The Moving picture world (November 1920)

November 13, 1920 MOVING PICTURE WORLD 183 First Anniversary Finds Realart Studio on West Coast Making a Name for Itself A LABORATORY second to none in the industry, a studio with complete and modern facilities, a trained and smoothly working organization — this is the present status of Realart's West Coast studio after a little more than a year of existence. Writing to the home office, Frank E. Garbutt, studio manager, states : "I think we can well be proud of Realart's West Coast studio as it stands today, a little more than one year since the birth of the organization. We are prepared to make sixteen features annually. In addition, ten more are being made on rented stages. Recently we have increased the studio property by 38,400 square feet or SO per cent. This will make possible stage and storage extensions increasing our facilities to a point where we will be able to anticipate the ever-growing demand for Realart pictures. "Our laboratory is efficient. It turns out 50,000 feet a day of Realart film, also handling an added 10,000 feet of negative from outside firms who feel that we are able to give them a quality of work second to none. All in all, the 'Realart Infant,' as it passes its first birthday, is making a mark for itself here on the West Coast." It is interesting to note the present size and make-up of the Realart plant of which the organization officials are so enthusiastic. A completely equipped laboratory, a glass stage, an open stage, store-rooms, a dressing room bungalow for the stars, offices and storage room take up 76,800 square feet, fronting on three streets. As above indicated 38,400 more square feet are immediately to be added to give additional stage room and space for outdoor scenes. Fine Machine Shop And all of this is exclusively devoted to the production of Realart features. The changes and improvements being made are with a view to raising the production capacity and improving the quality of the finished photoplays. And all of this is exclusively devoted to the production of Realart features. The changes and improvements being made are with a view to raising the production capacity and improving the quality of the finished photoplays. One innovation that sets the organization on a level above the ordinary studio is a completely equipped machine shop for fine work in the building and the repair of cameras and printing machines. This shop will have the most modern of equipment and in case of breakdown will render Realart absolutely independent of the eastern factories. A milling machine and a lathe capable of cutting to 1-10,000 of an inch, represent absolutely the latest word in accuracy. Now being constructed at the garage are two power wagons to furnish light on night locations. When completed they will be among the largest and most powerful apparatus of the kind in existence. They will each carry forty-six Klieg lamps, completely illuminating an area 90 by 150 feet. Special Air Filter Modern improvements place the laboratory upon an exceptionally efficient basis. At the top of the two-story building is a specially built air filter. All outside air entering the developing and printing rooms passes into them through a spray of water which removes the dust. Then the air is warmed in winter or cooled in summer to a temperature of 70 degrees and so maintained from one year's end to another. Atmospheric or weather changes cannot effect the product of Realart's studio. "Muddy water," the bane of many laboratories, is done away with by Realart through a special water filter handling every drop used. The water as it comes to the operators is as pure as science can make it. Frank V. Biggy, laboratory superintendent, is a man of long experience and ability. He has been given carte blanche to create a perfect organization. Realart feels that the proof of this accomplishment lies in the quality of their finished films. Other Departments The other departments of the studio have been carried within the year to an equally high degree of efficiency. Will M. Ritchey, supervising director, has under him a corps of scenario writers including Douglas Bronston, Alice Eyton and Edith Kennedy; a "cutting" crew and a staff of clever artists for title work. In addition, William D. Taylor's stories are written by Julia Crawford Ivers, cut and titled under Mr. Taylor's personal direction. Mary Miles Minter productions are handled by a special staff. The studio casting director, Miss Jessie Hallett, has a file comprising over 2,000 names from which players for Realart films can be chosen at a moment's notice. Mrs. Una Nixson Hopkins, long known as a national authority on home-building and decoration, is the art director. She superintends an efficient staff of architects and set dressers. The other departments, electrical, purchasing, transportation, etc., are working with machine-like smoothness. Those who have watched the growth of the industry feel that Realart has done an exceptionally commendable bit of work in bringing its Los Angeles studio to such a high degree of efficiency in a comparatively few months. Realart in Los Angeles is turning out all productions of Mary Miles Minter, Bebe Daniels, Wanda Hawley and William D. Taylor. Pilgrim Pictures Making New Industrial Films Through an error in the announcement of Educational Film Exchanges, Inc., last week, its new series of two reel pictures written and produced by Rufus Steele, Saturday Evening Post writer, was given as the output of Plymouth Pictures Corporation when it should have been the Pilgrim Pictures Corporation. "The Kick Back" and "The Big Idea," the first of the two Pilgrim Pictures have been completed and are scheduled for release by Educational early in December. The third has also been finished and is now being cut and titled under the supervision of Mr. Steele. While these new two-reelers have as their background the industrial life of the country they are in no sense commercial pictures. Not even the name of the big plants that form the background for the stories appear in the films and they have been produced with entertainment value always in view and industrial conditions secondary. The first two pictures have already received the hearty indorsement of the Americanized Committee of the Motion Picture industry. Flannagan and Edwards Star in Goldwyn Comedies Flannagan and Edwards, vaudeville team, who have won a new reputation for themselves in films by means of the Capitol Comedies produced by the National Film Corporation of America and released through the Goldwyn Distributing Corporation, are starred in the half dozen latest releases. Nearly all of these comedies have been written by Harry Wulze and directed by Mark Goidaine. The six releases are: B 59, "In and Out"; B 60, "Knocking 'Em Cold"; B 61, "Hearts and Hammers"; B 62, "Artistic Eenemies"; B 63, "Fingers and Pockets"; B 64, "Love on Rollers." The comedies are all two-reelers. Will Rogers, his director, Clarence Badger, and the members of the company filming Irvin Cobb's "Boys Will Be Boys," are expected to return this week from Jackson, Cal., where they have been for several weeks on location. ALL AROUND THE REALART STUDIOS ON THE WEST COAST -The drying room; 2 — Mary Pickford and mother visiting studio; 3 — Building an outside set; 4 — Printing room