New-York tribune., 1921-05-15
America Leads i'm
Picture Field, Says
French Producer
~e<. %. -SsSs~N~a .>s~s-e,

! The future of the motion picture, not
IN terms Of footage or finance, but in
the language of vision and inspiration
was foretold by Abel Gance, who re-
Gently arrived from France to see the
first presentation Of his French anti
war film. J'accuse" He believes that in
the next two or three years the various
countries will be rated for the excel
lence artistically and the mechanical
perfection of motion pictures in the
following order: America, scandi-
navia, Russia, Germany, France and
Italy.
OF France, he says, "The French
einematography is Of low rank be-
cause France is inclined to adhere TO
the Older arts and to show the cold
shoulder to this newcomer, and also
because of the scant intelligence of
Its directors. And especially. for the
following reason: When money forms
the basis of an art, as it does in this
one, it invariably causes it to de-
generate until, as in the Renaissance.
it makes the art itself the slave to
money.
When the motion picture approx.
mates the perfection it should have it
will be able to do without interpretors
words. have come to prefer to ex.
press thoughts and actions in terms OF
light instead of in words, because !;
feel that deeds and actions so. ex.
pressed, from psychological point of
view, are more truthful and have 3
more direct message for the suirit
than the most beautiful words, which
alas, too often misused, have lost their
power and their greatest value @
Light and music suddenly came
upon each other, after having followed
the same path through the centuries
without knowing that they were walk-
ing side by side. They were astonished
one with the other.
"'You will lend me your voice ?, said
Light.
"'You will lend me your eyss?' said
Music.
And the seventh art was born.
The cult of music in light will
come. One of the greatest minds of
the day does not cease proclaining il.
A great shadow is already falling
across certain arts, and the academies
OF the Old World are preparing with
dlsquietude their cenotaph. when
Claude BERNARD said, 4 am convinSed
that day will come when the physi-
oiogist, the poet and the philosopher
VIII speak the same language and will
understand each other" he but antiei-
pated the new form of expression.
But for the moment" said Mr..
Gance' OF the mass Of motion picture
artists who live from hand to. mouth
shinking only in terms of the popular
demands Of the day, "they speak, they
write, but they really create nothing.
on, that some one would give US back
the ancient Egyptian office of LTnter-
dicteur des Paroles Nonibreuses f.prs-
venter Of Many WordsD. So MANY
words. So many banquets. So many
stories. So many discourses. So many
projects. But how few beautiful pic
lures!
AND IN contrast, what a golden
norizon. what calm and what dynamic
brain power can be seen in the dis
tance.
There is greater art in tbs virgin
nlm than was ever found in parian
marble or on the canvases of the paint
ers. Beethoven does not stand alone.
ne IS strengthened by Rembrandt, and
strengthened still more by shake-
speare- This ardent trinity works at
the same time to corfound the intel
leetually- blind and deaf