Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-09-21

HOLLYWOOD, Calf, September 20
(NANA.).--When Winfield Sheehan
hired Josef Urban to design sets for
talking pictures, he gave new art the
most tremendous impetus that money
and foresirnt could bring to it.
For II Josef Urban's plans for talk
ing pictures, as outlined by him to me,
come true. he will revolutionize The fiat
ART of the talking screen and bring TO
this popular entertainment beauty
and perspective which it has not hith-
erto had.
Josef Urban plans to light talking
pictures as he has lighted the legiu-
mate stage
This may not seem to be a revolu-
tionary move, when one considers 1t as
a bald statement.
You are inclined to say, And then
But when you consider that talking
pictures-and indeed, all gelatin en-,
fertainment-has been flood-lignteo
with a sheer now OF intense wlLVe
shadow. turned faces into bland masks
and made the farther corners OF a room
seem almost as near as the foreground OF
the room-then some faint idea OF
what the worlds master of stagecratt
is after begins TO dawn on us.
THE motion picture art has useo
lighting with an eye to physical beauty
alone" says Urban, waving penciu
Tnenacingly at me and spreading ms
plump hands out In BROAD inclusive
gesture. :.
II shall use lighting with an at
ten,nt to heighten the emotional quail
ity. When the heroine is happy, wnen
the story slips into ldyllic ways, when
romance is there and charm ana ease
then the broad white lighting OF the
cinematists is perfect, The gauglng OF
the cameranan is perfection under such
circumstances. -. .,n,,
masses into a more tense drama, When
there is emotional war or misery or
moral problems to be solved, shail
use the lighting of the stage WIlcIl
will throw the faces into the MOOD OF
the story. and therefore intensity the
emotion for the audience.
Another thing shoVes up
The sleeves of his navy blue SILK snock
impatiently to give himself more Iree-
dom-"another thing: has y ever ".
eurred ia YOU what handicap you put
on the emotional and dramatic moments
Of a story when you blandly light II
and gauge 1t down? - rr,.
"a man is sitting at table. The
Tight is from a lamp-on the table. he
dropS a knife, or a revolver, or even q
rose. and stoops to pick 1t up. with Cne
old lighting his face is as clearly visible
when he has stopped over and is aDouI
to pick up the object from the moo
as It was when he started 10 oeno
over In other words, he Is kept IN q
clear white light instead Of being put
as he should be, into lamplight. which
would leave his face in shadow Wnen
IL neared the floor
NOW. If his face is in shadow when
near the floor and he is about to PICK
lIp a knife. the audience has a greateI
suspense during that moment in winch
~ masses into shadow than 1t would
have were he left clearly visible during
that time.
ct is often the thing we do not see
on the stage which heightens the mys-
terry and the glamour and the glory OF
the play. But we haven't given our
talking pictures, or the silent pictures
this kind of opportunity. We've trleo
to create a twilight atmosphere IN the
audience while drowning them In the
brilliant rays Of the sun.
ave have a vast room, illumined by
occasional lamps. If we are to believe
the story that our stage set reveals a
person who passed out of that room, IN
actual life, would walk from the illuml-
nation encircling the focal points OF In
terest-tables and reading chairs-lntc
a more shadowy region near exits, ano
so on. out into another room. We sell
dom hang lamps over our doorways
we put them where they will be o
use therefore the far corners of a room
are often dim and the focal point o
the room, the library table or the cas-!
chairs, suffused with a warm glow.
want to light my stages so that a per-
son passing through such a room VII
20 through the gradations of light
which normally occur.
ST feel that much can be done for the