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? Scenario Lesson Seventeen ;
- Importance of Subtitle
The Proper Use of Leaders, Subtitles, Inserts, Etc.
Th
ey
Have Made Many
Picture a Success
By HARRY O. HOYT
Ileail of Metro Scenario Htnff.
'oor
i
A DISCUSSION of leaders, subtitles, In-
scrts and other factory-made explana
tory matter essential In a finished picture
has been reserved until this time. Nu
merous requests havo come In asking for
an artlclo on this subject. But It lias
teemed beat to deal with tho moro Import
ant elements of plot construction first.
It Is welt to learn tho construction of
the drama before dealing with a subject
N ' which, at Its best, Is bound to be somewhat
' contusing Probably moro scenario writers
come to grief through their Inability to ex
press tho Idea or effect they want to get
1 over than from any other cause. In most
' cases the fault lies In their lack of appre
ciation of Just what will photograph as a
picture, on tho one hand, and what is neces
sary to bo Insertod to clarify the picture,
6n the othor hand.
The scenario editor rccelc3 a fearful
and wonderful assortment of scripts. Ip
one, for example, tho author will use no
subtitles or Inserts of any nature, while
probably another overzealous neophyto will
placo a subtitle before every scene, with
perhaps six or eight spoken titles in a
scene. It haB been stated as a general
nrnnnslttnn thnt the leaderless script Is tho
W Menl srnnnrln. nrnvlded alwaVS that the
m, 'H itory can bo told entirely in action.
." Theoretically, perhaps, this is correct I
f practically, nowever, it is not iruo. w u
yray it correaponus wnn mo two-cjrtio uuu
four-cycle Internal combustion engine.
With all of the theoretical value of the two
cycle engine, gasoline engine manufacturers
hae found four-cycle engines practical and
(he two-cylinder engino unpractical.
. Subtitles are absolutely necessary in all
except the billionth script. They perform
many functions and serve many purposes.
Hothlng Is moro confusing than to look at
a motion picture and wonder what It is
about The actdr may do superb acting
and the direction may bo flawless, but with
out proper subtitles the story is almost cer
tain to be largely lost.
Your characters must bo introduced with
untitles In order that wo may know who
U who This may be considered tho first
function of a subtitle, the identification of
characters. If John is In lovo with Mary
and Richard la in lovo with Mary, we may
not need to be told In a subtitle. We may
how a scene of John making love to Mary
on a rustic bench, flash to another scene
showing Richard approaching and, on see-
t '
V
1 T
H
ft A'
X
4.
H
I Am the Motion Picture
By ARTHUR JAMES
J AM tho Motion Picture.
J AM the child of man's genius, the
triumph of man over space and
time. I am a mute, but 1 am elo
quent to millions. I travel desert
aands, I climb tho tallest mountain
peaks, I traverse prairie, glacier,
Jungle, forest, sea and air. and
bring the vision of journeys to the
eyes of common men.
J AM the pleasant hour of prince
End nVlfM. nf tYinafflM mtwl nnA
little boy. I instruct, I delight, I
thrill, I entertain, I please, I shock,
kuccr, i move mo world to la
and to tears.
' laughter
J 'AM the sublime story teller of all
ages. I am the drama's greater
J HAVE more friends than all the
friendly men on earth. I stir the
Wood, I quicken the pulse, I encour
age the imagination, I stimulate the
y.0.unff I comfort and I solace the
old and sorrowing". I bring price
less gifts and make them yours.
I SHOW more of traVel than that
of all the books penned, by all
the writers of the world. I preach
Bi,V!!i0l!i? t0 wnsregationa greater
wan the combined flocks of the pul
pits -of all lands, I make for happi
ness, I make for kindliness.
J AM the one great international
irletld. I am histnrv annlrar. n-
generations to come in a tongue that
fmC fac5 BId sect antl creed can
KSSSfc-r l- Preseve heroes for
posterity, I eivo centuries mnr nf
tn 1 t . -,,,, ...y,w ,
W Ull
life
ae arts, and sciences.
J AM man's greatest and noblest
invention.
I AM the Motion Picture.
? conrttw of Mo Man Picture Mall.
Ing John nnd Mary In the distance, havo
him show his Jealousy, and get It all over
without a subtitle.
V,'o would know by tho picture that tho
tall, llght-hnlred young man wns In love
with the girl, and tho dark, heavy-set man
was also in lovo with her This will only
sone Its purpose for tho moment, however.
The time will como with tho dBclopmont
of the action of the picture when It Is es
sential to know who your characters are.
