American Cinematographer - December 1950 - 28

higher level of abstraction. Therefore,
a film on taxation would give its infor¬
mation almost entirely in the narration,
with the screen acting merely as an agent
of illustration.
Before post-recording a film, the nar¬
ration should be read against the film
being run either on a projector or a
viewer. Some re-editing of the picture
and sound track is usually needed after
recording to match the two to best
advantage, but it is a good idea to re¬
duce these adjustments to a minimum.
Unnatural rhythms in the flow of the
announcer's voice or the picture can
result if too much editing is done to
match the two.
Some writers prefer to revise their
scripts as they run the film through a
Moviola. Thus, they may repeat any
section of film as often as necessary to
match their wording for it.
There are two schools of thought con¬
cerning the recording of narration. Some
producers prefer to project the picture
while the announcer reads from his script,
while others rehearse the announcers
with the film running but record with¬
out it. Your own choice can be made
after experimenting with both systems.
Sync sound is being used more often
in the production of commercial films
these days, largely because sound record¬
ing equipment is more readily available.
Previously, only a few producers had
their own sound recording units and
budgets were seldom large enough to
rent them until the time came to record
music and narration. Today, also, mag¬
netic tape and film recorders are being
used by many 16mm. and 35mm. film
producers to obtain lip-sync recordings
"on the spot" during the regular filming.
And small recording studios with sound
channels are now more generally avail¬
able at reasonable rates in several large
cities.
The simplest use of sync-sound record¬
ing occurs in shots of a person speaking,
facing the camera. This device is used
when the narrator is a well-known per¬
sonality who should be introduced to
the audience or when an expert is invited
to supply some information in his own
words. The "March of Time" often
adds authority to its films by having
leaders in government, industry, and
labor speak directly to the audience.
All types of non-theatrical films now
feature some dialogue scenes photo¬
graphed in sync sound. A commercial
picture introducing a new product is
likely to contain a sequence in which
typical users discuss the advantages of
that product. Political films get their
messages across better with scenes in
which voters talk over issues of the day
-to the inevitable advantage of the
sponsoring group. Producers have dis432 *

AMERICAN CINEMATOGRAPHER

covered that professional actors aren't
needed if a strongly "realistic" flavor is
desired in the film. In fact, non-profes¬
sionals often make a picture seem more
convincing because the audience assumes
they are saying what they really think.
The hesitant, down-to-earth speech of
newcomers to acting causes an audience
to discount that there are writers, direc¬
tors, and editors controlling what is said.
The question might arise in a story
conference: "When should we use dia¬
logue sequences?" There are several ex¬
cellent uses of dialogue in documentary
films, and the first to be described is the
one in which dialogue brings the film to
a "human level." A film with many
impersonal scenes can lose effectiveness
with an audience if it doesn't seem to
be about something that affects them
personally. Natural dialogue can bridge
this emotional gap between the film¬
maker and his audience. For example,
the "March of Time" used dialogue very
cleverly in a short on men's clothing.
At one point, a scene in a clothing store
was introduced in which a man and his
pretty, young wife argued about the kind
of suit he should buy. Then, later in the
film, we meet the couple again, discuss¬
ing finances and how much they can
afford for clothes. These scenes injected

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the element of human interest and
brought the picture closer to our own
experiences.
Another use of dialogue is found in
films designed to sway public opinion.
If there are some obvious objections to
the ideas presented, a clever film-maker
may cut to a scene of a discussion group.
A panel member raises his objection, as
members of the audience say to them¬
selves, "Just what I was wondering
about!" Then the objection is answered;
and the viewers of the picture, if all
went well, are given the impression the
issue was met straight on.
Very important facts can be given
proper emphasis if they are spoken in
sync sound in an otherwise all-narrated
picture. We all tend to assume that the
people on the screen won't speak at all
if narration is used exclusively for the
first few minutes of the film. Then, when
the time has come to bring forth the
important information, the picture cuts
unexpectedly to a man who tells us what
we should know. This technique was
used in the "Why We Fight" Army
indoctrination film series produced dur¬
ing the war.
*

DECEMBER, 1950

Two places in a film where music
seems to be a "must" are behind the
opening and end titles. But whether it
is used between these two landmarks is
a matter of choice. Musical backgrounds
are so common that we can safely put
them into almost any film without danger
of distracting from the subject matter.
But continuous music can be a distrac¬
tion, however, and a good plan would
be to reserve music for:
1. Sections of the film that need em¬
phasis.
2. Sequences that are rather pictorial
and naturally call for music.
3. Sequences that are disconnected
visually and that seem to flow smooth¬
er with music to tie them together.
4. The divisions, if any, between dif¬
ferent parts of a film. Music without
narration can signify the ending of
one "chapter" and the beginning of
another.
Film composers speak of two different
approaches to scoring a picture: mood
music and "Mickey Mousing." Mood
music refers to background music that
fits the picture as to general mood.
Mickey Mousing, on the other hand, is
the term that describes cueing music to
fit each movement on the screen. It is
named after Walt Disney's famous
Mickey Mouse, of course; cartoon music
usually matches the action with such
fidelity that the name is appropriate.
Fortunately, the easiest method of
scoring is the most commonly used.
Mood music can be used with most any
documentary film. Appropriate selections
are available to the low-budget producer
on records of cleared music. These re¬
cordings are frequently indexed by both
mood and title and can often be judi¬
ciously selected to fit a picture as closely
as an original score. Experienced music
editors are able to lift short passages
from this "canned" music and fit them
into the film to give the effect of Mickey
Mousing. Their trained ears quickly
detect lines that synchronize with key
actions of the picture.
As for sound effects, an editor can
usually decide for himself which ones
are worth cutting into the sound track
and which ones are unnecessary. In a
narrated picture, an audience doesn't
expect everything on the screen to make
noises as in real life and in dramatic
films, but certain effects are seldom
omitted. Trains, guns, explosions, run¬
ning horses, and lightning affect us as
being strangely silenced if their accom¬
panying noises are not heard.
Incidental sounds that we seldom pay
much attention to in reality can be over¬
looked in a documentary film. Street
noises, opening doors, footsteps, etc., are
left off the sound track unless they carry
a special significance. END.
American Cinematographer - December 1950

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