Motion Picture Herald (Oct-Dec 1956)

"DISJOINTED PROGRAMS" and the SHORT SUBJECT PLACE IN THE THEATRE BY WALTER BROOKS Director, Managers’ Round Table Martin Quigley's recent and pertinent editorial in the HERALD and MOTION PICTURE DAILY, on the subject of "Disjointed Presentation" has had a wide and favorable response from the industry. Mr. Quigley was aiming at the practice of timing feature presentations so that a greater number might see good pictures properly, from beginning to end, rather than starting in the middle, with consequent interruption of continuity, and diminished appreciation for the product in its entirety. We have helped to cultivate the public's habit of seeing pictures backward, which is enough to damage even the best product. But aside from timing, there is a fundamental matter of programming which creates this bad situation, and has done so, for many years. It is the policy of double features, and the consequent loss, or lack of short subjects in program building. If and when the public has a "cushion" of short subjects, with a single feature, they may be safer in the possibility of seeing the "big" picture from beginning to end. Short subjects have the merit of variety and spice. There is nothing new in this argument, and for many years we have considered the short films as "the spice of the program." Similarly, a double feature bill is a heavy meal of corned beef and cabbage, without even the benefit of mustard to savor the dish. Can See Evidence You can see the evidence of what has happened to us, on all sides. Television can — and does — supply as many as six feature films, free, every day in the year, at home. Gluttons for this kind of punishment can stay at home and like it. The theatre can no longer compete with quantity as a measure. If we cannot provide something new and different, something vastly better, we need not worry about staying in business. We'll be out of business — and we are, in those situations where old policies prevail. There are whole areas of this country that have long been known as "single feature territory" — and nobody can say that these areas have lost in any way by sticking to their basic program idea of concentration on quality, and diversification through short films. Feature films have been growing longer, and therefore short films have been crowded more and more for screen time. Newsreels in theatres became little more than a few brief minutes of mere flashes — but the public likes newsreels, and always did. CBS-TV boasts that it receives daily "more than a mile" of newsfilm from 250 camera correspondents, the equivalent of two feature-length films, and that this is edited so only the top of the news is presented, 12 minutes of it, every day in the week. Furthermore, they can put news on the air simultaneously with the event itself, and reach 30,000,000 TV sets in as many American homes in faster time than we could supply the first 30 theatres as first runs. We would be hopelessly outclassed, if it were not for one little thing. Chance to Compete Our job has changed, in a changing world. We now have the opportunity to compete on grounds where television cannot— on our big screen, in our fine color, and now, we must provide the fine "magazine" style of news reporting. We are the source of the color and significance of the news, following the daily press. After all, Time and Life have never been hurt by the newspapers — in fact, quite the opposite, because the public in ever-increasing numbers wait and buy the slick-paper magazines to read the final news story. Similarly, we have extraordinary travel films today that far transcend anything we have ever had before, or that television will have for many years to come. Our travel films in VistaVision, CinemaScope and new dimensions bring world travel to your theatre chair, in a manner that the public has never been able to afford before. You needn't be told that there are millions who want to see the world, and will never see it any other way, unless it is in the colorphotography of National Geographic magazine. We've seen some travel films that were not only as good but perhaps better than being on the scene. Cartoons Grow Up Also, cartoons have grown up to adult stature. Now, instead of being all so very juvenile, they appeal to the more mature audience. In fact, the art and talent of the color cartoon studio, also in our new dimensions, was never greater than it is right now, nor the appeal to the public more certain as a box office potential. Television has cartoons that seem amateurish and outmoded in comparison. Your public will know the difference, and you will find all ages ready to buy animation in 'Scope and color on your big theatre screen. Your opportunity has never been so good. You are much better off than you may have thought. Short films, as such, have been discussed in these same terms for 40 years. As long ago as 1915, we had an early job with Educational Films Corporation, and watched that exclusive shorf film concern grow to major industry importance, through a dozen years. Every step of the way it was conced ed that short films were important and valuable and on all sides so many were in agreement. But, it was like the weather — so many people were talking about it, and so few did anything about it. In spite of wellbased beginnings and substantial growth, Educational went out of business. We were crowded out, through the inertia, the inactivity of booking and buying sources who treated short films as something strictly as a side line. Let's stop kicking short subjects around. Let's be the smart showmen that we're supposed to be, through years of solid experience, and put the short films back on the program — literally as "the spice of the program" — and as a well-rounded, wellbalanced bill of entertainment, carefully chosen and planned for both timing in the aggregate, and satisfaction in the final accounting. Your public will come to know your schedule, and the fact that they can see one good feature, and several short films with less concern with the clock, over their comings and goings. We can restore a properly joined presentation by the simple policy of building programs again, as good showmen always have done, by adding the ingredients with the skill of a good chef, for a gourmet's taste. British Subjects Have A Growing Audience Those who have never visited Britain and the Commonwealth nations and those who would like a nostalgic review of their earlier visits to those areas comprise the growing audience for British color shorts, according to the releasing agency, the British Information Service. Salient vignettes of British and Commonwealth life and customs are set forth in these shorts. Careful production mounting and handsome color are features of the offerings. British life and customs, birds-eye and closeup views of historically famous buildings and localities, and explorations of little-known facets of Commonwealth life are other features of the series, which have won a favorable advance reception from viewers in the United States. First British shorts were released in 1943 under the auspices of this group. They now appear at about the rate of three dozen per year, dealing with many topics and backgrounds. Ample attention is paid British pageantry, the life of the everyday folks, and the beauties of the countryside. Shorts now being released by the British Information Service include: “Highland Journey” (two reels); “Bridge of Time” (two reels); “Impression of London” (two reels) ; “Festival in Edinburgh” (two reels) and “The Lake District” (two reels.) 26 MOTION PICTURE HERALD, OCTOBER 27, 1956