Hence, whllo It may be unnecessary to
Introduce John and Itlchard and Mary In
a subtitle. It Is probably much better to
do so at the ery beginning of your story,
so that the people witnessing the picture
will feel at case and necr be troubled nnd
no questions will ecr nriso in their minds
as to who your pcoplo are.
Perhaps John is tho eastern ropresenta
tto of a mining company. Tho deelop
ment of your story Is to be around a mine,
depleting Itlchnrd's nttempt to get control
of It nnd win the girl. Perhaps jour min
ing Incident will not become prominent until
your story Is half finished.
Perhaps the (lrst hnlf of your story deals
with the Intrigue In tho East. Thero will
be no necessity for any mention of the mine
or John's connection with It, but because
tho mine plays an Important part In the
last part of your story. It Is highly essen
tial that his connection with the mine, bo-
placed early In tho story.
In other words, tho Introduction of your
character must In a way forecast the rela
tion of tho character, not only to tho other
characters, but also to tho occupation, sta
tion In life, the locale of the story, etc. It
may bo perfectly obvious that John Is the
oner of the "Bunk" mine, owing to the
name on tho door of his olllce, but without
a good subtitle ou can't bo certain that
It Is not somo other man In John's olllce.
This soundi absurd, and I havo purposely
carried It to tho point of absurdity to Il
lustrate the fact that clarity is one of the
prlnclpnl elements of tho well-wrought
photoplay. Tho author gets wrapped up in
his own story and tho characters to him aro
porfectly clear.
When the audience sees a character
seated at a desk, however. It is not at all
obvious that this Is John or that ho Is the
owner of the "Bunk" mine. You must
make your story so clear with the use of
proper subtitles that no ono can make a
mistake.
A cry has gone up that pictures nre over
subtitled, but It is far better to have
more subtitles than aro really necessary
than to have too fow, People say that
audiences are too intelligent to need any
great amount of explanation and their Im
agination will All in the blanks.
It Is probably veiV true that the average
Intelligence of the audience today is greater
than it was a few years ago. People hae
been educated to the motion pictures They
are becoming critical, even hypercritical.
But too much should not bo left for them
to (111 in.
You must remember that the business
man, when he comes homo at night and
takes his wife and family to the theatre,
does not want to work out a Jigsaw puzzle.
He can do thlson his parlor table at home.
People come to be entertained, and they
can't bo entertained unless the story Is
clear. . . .v
If there is any one rule to be made on
the subject, it is this: Introduce your
characters early with appropriate subtitles,
Give your subtitles thought.
Jn a previous lesson It was suggested
that characters be Introduced In their
proper atmosphere, hence It would be Im
proper to say, "John, a young mine owner,"
and show John making love to Mary on
the rustic bench. There are times when
it Is very difficult to introduce a character
in its proper atmosphere. Many times they
are far removed from their normal sur
roundings. For. example, we may show
"Pedro, a young coffee merchant of Brazil.''
yet we want our story laid entirely in New.
"unless the coffee plays some important
part In the story, there is no necessity for
mentioning It when he is introduced, Slnj
dW say. "Pedro, a South American planter."
If you focus the attention of your audience
uoon the fact that he is a coffee merchant,
they will expect, and rightly so, that your
Itory will deal with coffee.
If you simply say a planter, It Is at once
Ccntlniud on Fate Two.
If the Gnumont-Mutual Company gets your script, the interiors mny bo
built nnd "shot" on this open-air stage at Jacksonville.
Here we have a scenario in actual course of production. The studio is tho Morosco Company's on the coast.
The director and his cameraman may be seen on the platform in the foreground, while at the back the
players, including Myrtle Stcdman, arc going through one of the scenes of "The American Beauty," which will
be visible at the Stanley next week.
Rise and Fall of Free Speech in America By D. W. Griffith
Being excerpts and tketches from
the little book just published by the dis
tinguished producer of "The Birth of
a Nation."
Freedom of speech and publication Is
guaranteed In tho Constitution of tho United
States, nnd In the constitution of practical
ly all tho States. Unjustifiable speech or
publication may be punished, but cannot bo
forbidden in advance. Mayor Gaynor, that
great Jurist who stood out from the
ordinary gallery-pla Ing, hjpocrltlcal typo
of politician as a white rose stands out from
a field of sewer-fed weeds, said In vetoing
a moving picture censorship ordlnnnco In
the city of New York:
Ours is a government of free speech
and a free press. That is the corner
stone of free government. The phrase
"the press" Includes all methods of ex
pression by writing or pictures
If this (moving picture) ordinance bo
legal, then a similar ordinance In re
spect to the newspapers and tho
theatres generally would be legal.
