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124 TECHNIQUE OF THE PHOTOPLAY the lay of his land better and be better able to plan the exact movement of the spectacular scenes. It will be a good plan to start with the one reel and gradually work up to two and three. Get your groundwork laid in on the short subjects and when you come to write the longer subjects you will find them surprisingly easy. The most difficult story to write is not the three reel story but the three hundred foot farce with a real plot. CHAPTER XX. ADAPTATIONS Adaptations not desired—studio staff is better equipped to write these scripts through their knowledge of just what it required—preparing for adaptation. There is practically no demand for the adaptation of stories, plays, songs, poetry or historical events whether the originals be protected by copyright or not. It stands to reason that the studio writer is as well, if not bet- ter equipped, technically, as yourself and that you can offer the studio nothing that it does not possess. You have the advantage over him only when you offer originality. In 1909 we wrote an author in regard to the situation and these words still hold good. We said: "The idea of asking you to contribute is to get your ideas. We have the technique here in the studio, but we cannot, very naturally, think up all possible plots. We can think of only such as the men employed are capable of devising. This is not always enough to keep the directors busy, so we ask your help and are willing to pay for it, but we want your ideas, not technique alone. That we have. "It stands to reason that the staff can make a better adaptation than you can. We know what we have in the way of outside lo- cations and what the scene dock has and what can be made. We know the costume room and the resources of the property man. You might hesitate to call for a marble terrace, for instance, but we would write in several because we know where we can bor- row a country estate. Most of all, we know our people and just what they can do." That is precisely the situation today. No studio staff can think of all the ideas and so they are willing to go into the market and