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Thursday, July 13, 2006

Disney Tech Manuals from the 30's (I)

Now for something completely different...
First, Lee Payne's 3-page manual "Camera Table Operations" of July 20th, 1936. At this time, there was only the standard 5F camera.
Then, two years minus one day later, the standard issue manual "Technical Problems", issued by the Scene Planning Dept. This introduces the 6½F camera.

Somewhere in my stack of manuals is a layout course by Charlie Phillippi, in which he mentions that before the actual 6½F cameras were delivered, all 6½F scenes were to be shot on the multiplane camera. This camera could shoot scenes without animation up to 10F, but with animation the maximum field was 6½F.
(Continued tomorrow).
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0304050607
Though many may not find this technical stuff very interesting, it was all part of everyday life at the studio - the animators had to know these things - it was part of their "idiom..."

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2 Comments:

Anonymous Michael Sporn says...

Actually, I wonder how much of the technical knowledge the animators really had. I've heard that many had trouble completing the exposure sheets which were often finished by checkers assigned this job. I know, for sure, this happened at Fleischer's and wonder about the Disney pattern given the complications of many of the scenes.As I say, I'm not completely certain of this.

Thursday, July 13, 2006 at 5:24:00 AM PDT  
Anonymous Hans Perk says...

Well, yes, true...
I remember very well how some of the guys and gals at the studios I worked in were disgusted by anything technical. This didn't get better with the introduction of linetesting machines...
It is a personal thing, of course. But at least in theory, they would need a working knowledge of the mechanics - even though I bet a lot of assistants were abused in a technical way.

Thursday, July 13, 2006 at 8:09:00 AM PDT  

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