Today the censorship of moving pictures,
throughout the entire country, is seriously
hampering the growth of the art Had In
telllgent opposition to censorship been em
ployed when It first made ltsolf manifest it
could eaBlly have been overcome But tho
pigmy child of that day has grown to be,
not merely a man, but a giant, nnd I tell
you who read this, whether you will or no,
he Is a giant whoBe forces of oH are so
strong1 that he threatens that priceless heri
tage of 'our nation freedom of expression.
The right of free speech has cost cen
turies upon centuries of untold sufferings
and agonies; It has cost rivers of blood; It
has taken as its toll uncounted fields
littered with the carcases of human beings
all this that there might come to live
and survive that wonderful thing, the power
of free speech. In our country It has taken
some of the best blood of our forefathers.
The Involution Itself was a fight In this
direction for the God given, beautiful Idea
of free speech.
Afterward the f.rst assault on the right
of free speech, guaranteed by the Constltu.
Hon, occurred in 1798, when Congress
passed the sedition law, tohich made it a
crime- for au newspaper or other printed
publication to criticise the Government,
Partisan prosecution of editors and pub
lishers took place at tho instance of the
party in power, and popular indignation
was aroused against this abridgment of
liberty to'such an extent that Thomas Jef
ferson, the candidate of the opposition
party for President, was triumphantly
elected. And after that nothing more was
heard of the sedition law, which expired
by limitation in 1801.
The Integrity of free speech and publi
cation was not again attacked seriously In
this country until the arrival of thd mo-
hero . " ' villian
WT "I can'fc teeter go
if- Virtue s5tlie 1
j it atone, gceotor jg JL
v -
Rl 111 c e np3s or
The Official Snufior
Hon plctuic, when this now art wai seized
by tho powerH of Intolerance as an excuso
for an assault on our liberties
Tho motion picture Is a medium of ex
pression as clean and decent as any man
kind has ever discovered. A pcoplo that
would allow the suppression of this form
of speech would unquestionably submit to
the suppression of that -which wo all con
sider so highly, tho printing press
And yet wo find all through the country,
among all classes of people, tho Idea that
the motion picture should be censored.
When the first small board of censorship
was established six years ago, we who took
It seriously then expected exactly what
has come to paBs that a man of the men
tal calibre of the captain of police of Chi
cago can tell two million American peoplo
what they shall and shall not go to see In
tho way of a moving picture.
They toll us we must not show crime In
a motion picture. We cannot listen to such
nonsense. These peoplo would not have us
show the glories and beauties of the moat
wonderful moral leeson the world has ever
known the life of Christ because in that
story we must show the vice of the traitor
Judas Iscarlot. Had the modern censors
existed In past ages, and followed out their
theories to a logical conclusion, there would
have been written no Iliad of Homer; there
would not havo been written for the glory
of the human race that grand cadence of
uplift called the Bible; theie would have
been no Goethe. There would havo been
no thrilling, beautiful dramas ghen us as
tho grandest heritage of the English-speaking
race the plays of Shakespeare. And
eten today, none of these creations would
these worthy censors leave in our posses,
slon, had they their way.
Alt new things In the world, including
tho Christian religion and the printing
press, a,t their beginnings hiuo been con
sidered as Instruments of etl and subject
to suspicion.
The motion picture has had to undergo
the same ordeal that seems to be directed
at all new things.
In some communities they do not allow
the showing of crime in any form In any
motion picture. This, followed to its logical
conclusion, would make absolutely Impossi
ble .the motion picture as an entertainment
or as an art.
now is it possible to portray virtue
without portraying its opposite the thing
of vlceT
Frledrlch Schiller, the great German
dramatist, speaking of the moral of the
drama, said;
It is the course of mortal things that
the good should be shadowed by the
bad, and virtue shine the brightest when
contrasted with vice. Whoever pro
poses to discourage vice and to Indi
cate religion, morality and social or
'der against their enemies must un
veil crime In all its deformity and place
It before the eyes of men In Its colossal
magnitude; he must diligently explore
Its dark mazes and make himself
familiar with sentiments at the wicked
ness of which his soul revolts.
Search your minds for any story worth
telling, or any play that 1 worth seeing,
that does not In some way shpw vice in
some form. The policy of the generally
accepted censorship Is to approve of pic
tures which, offend no on. That is one
way of saying "Wo will havo nothing In tho
pictures but milk nnd water," ridiculous,
Insipid mediocrity that could not possibly In
terest any one.
A motion picture of this class would bo
ns Interesting nnd efficient as a newspaper
that never steps on any one's toes, and you
can tmagtno how peoplo would be Interested
In that kind of a newspaper.
