The sun., 1918-12-22

w THAT new departures in pic
w torisl art viii the motion
pictures give us now that
the war Is over? This s,nbject II being
considered carefully by the big men OF
the screen drama, and the thought
seems to be well fixed that radical
departures are forthcOming as a re-
suit OF experimenting fbr which there
were no opportunities during the war.
Wllfred auckland. art director OF
the Famous Players Lasky Studio in
Hollywood. who il one OF the original
artists of the motion pictures. expects
the films to follow the lead OF the stage
in artistic staging. Not the lead of
the stage represented by the Broadway
production, but the school Of produc-
ing represented by Gordon Craig,
Granville Barker and others Of the
radical artists. Mr.. Buckhnd believes
In suggesting a scene and appealing to
the Imagination of his audience.
During the past year." says Mr..
auckland, I'VE have made some ad-
vance in an artistic way but it has
been slight. For the most part we
have played safe, and realism has held
sway, both In the kind OF stories filmed
and in their handling. In 'Prunella'
there was a distinct advance, however.
and this picture scored a success ar
tisticaIly.
1.-THE Blue Bird and The Whisper
ing Chorus were also great successes
from the artists point Of view. and all
lovers OF literature and the decorative
arts were glad to sec us produce those
pictures.
II firmly believe that the next few
years will see O greaA many changes
in the pictures from the art directors
point of view. We will come TO handle
sceries in a different way; we win try
to create backgrounds that will
emphasize the mood OF the scene. that
will allow the audience to follow the
story without distraction and give a
smoother flow to the narrative.
Ever since I came to the pictures
several years ago I have been an
advocate Of settings that appeal to
the imagination. On the stage and
In painting work of that kind has
been in evidence for some time. The
chief advocate Of it on the stage is
Gordon Craig. oue of the really big
men OF the theatre and a friend OF
mine whom I grew up with in Eng
land. When Craig first launched his
ideas he was met with ridicule. But
anything radically new and unron-
ventional meets with "a reception like
that. and Craig went on with his work
bravely. Curiously enough, many OF
his ideas, were not new, but we're q
revival Of an ancient art OF the the
atre.
"Craig's influence spread. and Gran.
vile Barker, Max Reinhardt and
others took it UP. Bakst and the
Russian Ballet did Grca. deal &c
popularize 1t in this country. In the
realm OF painting. under the name OF
impressionism and numerous other
names, the movement toward a more
imaginative and we believe n truel
art form had been going on for some
time.
I'm The Bottle Imp we were given
a chance to use settings that appealed
~ hhO anu ltAdN
was a great success. But 1t is ir
photography rather than in settings
that We have made our greatest ad.
vances lately. By the artistic ma.
nipulation Of the cameras mechanism
we secure effects similar to those OF
Corot and other painters, and the
audience. perhaps without knowing It
follows the story with greater case.
But artistic progress in the pic.
lures Is necessarily slow owing to the