New-York tribune., 1921-08-28

just because we sit in the theaters
each Sunday and Monday and see the
new pictures and then write what we
s~-..sG OF 1nem every one asks Of US
these two questions: "Why do the pro-
ducers pay fabulous sums for stories
by we'll known authors and then write
them all over and change everything ?"
and why do they pay fabulous sum
for story or play and, after changing
1t completely, change the title. Where
Is the sense in ?" The last question
has never been answered to our salts
faction, but Cecil De Mile offers an
explanation of the first phenomenon.
Listen, My Children,
And Ye Shall Hear
Because what I buy in the story is
the idea The form is rarely adapt
able for motion picture production
Most of the critics who censure me for
form and title Of the literary material
that I have used in the making of
photoplays disregard one important
fact: The photophay is separate and
distinct artistic form. 1t is just as
different from a stage play as the lat
ter is from novel" says Mr.. De
Mile.
Furthermore, photoplay must be
o1 ! -
fails both ertistically and financially
1t must speak in a language that the
laborer and the college professor can
understand. The novelist or the stage
dramatst is not dependent upon uni
versal favor. A stage play is a sue
cess If it enjoys run of favor in
half dozen of tne large cities of the
country, but a motion picture reckoas
must be taken into consideration when
adapting novel or play for the screen.
And there are many, many stage
plays and novels which boast of ex-
cellent ideas, but which cannot be
translated literally into the terms of
a photopay. Such story is The
Affairs Of Anatol' by Arthur Schnitz-
ler. AS a stage play it served as the
foremost stars and it has delighted
Continental audiences in every capi-
tai of Europe.
Schnitzler's Idea
Nucleus of Picture
But Schnitzler's play really con-
sisted of q powerful idea set forth in
brilliant, scintillating dialogue. IN
fortunately, dialogue does not photo
graph Only the idea was adaptable
for the screen.
80 I purchased the film rights TO
The Affairs of Anato.' paid a good
many thousand dollars for that idea
for that was all of the story that I
could use | turned over this idea to
Jeanie Macpherson to scenario. The
scenario that she wrote around the idea
is practically an original story. But
it conveys in photopay terms what
Schnitzler conveyed in terms of the
spoken drama
"The idea was Schnitzler's. 1t would
be manifestly unfair to take credit for
it or to credit it to Miss Macpherson.
On the other hand Miss Macphersons
story is an original conception, centered
around Schnitzler's idea 1t would be
Just as unfair to Mr. Schnitzler to
credit him with the authorship Of the
scenario as it would be to deny him all
connection with it. Yet the screen
production of The Affairs of Anato' is
Mr.. Schnitzler's theme, presented in
IN original form by Miss Macphe 8
craftsmanship.
Business as Usual
During Alterations
IF | had not purchased the screen
rights to Mr. Schnitzler's play l would
have been guilty Of plagiarism. But if
I had produced his play literally
would have turned out one Of the most
stupid pictures that ever failed before
the public of the world. do not mean
that he wrote stupid play. I only
mean that his play would have made q
stupid photoplay if 1t had been trans
ferred literally to the screen. What he
could say in dialogue we must say in
pantomime and action. There is a vast
difference between the two methods,
and alterations are essential If we are
to succeed in putting over the truly
valuable idea which was the basis of
the Schnitzler success"