Movie Makers (Jan-Dec 1949)

258 EMERGENCY TITLES How a roll of positive film and a few darkroom supplies can rescue an important screening GEORGE KIRSTEIN HAS IT happened to you, yet? You get a precious roll of film, you set up your titles slowly, you shoot them carefully, you wait impatiently for the film's return — and when it comes back, one title out of the entire batch is off-center! Or edge-fogged! Or too short! I recently had that experience when a roll of colored titles came back for a film which I was scheduled to show the following evening. And my off-center caption was the main title of the whole reel! Finally, after the initial shock had worn off, I remembered buying a roll of positive film about five years ago. It was outdated, and it was black and white — but it was film and, most important of all. I could develop it myself and at once. First, of course, I had to reshoot the title, which was lettered in yellow on a black background. Positive film, as many of you know, is very slow indeed (Weston 1 under tungsten), so that I placed an RSP-2 only 6 feet from the 5 by 8 inch title card and got a meter reading of f/5.6. The lens used was 2V2 inches in focal length, positioned at 5 feet from the iitle. For a photographic darkroom I temporarily commandeered the bathroom, blocking off its one window with a blanket. Here the extreme slowness and relative insensitivity of positive emulsion is an advantage, since your entire developing operation can be carried on in the light of a 25 watt ruby-glass bulb. This was screwed into the light socket over the washstand, and two 5 by 7 inch trays were placed nearby. In the first tray I mixed a standard developing solution from a single tube of MQ developer and 6 ounces of water, while in the second I stirred up 2 ounces of acid fixing salts I hypo) in 8 ounces of water. Between these two I ran a full basin of water for rinsing. As nearly as it was possible, both the solutions and the rinse water were kept at about 68 degrees in temperature. EVENTS OP THE YBAD ALL EQUIPMENT needed for the production of emergency titles is pictured above. Total cost is under $3. The developing operations in an emergency job of this sort are really simplicity itself. Since the single title will be short in length — mine was 5 feet of 16mm. film — no rack or developing drum is needed. The first step is to soften the emulsion, for the easier action of the developer, by soaking the film for two minutes in the clear water. With it fully saturated, the title strip is then grasped at each end and, in the shape of a large U, drawn slowly and evenly through the developing solution in the manner illustrated. Your developing time will vary, depending on the intensity of exposure and the temperature of the solution. But in about a minute you should begin to see the image showing through the base or shiny side of the film. When this image is clearly visible through the base, the development is complete. In my case, the time was two minutes. Following development, immerse the film strip briefly in the wash water to carry off excess developing solution, and then pass it in the same U form through the tray of hypo. Time in the fixing bath will run up to ten minutes, or until the whitish silver coating on the film base is completely cleared away. Now, in a fresh basin of running water, wash the film thoroughly for at least twenty minutes. It is then hung up to dry. Your drying time will also vary, depending on the atmospheric conditions (temperature and relative humidity) of the darkroom. If you are in a real rush, saturate the strip with denatured alcohol after rinsing, which speeds up the drying markedly. It is better, however, simply to let nature take its course. This course can be aided without danger by wiping off the film strip all excess surface water, using either a soft cellulose sponge or the moistened surface of the thumb and forefinger. This also tends to guard against streaking. So, there I was with a new and this time accurately centered title. But while the drying process was going on, I found myself brooding because it was in black and white — while the rest of the film was in color. Once again I rummaged through my junk drawer, and this time came up with a book of Kodak transparent watercolor stamps, ordinarily used in coloring still prints. Snipping out six small tabs from the dark green page and, for good measure, two from the dark blue, I immersed these in about 6 ounces of water in the now empty developing tray. With the film still moist (which it must be to accept the dyes evenly), I then ran it end-for-end through the dye solution. This [Continued on page 270] DEVELOPMENT and fixing are carried on by hand under light of 25 watt ruby bulb screwed in handy socket.