND TEACHER .By Sarah McLean Mullen, Head of English Department and Co-ordinator of Visual Education, Abraham Lincoln High School, Los Angeles; Author of "How to Judge a Picture." Recent issues of this column have carried an outline for class discus sion of the motion picture as a dis^ tinctive art form. Such studies have become a commonly accepted part of instruction in English classes, usually under the designation of "Motion Picture Appreciation." Indeed, in many metropolitan high schools, separate courses in the subject are being offered as upper grade electives. There is often, in addition to the points covered in the outline, considerable subject matter which can be used to advantage in other classes as well. Apart from the obvious points of speech, dramaturgy and literature, teachers of art, foreign languages, geography, home economics, music, social studies and science will find current films valuable for purposes of illustration, reference, or class discussion. For example: Biological science classes will find value in The Story of Louis Pasteur (Warner Bros.). For music classes there is much material in both the incidental music and the supporting musical scores in The Crusades, Here's to Romance, Sanders of the River, Waltz Time in Vienna, Harmony Lane, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Metropolitan, A Night at the Opera, I Dream Too Much, Mutiny on the Bounty, Tale of Two Cities, Captain Blood, The Divine Spark, Last of the Pagans, Rose Marie, Rose of the Rancho, Follow the Fleet, Modern Times, The Bohemian Girl and Give Us This Night, which are here named in the order of their release dates. Classes in American History or Art will find interesting visual evidence regarding costume, architecture and home furnishings, as well as social manners and customs of the various periods, in Harmony Lane, Shipmates Forever, Way Down East, So Red the Rose, Rendezvous, The Littlest Rebel, Rose of the Rancho, Custer's Last Stand, Timothy's Quest, The Voice of Bugle Ann, "Ah Wilderness!" Little Lord Fauntleroy, Trail of the Lonesome Pine, Prisoner of Shark Island, Sutter's Gold and A Message to Garcia. LITTLE LORD FAUNTLEROY (Selznick International • United Artists) Frances Hodgson Burnett's classic as adapted by Hugh Walpole is an outstanding picture. Handsomely mounted, the settings, costumes and decorative details give indication of careful consideration of the period and the social environment to be portrayed. The story, frankly sentimental, shows the change wrought upon a cantankerous and selfish old English aristocrat through the influence of his admiring and affectionate grandson. Both Aubrey Smith as the Earl of Dorincourt and Freddie Bartholo' mew as Little Lord Fauntleroy, in diction, manner, and general char acterization give beautiful exam pies of "fine breeding." Both are sincere, believable, versatile, but consistent. The American friends of Ceddie, as well as the false claimants to the title, of entirely different social order, are nicely (Continued on Page 5) Appreciate Film Classics In Colorado WHAT'S NEXT IN HOLLYWOOD? By Alice Ames Winter AVAILABLE FREE Thii bulletin, published monthly, is available free to community leaders upon application to tbe Motion Picture Producer* & Distributors of America, Inc., 28 West 44th Street, New York CJtr. Address the editor of The Motion Picture and the FmmU?. Perhaps by the time this gets into print you will be seeing The Great Ziegfeld. The gorgeous spectacle is more than a spectacle, since in panorama it presents the whole development of the American show" as it circled around this picturesque, reckless, extravagant genius who thoroughly understood his public and thus built up his colorful success. Metro-GoldwynMayer have played it on a large sound stage . under . the . glow of million candle power incandescents. "Literally it comprises twenty shows in one, running the entertainment gamut from magnificent, elaborately staged musicals to honky-tonk burlesque, from the blatant din of fair midways to the brightest spot of the 'Gay White Way,' from the gayest comedy to the most powerful drama, and through all strides the spirit of America's master showman," says the Publicity Department of MetroGoldwyn-Mayer. This week we watched the shooting of the last scene, with our eyes popping out at its loveliness, as the great circular stage, with its pinnacle of columns and white satin draperies, swung around, revealing one exquisite group after another of lovely girls in enchanting costumes (well costumed!), dances and picturesque poses and music all combined. William Powell is playing Ziegfeld himself, Myrna Loy his (Continued on Page 6) "Unless our students develop wholesome interests and exercise good judgment in the selection of good movies and radio programs our efforts in the school today are in large measure fruitless." Such is the comment of William L. Wrinkle, director of the Secondary School of the Colorado State College of Education, where an unusually intelligent use has been made of motion pictures as an adjunct to education. In the secondary school, advice in the selection of moving pictures worth attending and radio programs worth listening to is given to all students through school and classroom notices. Pictures showing at all local theatres are listed weekly with green, red or yellow labels, indicating that the shows are recommended, advised against, or neither recommended nor advised against. Make Attendance Survey Over a period of 40 days from October 20 to November 30, 1935, a study was made of how the students reacted to this system. It was found that the aggregate attendance for the 40-day period on the part of 182 students was 1,489 or, in other words, that each student had attended an average of slightly more than eight shows. A comparison of variation in attendance in different age groups showed that 13 students attended 20 or more movies during the 40 days, or one show every other day. An equal number had attended no shows during this period. Investigations made over the same period of time showed that the average attendance at shows which were not recommended by the faculty was slightly more than one-third of the average attendance at the recommended shows. Ninetythree students, for example, attended Will Rogers' In Old Kentucky, as contrasted with 15 students who attended three shows which were not on the recommended list. When A Tale of Two Cities was shown at a local theatre all students enrolled in the secondary school presented themselves at the theatre following the noon hour instead of at the regular class, this being done by arrangement with the school authorities. Their attendance followed a one-hour assembly in which Dr. Ora B. Peake of the social studies division of the college and James Quillen of the secondary school social studies staff directed a discussion of the economic, social and political situation in France, leading up to the situation involved in the story. Mr. Wrinkle's comment regarding the effect of this type of study is as follows: "The movie, David Copperfield, probably did a better job of promoting a better acquaintance with the Dickens story than the great army of Dickens literature teachers has ever achieved."