Movies for TV - Early Television Foundation

WHAT MAKES GOOD COMMERCIALS 577
of sound that has never before been heard. The sound track is
actually drawn onto the film with a brush in much the same way
as animated pictures. But in the former case the marks represent
sound waves and when passed through the sound head of a moving
picture projector sounds which have never been made are heard.
This offers boundless possibilities for unusual sound accompani-
ments for comparatively cheap spots. By this method it is possible
to draw a sound track to represent a fifty piece orchestra and
have it sound like one, too ! And yet it was produced by a twenty-
five cent paint brush !
Going a little deeper into animation we find that there is an
almost infinite number of stages or divisions between full anima-
tion and very simple camera movements. If the reader is con-
cerned with making a decision on what type of presentation to
use or is on the receiving end of an assignment to produce such
a film, he should always have his animator in at the conferences
with him. A competent animator will be completely familiar with
all the different techniques and be able to visualize how a certain
effect will look under various types of animation. He should also
be capable of estimating fairly and accurately approximately how
much each style will cost. At this point it might be well to point
out that there are absolutely no cheap and easy ways of doing
animation that do not look cheap.
For twenty second spots, where it is necessary to capture the
viewers' attention as quickly as possible by an attention-compel-
ling opening, animation appears to hold considerable advantage
if it is handled properly, but by the same token if it is badly and
irritatingly done it will drive viewers away.
There are two schools
of thought on this subject. Both will be discussed and the high
points of each presented. But before proceeding to that, the repeti-
tion factor must be considered. This is the amount of positive
identification that viewers have for the spot. Very tricky, catchy
spots repeated often in one market will saturate it so that after
some time long or short depending on the spot the value and
money invested in the production are lost. This is a risk that must
be guarded against by the sponsor who creates a really attractive