Showmen's Trade Review (Apr-Jun 1944)

ElO SHOWMEN'S TRADE REVIEW May 20, 1944 How Theatres Can Help In Film Conservation Exchange Executive Describes Practices Which Spoil Show for Other Fellow The necessity— for the general good of the largest number of theatres— for eternal vigilance in the handling and care of motion picture prints is so great at this time that theatremen as well as the distribution companies are going to great lengths to cope with the situation. The distributors are having their more-thanfair share of headaches in keeping print service up to the desired par. Extra hours and long trips are the lot of many men in executive positions in the exchange operations branch of the distributor companies. C. B. Fogle, for example, who supervises Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer exchange operations in the handling and inspection of film, spends a great part of his time in the field. Fogel's very intimate knowledge of the situation especially qualifies him as an authority on the subject as it concerns the distributor. The problems of the exchanges in this print matter should be of interest and enlightenment to theatremen really desirous of gaining the fullest information in order that they might cooperate in every possible way with the move to get more out of prints at a time when there must b© scarcity because of limitations on raw stock supplies. Mr. Fogle points out that it is not just worn sprocket holes that are giving trouble, but careless rewinding which results in breakage of the film's edges. All the careful inspection in the world cannot eliminate this serious cause of film waste. The problem is one of education and constant supervision of new manpower m the theatre projection room by the individual managers. The bigger houses and first runs have in most cases been able to maintain an adequate stafif of older, experienced projectionists, but the draft and war plant recruitment of mechanical manpower has cut deeply into the personnel of the subsequent run theatre. As a result, many theatremen have been forced to break in older men, teen-age boys and even women to serve as projectionists in order to keep their theatres open. These employes, being new and unacquainted with the handling of celluloid, make the great error of carelessly rewinding film for shipment back to the exchanges. By not taking pains to see that the edges of film on the reels line up evenly, an operator unwittingly contributes to the destruction of thousands of feet of film, because the edges which protrude invariably become crushed or broken en route to the exchange and no repair other than replacement is possible. The weakness of film around the sprocket holes makes the edges of film highly vulnerable to damage thus necessitating the utmost care in handling. It is the duty of every theatreman to indoctrinate his projectionists with this most important procedure. Stooges who lend a hand in the projection room of smaller theatres or inadequately supervised apprentices are frequently responsible for careless rewinding. If these inexperienced film handlers could see what goes on inside a film can during the course of shipment they would certainly treat the precious stuff with greater consideration. Film Inspection Procedure Few exhibitors, projectionists or managers have wandered into the inner sanctum of an MGM exchange inspection room and observed, first hand, the checking of film. Girls, wearing cotton gloves, sit at rewind machines and hold the film so that the edges pass between their fingers. The cotton gloves or alert eyes detect broken or cut edges, patches, cue marks and there are definite rules to which each inspectress must conform as part of her duty. Film is usually received from the theatre last showing it with the tail (or end) of each reel out. If an operator returns the reels with the head out it means a complete rewind operation before inspection can begin. Every patch must be inspected minutely. Previously made exchange patches are embossed with the following data : MGM Exchange branch, and the number of the inspectress who made the patch. In this way any patches which have been made by the theatre from which the print is returned can be detected and the number of deleted frames must be counted and recorded. In order to determine the number of missing frames it is necessary to check the footage number ahead of and behind the patch. Each print contains these footage numbers which are one foot apart on the film from beginning to end. Deletions of one foot or more must be replaced by the inspectress and the firmness of each splice is left to her judgment. Bad splices must be remade and every splice which she passes must be embossed with her number for future reference. Save-the-Pieces Economies In order to make replacements of ruined sections of film one print is set aside in each exchange center following the playoff of each picture in the first runs. This print is used exclusively for the purpose of keeping the other prints in first class condition. Where a new print is damaged in one of the early first run engagements it is necessary to order a replacement by footage number from the master print at the CUE MARKS THAT RUIN FILM AND SPOIL THE SHOW Reproduction at left is from a piece of a print received by an MGM exchange from a theatre. The holes which mutilate the film are the contribution of a thoughtless and unskilled projectionist — are totally unnecessary because adequate change-over cues are standard on all new prints. laboratory and the time element involved usually precludes print repair before the film has played a considerable number of houses. Projectionists frequently cut a 'V in the edge of a film where several sprocket holes are broken. This is not considered an objectionable emergency measure according to Mr. Fogel, but the inspectress is instructed to remove such sections and make a splice at those places. Cue Markings Although the producers provide a thoroughly legible set of cue markings for the projectionists which are perfectly satisfactory for efficient presentation in the key runs, these standard cues are very frequently ignored in many subsequent run houses. It seems that less experienced or part time operators prefer their own brand of change-over cues. These range from scratching an "X" in the emulsion to the most unbelievable extremes of film sabotage. So serious is this matter of individual fancy in marking a print that if the inspectress were to delete each personal cue as it comes into her hands, within a very short time there would be no print left. Such practice is nothing short of wanton destruction of valuable property be it in wartime or peace. If a manager, who should watch his screen for changeovers, sees all kinds of crazy markings and flashes of light, flashing through holes in the film, splash across his screen it should be of immediate concern to ascertain from his projectionist whether or not he is responsible for such gross disregard for the prints. Only through the alertness of the managers can this practice by the lax and the unskilled projectionist be eliminated. The standard cues consist of black dots, three in number and one on each frame, located si.xteen feet from the end of a reel. This is the first or warning cue which should be observed by the projectionist as a signal to strike the arc in his other machine and stand by for the changeover. The second and final cue consists of three more black dots, one on each frame, three feet from the end of the reel which signals the operator to make the change-over. These standard markings are adequate, easily discernible and at the same time not objectionable to the audience. Every showman owes it to himself and his fellow exhibitor to demand that his projectionists refrain from despoiling films with needless extra cues. Paging Rube Goldberg Bells ring, buzzers buzz, lights flash, film flashes across the screen in a blaze of punch holes and scratches, and "X" marks the spot at which the operator dramatically throws the switch to make the change-over. This may sound a little far-fetched, but you should visit the booths of seme of our Super Simplex Edisons who can convert a brainstorm into a triple threat invention. This is of course not to be construed as a criticism of the really serious inventive urge among projectionists who have contributed many worthwhile mechanical improvements to the advancement of the motion picture craft. It is intended as an admonition to the thoughtless few who seem to get a kick out of inventing ways to ruin film and then duck responsibility for their foolishness. Mr. Fogle has supplied the writer with a series of film clips which have been sent to him (Continued on Page £12)