Evening star., 1953-11-18
Growth and Quick Changes
Mark Districts. Film Industry

District S
Except for people engaged in
the business, it's difficult to i'm
agine the scope of Washington's
film industry and it's prospects
for the future.
In the yellow pages of the cur
rent telephone directory are %
Another in q series Of stories on Wosh-
ineton industries.
listings under the heading MO
tion Picture Film Producers" In
addition, three firms are listed
as motion picture processing
laboratories.
The listings. however, are not
really up to date. There is so
much activity in this young field
so much change and so much
development-that the directory
does not yet carry the names of
several new producers. And. a
few of those whose names do ap-
pear have discontinued opera
tionS here.
The f1edgling, which already is
a multi-million dollar business
employing 800 people, is destined
to add steadily to the economy
of this city of predominant Gov
ernment employment.
Postwar Development.
The establishment of a motion
picture industry here is a natural
postwar development. AS the
seat of the Federal Government
Washington is the worlds big
geSt news center. It is the point
of origin for a very large per-
centage of the news film viewed
daily across the country.
With its concentration of Gov
ernment officials and. news ana
lySts, it is the logical point of
origin for the supplementary
news panel discussions, many of
which are put on film for tele-
cast.
The Government and such
professional organizations as the
National Education Association
also issue hundreds of training
and educational films each year
Much of this business must be
turned over to the private motion
picture producers.
For a considerable part of this
profitable business. the owners
owe thanks to television. Neither
TV networks nor individual sta
tions could operate as they do
without products such as are
turned out here every day.
Varied Output for TV.
The producers and the labora-
tories supply the television in
dustry with many of it's featured
programs and countless thou
sands of commercial shorts.
The term producer" means
different things to different peo-
pie. The companies listed in the
telephone directory perfo m
various services. Scarcely any
of them is exactly like any
others. Nevertheless, their work
is related.
In a strict definition of the
term, such companies as Wash
ington Spotlight. Inc. and Ma
tional Video Productions, Inc,
are producers because they own
shows. arrange for their financ-
ing. sell them and oversee pro-
duction. The former, headed by
Milton Hammer. produces the
Washington Spotlight program,
for which Marquis Childs is
moderator. and the show titled
Whats Your Problem?"
National Video, of which
Harold A. Keats is president,
produces the medical-advice fea-
ture called IN. D." This is seen
on Dave Garroway's To-day"
program. The company also
provides various other film serv-
ices.
Although this is a highly COM
petitive business, many persons
in motion picture work cooperate
closely on certain contracts.
Only few days ago, Nicholas
Read and George +. Johnston,
who head different firms, pooled
their efforts to produce a
Christmas safety film for the
National Board of Fire Under
writer's. This is one in a series
of productions for which the un-
derwriters placed a contract
with Mr. JohnSton's Washing
ton Video Productions. Inc.
Mr.. Johnston says it makes
sense to obtain whatever talent
is needed for a specific assign
ment. If the best talent is to be
found outside his own organiza-
ton. he goes after it. Thus. he
enlisted the help of Potomac
Film Producers, Inc. of which
Mr.. Read is president.
Ankers-Loeb production s,
which has had contracts re-
Gently at the Naval Gun Factory
and the University of Maryland,
does most of its filming on loca-