CINEMA IN GERMANY.

Taranaki Central Press, Volume IV, Issue 359, 13 February 1937, Page 2

CINEMA IN GERMANY.

INDUSTRY DEVELOPING. Attendances Increase By 37 Millions. Germans are going to the cinema more, but the gain to the national film industry is more than offset by increased costs of production, says a cablegram. Attendances in 1935 36 reached the record total of 317,000.060, with 280,000,000 in th previous year. The number of cinemas in Germany rose by 200 to about 5,000. Yet, while film distributors last year had an income of approximately 20,000,000 marks (£1,646,000) more than in 1932-33, the industry as a whole shouted a deficit of about half that amount. The reasons were a drop in exports of £823,000 and an increase of production costs from £2,469,000 to £4,115,000. The smaller export of films is attributed to the rise of home production in the small r European countries, the growth of the British film industry, and the Jewish boycott of German films, especially in the United States. The average cost of producing films in Germany hes ris n by 70 per cent since the 1932-33 season. The rise is attributed chiefly to the effort . to make better films, which is reflected in higher salaries'. Moreover, the double-feature programme has been abolished, so that each film has to be an attraction in itself and cannot be carried along by another of mor pulling power in the same bill. ' Promises were made in 1933 to cut the pay of film stars and bring them into line with other salaries in the industry. What has happened, how- . ever, is that salaries have gone up all round, including those of the stars. There is a large demand for the limited amount of film talent avail-

•ble in Germany. The vacancies Tft by th? departure of J*.ws and the competition of Viennese producers compel the German companies to compete violently for leading personalities. Consequently famous operatic stars can earn from £1646 to £2870 a film, well-known actors and actresses from £576 to £9BB and those in the second rank between £329.and £4ll Wages of extras and cameramen have lik wise risen considerably. > Because of these high costs the - German film industry has not been > able to produce its set quota of films i during the last three years. In 193536 155 were announced, but only 106 ' reached the public.—British United Press.