NEW SCIENTIFIC WONDER

Hokitika Guardian, 19 November 1924, Page 3

NEW SCIENTIFIC WONDER

THE TALKING FILM. REVOLUTION IN .MOVING FUTURE WORLD. LONDON, November 7. It needs little imagination to realise what a revolution in popular entertainments we should have if we could photograph what the eye sees and what the ear hears all in one. Grand Opera played at Covent Garden could be reproduced in the picture houses of New Zealand. The people who pay their shillings or sixpences to enter the cinema houses would lie able to see atul heiir the greatest prima donnas, the instrumentalists of world-wide fame, or the statesmen who have a message to give tii the whole Empire. The Prime Minister of New Zealand could have himself and u message to the people of Great Britain photographed and the lilnt distributed throughout the thousands of picture houses ill this countrv.

In a studio in a back street of Clapham I have seen the instrument at work which can reproduce the voice or the music along with the motion picture. Unlike the phonograph and the ordinary motion picture at their initiation, this new scientific wonder is developed and complete. Already the people of the United States have the speaking film in their picture houses, hut only a handful of people in this conn tr.v have seen the new wonder firm demonstrated. Some New Zealanders who saw the films in America have lormed a syndicate. Mr T. C. List, of New I’l.Miiouth, who is in London, was asked to report on tile new invention, lie has repurled favourably—indeed, no one could help doing so—and the syndicate is now completing negotiations for flu- New Zealand and Australian rights of the invention.

The British Empire Company arc ready to supply lilms to the New Zealand and Australian Company at a lair rental, also taking a percentage of the profits. But besides this they are ready ami willing to circulate in this country films taken in New Zealand. If flic lilies are explained by some public mail competent of doing it adequately, ii is easy to realise what houndless possibilities there will he in the direction of advertising the Dominion. It almost lires the imagination to think of the people of this country being able to look on tin*- picture of one of out sequestered glades ami hear a full morning chorus of moko-mokos. NEW IMRULSE TO BRITISH FILMS At the demonstration given to an audience of half-a-dozen last, week only short American films were used. The British Empire Company have determined not to start the new industry until they have a good collection ol British lilms to put before the public-. This fact creates a new train of thought. Hitherto, British people have been content mainly with American pictures. Will they he content with American pictures when the actors have to talk? The new type of film will undoubtedly he a woinh-rtul stimulant to the British I i 1 111 industry. Iliitish ]ieonk* will object to the English spoken or sung hv the American

lilm. actor. Then again, the film star who has never learned to speak correctly will fail in this new art. The genuine actor will come into his own again, because not will his actions and facial expressions he recorded, hut evt-rv word ami inth-xion ol his voice as well. We saw last week a banjo player. As he struck the strings the notes came directly to the ears, not as Irom a gramaphoiu* record hut as it were directly from tile banjo portrayed on the him. We saw the Swan Dance and Egyptian Dance hv noted artists, and music and steps exactly synchronised. We heard a and saw the actor who gave it. and wo heard n speech given by a Canadian on the wenders of the new invention. Not a word was lost and tin- speaker might lon e hi-en si ling iu-l « here his pie tun- was shown on the screen. HOW IT IS DONE. | low is it (Lone? The inventor has been working on it lor lotirteen vents. A few inches of the lilm 1 have in my possession is just like the standard make of lilm except in one thing. At on edge of the series of pictures is a cloudy" hand Ji-.'Gin wide. On looking closely into this, one may see minute markings across the band. I best- aie the photographic records of the voice music taken at the same tiem as the motion picture itsi-lt. The principle involved is nil. elaborate one hut briefly told it is this: An especiallv ((-.-signed gas-lilled lamp, (idled tlie Rhotion light, is inserted in the moving picture camera. The light from tliis Rhotion tube passes through an extremely narrow slit and lalls directly upon one margin of the him. This margin is screened from the .picture itself so that only the light Irom tlm Rhotion falls linon it. r l he light in the Rhotion tube is generated by through the gas enclosed therein. Ihe intensitv of the light depends on the intensity of the electric current. I lie |i«r|,t Hurtualos in bright noss liinulrfils or thousands of times a second m perfect rhythm with the telephonic current pulses. and varies in strength with tin- current. • \ special microphone transmitter picks up the sound waves transforming these waves into very weak telephonic currents. An amplifier is used to amplify the weak currents 1119,990 timet' [„ brine them up to sufficient strength to inllm-nee the Rhotion lamp in the camera. According to the strength or weakness of the light are the alternate light and (lark sections on the strip of the film. . The negative lilm carrying picture and sound record is developed in the usual manner, but a special devolper is used to bring out tin- details ol the sound record. The standard projector is used for showing the film, hut a small attachment is added, which includes a small incandescent lamp and a highly sensitive photo-electric cell. The light front the lamp passes through tlk- sound record on the lilm and lulls on the electric cell, the resistance ol which at any instant is determined by the amount of light falling upon it. Connected to this" photo-electric cell is :l small battery for supplying current. This current is controlled by the light falling upon the cell, and thereby made to reproduce exactly the original telephonic current from the transmitter when the sound picture was recorded. Amplifiers are again used and the current increased in power hundreds ol thousands of times. In their amplified state the telephonic current is passed through specially designed loud reproducers. which are located behind or aloiigisde the .screen. Thus the problem of synchronism is eompleteh solved. The photograph of the sound and of the movements that produce the sound are side by side on the film. Dr Lee De Forest, the inventor of this marvellous instrument, is one of the best known American inventors, and has long been regarded as an expert on wireless telegraphy and telephone. Air C. V. El we 11. an Australian who lias spent many years in the United States, is the leading spirit m the British Empire Company. Tn the broadcasting world his name is almost as well-known "as Senator Marconi’s is in the'.wireless world. To Mr Elwell 1 ant indebted for the opportunity of seeing and hearing the Phonofdm in operation, and for an explanation of its nivsterious working.