Technicolor News & Views (November 1953)

mat and Wide Screen Motion Pictures “FORT Tl" — Columbia Currently, professional THREE-DIMENSIONAL films may be photographed on two strips of film with two cameras set for proper convergence and inter-ocular distance. In view- ing, left and right images are projected through light polar- izing filters onto a special metallic screen. The audience must wear special light polarizing viewing glasses to ob- serve the illusion of depth on the screen. the help and cooperation of Technicolor Motion Picture Corpora- tion's British affiliate. Technicolor Limited, photographed the stereoscopic film "Royal River" in Color by TECHNICOLOR for the Festival of Britain. As yet there has been no process yielding three-dimensional pictures which does not require the audience to wear glasses or attachments of some sort. There are a number of variations in the wide screen field. All the major studios are now using screens in this category. TECHNICOLOR is cooperating with most of the new processes, in the interests of the motion picture industry, through the means of any device which will enhance the entertainment value or lower the cost of screen presentation entertainment. TECHNICOLOR was especially well equipped to deal with the changes indicated by the new processes. The company has always strongly believed in operating a vigorous and growing research department, and is in an improved position to give the motion picture industry the laboratory service and prints it requires.. TECHNICOLOR has evolved a three-dimensional camera system of its own, using two of its regular three-strip cameras with a connecting optical system. The first picture thus photographed is "Money from Home," a Hal Wallis production for Paramount. At all points i.n its evolution the motion picture industry has aimed at increasing the entertainment value of its product. It is expected that the coming of the new techniques will bring appreciably nearer the day of the all-color screen. In the pioneer days of motion picture photography in color. the goal of perfected color on the screen seemed very far. It took years of research and development, of methods tried and found wanting, of subsquent procedures that proved successful, to bring present-day Color by TECHNICOLOR to the screen. Before color had really succeeded on the screen, the motion picture industry underwent the great change of replacing the silent film with sound. In all the great evolution periods of the industry, TECHNICOLOR has been exceptionally equipped, by long experience and scientific study, to meet the needs of the cine- matic art. Today, as a recession from sound is unthinkable, so is it cer- tain that increased emphasis will be placed on the use of color. Cinerama has signed a contract with TECHNICOLOR for the use of Color by TECHNICOLOR in its productions. Twentieth Century- Fox has announced that all of its CinemaScope pictures will be produced with Color by TECHNICOLOR. At the present writing it is still too early to forecast with any degree of accuracy what definite course the screen's evolution will take . . . whether one idea or process will dominate or if various techniques will function concurrently. It may be predicted, however, that whichever course or courses screen development may take,TECHNICOLOR will be in the position it now occupies—the soundest guarantee of box office attraction. The progress of the cinematic art naturally includes an in- creased movement toward the use of color. The advent of the new wide angle and/or three-dimensional processes should mean an increasing demand for the services and products of TECHNICOLOR. “THUNDER BAY" — Univ.-lnt'l A typical example of the new wide screens is that of Uni- versal-International. This utilizes only one strip of standard film, and the projectors use a wide angle lens to spread the normal film image to the wide angle screen. The curved screen is treated to give greater light magnification. — FIVE —