Motion Picture News (Sept-Oct 1918)

2430 Motion Picture News C eurrt e v su Laboratory 2 The Bell & Howell Splicing Machine THE motion picture business is essentially an advertising business and certain departments of it are in the nature of things thoroughly advertised. There is, for example, no lack of publicity concerning the producing or exhibiting departments of the business. Fig. 1. — Old Style Splice But there is another department of the business of equal importance with those just mentioned, which is pretty generally overlooked. No dramatic interest attaches to the mechanical processes of the motion picture business, and there is nothing about them to arouse either vigorous denunciation or extravagant praise. But the importance of these processes is fundamental, since they are the foundation of the making and exhibiting of all motion pictures. Fig. 2. — Bell & Howell Splice Manufacturers of motion picture machinery have, during the past few years, gone quietly about the work of standardizing the mechanical processes of the industry. One of these processes — that of splicing the film — seems, however, to have been quite overlooked until lately. Film folks from laboratory to projecting room have, from the beginning, scraped two piece% of film more or less carefully; put some cement on the scraped places, laid one piece on top of the other and formed the splice illustrated by Fig. 1. Perhaps " patch " is a better word than " splice " just here. At all events, this method of joining film has many drawbacks. The film is doubled in thickness at the splice and is naturally stiffer there than at any other point, and so it "jumps" the sprocket. The stif fening of the film makes it less pliable, thus weakening the bond of the cement, and so the film is easily pulled apart at the splice. Other disadvantages of this method will suggest themselves, and they are so numerous as to make the patching of film splices an item for consideration in every exchange and laboratory. Of course, such a condition of things demands correction in the interest of economy and efficiency, and the machine here illustrated (Fig. 3), is offered as a solution of what has become a serious problem. The Bell & Howell Standard Film Splicing Machine produces a splice such as that illustrated in Fig. 2, which, like Fig. 1, represents a magnification of 40 diameters. It will be noticed that this spice is but one-third as wide as the old style splice, and that instead of doubling the thickness of the film, it adds but two and one-half thousandths of an inch to its thickness. This splice does not stiffen the film, nor lessen its pliability, and it follows that the spliced sections are much more firmly joined than by the old method. And, what is of just as much importance, it does not cause the film to "jump" the sprocket. In short, it is about all that the old splice is not, but ought to be. This machine qualifies for a place among the standardized machines and instruments made by the Bell & Howell Company, since it standardizes the width and thickness of the splice and its relation to the frame line and the perforations. The new machine has already found its way into a large number of the leading laboratories of the country and unsolicited orders have come in for export shipment. Fig. 3. — Bell & Howell Splicing Machine Craftsmen Laboratories Increase Floor Space and Equipment WHEN the Craftsmen Film Laboratories at 251 West 19th Street, New York City, were opened a little over a year ago, we gave a description of their efficient arrangements and modern equipment (Camera Dept., NEWS of August 4, 1917), but the growth of this firm's business, due to their policy of turning out technically perfect film, has necessitated a great increase over their original floor space, and the installation of many new machines and devices. The interest taken by the concern in the technique of film production and processing makes the Craftsmen Laboratories an interesting place to visit at all times, and we have here to record the most important of the additions and changes which have been made to the equipment, and in the former arrangements of this plant. The added space which has been taken by the Craftsmen Laboratories consists of an entire floor, which is the second floor at 251 West 19th Street, the original laboratory being housed on the floor above. The executive offices have, of course, been moved down to the second floor, for the convenience of customers, as have also the negative assembling department, the negative developing department, and the title-making department. In addition a large projection room, where a good-sized screen picture may be viewed at a comfortable distance, has been installed on the second floor, and may be reached by visitors with the minimum of inconvenience. Even under the more restricted arrangements prevailing when the entire laboratory was on the third floor, negatives were always developed in a separate room at the Craftsmen plant, but a new negative developing room has been fitted up on the second floor. The air for this room is filtered by a system which completely changes it every three minutes, while the safe-lights are specially selected to permit the efficient handling of the very rapid modern negative stock. No metal pegs are to be found in the film racks, or frames, used in the Craftsmen Laboratory, but instead the racks are provided with wooden pegs. Next to this negative developing room is a special drying room for negatives, which is one of the recent additions, located on the second floor. Here also the air is specially purified to exclude all dust, and three large drying drums accommodate the films