Technique of the photoplay (1916)

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CHAPTER XLVII 233 these are not overemphasized they do not irritate, but if the author gets his spectator all excitement over some striking incident and then yells "April fool" and goes on to some other incident nothing he can do will be of further interest because the spectator has lost faith in his ability to entertain or interest. He comes to the theatre to be entertained; not to be made the victim of a practical joke. 8. It has been seen that emphasis may be gained by adding to the action and making it seem more important, but this is only one of many methods. You may slow down the action at a certain point that the action may be more completely grasped. An example of this will be found in Chapter XXXI, in the scene in which the two men meet in the library. Giles becomes aware of the presence of another person and he is afraid to look up. If he sprang up imme- diately there would ,be small chance of his fear being noticed by the audience, but for a moment he hesitates and that hesitation, that slowness of movement, gives marked emphasis to the scene. He can be afraid and spring up immediately, but if he does this fear wilt not show. We deliberately hold the action until the spectator has a chance to grasp the idea and then we go on to the next development, but the entire scene is a succession of slowly played incidents sep- arated by flashes of quickened action which, in themselves, add em- phasis through contrast with the slowness of the rest of the scene. In making a speech you speak more slowly and deliberately when you seek to make a telling point. In photoplay deliberation of move- ment gives the same effect. If you speak too rapidly or act too quick- ly, you do not give the auditor or spectator time to grasp the idea. 9. Emphasis may be ^iven through the use of the bust or close- up. In the foregoing example it will be seen that the employment of a bust calls particular attention to the groping for the revolver. The presentation of the revolver is dramatic in either aspect, but it is more dramatic when for a moment we are held in suspense while we watch Giles reaching for it. Now when it is presented, the effect is immediate. Had not our attention ,been particularly directed to the movement, half a second or more might have elapsed before we real- ized the move and how it was accomplished. The bust and close-up are purely mechanical emphasis marks, but they are effective in the extreme when properly employed. 10. The placement of a scene may give emphasis. Going back to the first illustration in this chapter, we will suppose that in the later development we have two scenes. One of these shows Grace trying to quiet Howard in one of his deliriums while he is fighting the drug. Then we see Belding in his office. This scene is not essential, but it not only serves to increase our dislike for Belding but to engage our interest still more strongly in the fight that Howard is making. We want him to win because we are interested in him. We now have a further interest in the fight because of our increased dislike for Belding. Each scene helps to give emphasis to the other. It is not always a cut-back that is used, but generally it is best to use the