Wo believe that wo have as much right
to present the facta of history as we ste
them, on tho motion picture screen, as n
Gulzot. a Bancroft, a Ferrari or a Wood
row Wilson has to write theso facts In his
history. Wo believe It ns a right under the
Constitution of tho United States, and we
are supported In this belief by wise Judicial
decisions In cases where tho matter has
boen presented to the courts In the right
way.
Tho foremost educators of tho country
havo urged upon us moving picture pro
ducers to put nway the slap-stick comedians,
the ridiculous, sentimental "mush" stories,
tho Imitation of the cheap magazines, and
go to tho fields of history for our subjects.
They hao told us repeatedly that the mo
tion picture can Impress upon a people as
much of the truth of history in an evening
as many months of study will accomplish.
As one eminent divine has Bald to tho
masses, "It teaches history by lightning."
Wo would llko very much to do this.
Tho reason for the slap-stick and the
worst that Is in pictures is censorship.
Let those who tell us to uplift our art In
vest money in the production of an historic
play of the time of Christ. They will And
this cannot be staged without incurring the
wrath of a certain part of our people, Tho
massacre of St Bartholomew, If produced,
wl'l tread upon the toes of another part of
our people. I was considering the produc
tion of the history of the American peoplo
only this last year. It got Into tho papers.
From all over the country I was strongly
adlsed that this was not the time for a
play on the American Revolution, because
the English and their sympathizers would
not take kindly, during these emotional war
times, the part the English played in the
wars of the American Revolution, and that
the pro-Germans would not care to see the
Hessians play the part they would play In
the story of our freedom.
In other words, so long as censorship
holds the motion picture under its thumb,
it Is in every way enslaved. It dares not
speak the truth on any subject, and there
fore must confine itself to ridiculous, In
Jurtous and childish slap-stick and absurd
and weak dramatology. The moral re
formers plead with us to put on pictures
which speaks editorially against crtain
evils of the day. How does any man dare to
invest his money In any picture that speaks
against any certain class or condition ot
people, however evil and open to condemna
tion their work may be, when he knows
how easy It Is for a few Individuals to go
to any one of the many hundreds of censor
ship boards In the country and influence
them to destroy tho property which the
producer has gone to great pains and care
to build up?
The Future Now Secure
for Play ana Photoplay
A Prominent Tkeatrical Manager, Who Is Alao a Film
Producer, Sizes Up the Arts of
Screen and Stage
By WILLIAM A. BRADY
THE spoken drama Is coming back. It
ncor lost its hold in cities llko New
York, Chicago Philadelphia and Boston,
but In the smaller towns during the last 12
months It nearly perished before the tre
mendous spread of motion pictures. Ono
nlght stands nnd many cities where theatri
cal attractions used to play for thrco days
or a week went oor almost entirely to pic
tures. Tho few companies that straggled
through had great difficulty in persuading
managers of theatres to roll up tho screen
and let them give n performance. Often
they failed to persuade them, because tho
managers had made contracts for feature
films ccry day In tho week. All that has
changed Millions of the thentregotsrs out
through tho country arc demanding that
actors and actresses come to their stages
In person, that tho theatregoers may see
them in real life; may hear them speak;
may actually feci their presence. I tell
jou, this demand has become so strong that
next season the good plays whlch go out
with compctont casts aro going to reap a
harvest. This docs not mean that Interest
In motion pictures Is waning; on the con
trary, It Is growing; but now competition
has becomo ,so keen thnt only good films
survhe A short time ago wo had over
production In tho theatre, and tho public,
surfeited with amusement, became most dis
criminating. Now the samo condition pro
alls for motion pictures. The "fans" nre
hard to satisfy thcoo days; they tako only
the highest quality of photodramas and let
the others starve to death. Theatrical pro
ducers nearly ruined their business by send
ing out poor plnys and Ehoddy productions.
Now motion-picture producers have made
the same mistake by circulating inferior
films. Indecent plays hurt tho theatre. Sen
sational, lurid and filthy subjects havo
played hmoc with the vogue of motion pic
tures; they have driven away many of the
best patrons ot picture houses.
So the time has arrived for the legiti
mate theatre to come back into Its own.
But it must come without the weaknesses
which left It open to the attacks of the
"movies." There won't be any more Nos.
2, 3 and i companies of New York suc
cesses. It will have the real tiling, either
on tho stage or on the screen. There
must be good plays and good casts to sat
isfy the so-called "rube." who is really
much more careful about his amusements
than the so-called "wise" first-nighter of
Broadway. The great public I'm speak
ing now of the country at large Is more
critical than ever before, but with typical
American spirit it Is Just ns willing to be
amused as ever, and for the mere sake ot
variety alone, after seeing many, many
motion pictures, it Is keener than It has
been in a long time to see legitimate plays.
