In some cases it is necessary to take the scene again,
altering the "business" slightly or hurrying the action a little to
reduce the footage consumed in a certain scene. A point worth noting
is that the director can seldom figure in advance the exact amount of
footage a certain scene will require--even after it has been rehearsed
and timed several times; whereas he _can_ always tell the exact number
of feet he must give to each of the various inserts, because "insert
footage" is reckoned in advance, a certain number of feet being
allowed for each word.
Photoplay audiences have gradually been educated up to an appreciation
of sub-titles, or leaders, when they are all that they ought to be (a
point which we shall presently discuss); and less attention is paid to
the rather selfish cry of the illiterates in the audience who insist
that "they came to look at pictures, and not to read a book." As one
of the most prominent theatre managers in San Francisco recently said
in the _Motion Picture News_: "In many pictures the big scene is 'put
over' by a sub-title. The wording of a sub-title in a big situation
can make or break a picture, and it is therefore false economy to
allow this work to be done by any person other than one with real
literary talent, who is thoroughly conversant with the art of
expression.
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