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A practical manual of screen playwriting : for theater and television films (1952)

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THE FILMIC COMPONENTS 145 frames of the succeeding shot fade in, thus linking up the two in a smooth flow of visual action. Wheels of all sorts are thus interrelated, so that an entire journey across the world can be depicted simply by dissolving auto wheels, train wheels, plane propellers, steamship propellers, more train wheels, rickshaw wheels, and so forth until the character's final destination is reached. The match dissolve can also be used to interrelate characters separated by space. In Carol Reed's Bank Holiday, as Margaret Lockwood stared down at the ocean surf on the beach where she stood, the camera tilted down to her feet to show the sea washing away the pebbles. A dissolve through to water from the River Thames, and a tilt-up from it, revealed John Loder, of whose tragic life Margaret Lockwood had been thinking, standing on the Embankment, also deep in thought. Motivate match dissolve. One reason why the match dissolve transition has been so overworked is that, in addition to being visually satisfying and startling, it can be universally applied. Hands performing a certain task can be dissolved into hands performing another task; feet running can be dissolved into other feet walking or running; toast popping up in a toaster can be dissolved through to a high jumper clearing the bar; ocean waves pounding a rocky shore can be dissolved through to a person knocking desperately at a door. The possibilities are limitless. But special attention should be given by the screen-play writer to avoid the cliche— such as the wheel match dissolve— and to try for a less obvious, more poetic, more symbolic transition, something on the order of the last named in the above examples— of the ocean waves pounding and followed by the knocking on a door. But he should make certain that the substance of the device stems from the action or the locale. If the oceanwave device is used, for instance, be sure the action revolves around a locale that is near the ocean, so that the physical proximity of the ocean can be planted beforehand. Another word of caution regarding the match dissolve— use it sparingly. To overuse it in one picture is to dissipate its efficacy. A surfeit of match dissolves will negate their powers of transition, because they will stand out as technical devices instead of remaining as anonymous continuity sustainers. Instead of resorting to a match dissolve, it is often better to use a