That is the opportunity of the theatrical
producer. If he exercises more care, more
taste, more intelligent direction and if he
makes an honest effort to supply the great
public with the best in plays and casts, the
theatrical manager is In a position to take
advantage of the amusement boom now
spreading into every corner of this coun
try and Canada, and to make that boom
last for a tong time to come.
As for the motion pictures, I think the
future holds great promise for them also
I am extensively interested In the manu
facture of Alms myself, and expect to en
large my activities therein Very shortly,
so that I can speak about them from the
personal viewpoint. I think the industry
is about to ga through a process of rear,
ganlzation It cannot travel at Its present
pace. The cost of production has gone be
yond all bounds of reason. There Is waste,
extravagant waste, which must be Btopped
at once. New men are needed, different
kinds of men, more writers and producers
with intelligence and Ideals, educators and
financiers who want to make a safe lmest
ment for their money with reasonable re
turns, Instead ot a wild scramble for enor
mous profits that may end n disastrous
losses. You might call these wiser men
mgmmmm&r
AvK CVT7l7l
SI
Litflrfer-
IVorcss
who como Into tho Industry its balance
wheels. They aro absolutely necessary.
The regular theatrical manager and th
motion-picture promoter must como to a
closer understanding Their Interests are)
alike, and tho reforms that thoy can brine
about by working together will benefit them
both. The business of providing ontortaln
mont on tho screen and stage, which ha
grown to bo tbo fourth largest Industry in
tho country, will surely bo helped Im
mensely when tho methods applied in other
industries are put into operation. No other
industry has anything llko tho wasto of thla
nmuscment "game." Think of tho saving
from an economic standpoint alone when
efficiency Is used In the making and th
handling of theatrical productions and mo
tion pictures!
But moro businesslike methods alone wld
not carry the theatre forward. We hav
suffered ocn more from tho lack of artistlo
work than wo have from the lack of shrewd
management. And one of the crying needa
right now is for fine acting. Even good act
ing is at a premium. Wo absolutely need
young actors and actresses who will appear
for reasonable salaries. They havo had
their heads turned by the prices paid In
studios where producers were hysterically
trying to outdo each other In extravagance.
Ail this has given actors an exaggerated
idea of their value without Increasing their
respect for their profession or developing
their abilities In that profession. You hear
'them say that motion-picture work develops
thorn. It doesn't do moro than teach them
something about pantomime. Charlie Chap
lin admits modestly that ho cannot act in
the theatre, and the most studios can do la
to develop more Charlie Chapltns.
In the meantime. It is next to Impossible
to make up a competent cast for a New
York production at any fair price, and often
It can't be dono for any price at all. Where)
are our future Julia Marlowes and Rlohard
Mnn3flelds to como from? Repertory Is the)
only hope I can see. Without wishing to
lavish undue praise upon the organiza
tion whloh lately visited Philadelphia
under Grace George's management. I roust
say that in my opinion it is upon such com
panies the future of our theatre depends.
And I want to add that I think It ridiculous
for our millionaires to subscribe large funda
for the Shakespearean production ot a fam
ous English actor, and give financial sup
port to the establishment of a French
theatre in New York.
What Sardou.Thought
of "Hamlet"
TTAMLET is idiotic; furthermore,
" the ghost is simply ridiculous.
He appears to everybody that will
tako the trouble to look at him: he
promenades on the ramparts of Elsi
nore; he wanders around among the
sentinels. The passersby have con
templated him at their ease. Vhy is
he visible to everybody and anybody
except to the -wife that murdered
him? Why does he send two officers
of the watch to tell his son that he
wants to speak with him? And what
a comical scene is that of the oath?
"Swear upon my sword," saya Ham
let, "never to reveal what you have
seen tonight." And four times,
from four different points, the ghost
cries "Swear!" Horatio and Mar
cellus swear. But he does mot re
member this doting old ghost hi
posthumous visits to tne sentinels
the castle.
As to the philosophy of the
I find it no better than tb
People go into ecstasies overjr
mous soliloquy, "To be or v
I cannot myself know if
are annihilated after de
But if any one is we'
upon that point it is
talks every day witti"
father.
I declare, and I repe.
is nothing good In the
opinion, except the scert,.
actors the idea of causk
played before the king ana
murder similar to that wh
had committed, in order to &
their secret. As to, the duel
end, and the exchange ut foils w
brings about" the catastrophe, .
weakest playwright of today woult,
not dare to employ such a method to
end his piece. J
A