• Internationalization of Cinema.—In the early days of si lent films, with no barriers imposed by language, it became appar ent that motion pictures had an international appeal. While still in the inventive stages, films were exchanged between the United States and Europe. At one period, films made by Paul in England dominated the American market. Subsequently American produc tions discovered world markets extending into remote areas of civilization. With the advent of story pictures, difficulties were en countered. Certain types of stories which appealed to domestic audiences had the opposite effect in other countries. A few Ameri can producers began to plan productions for international appeal. With the progress of the industry, large studios had sprung up in England, France, Germany, and Italy ; but with the coming of the World War in 1914, production in England and on the Continent virtually ceased. During the immediately succeeding years, Ameri can producers dominated the world market, establishing them selves so securely that freshened production activities in Europe following the World War failed to dislodge them.
With the success of American producers in foreign fields, stories upon which their pictures were based began to have a broader in ternational flavour. A notable exception was the western cowboy picture, inherently American, which had met with success in all parts of the world. The effect of this trend was to broaden the scope and importance of American pictures. Classics of literature were combed for screen material. Historical photoplays having an international appeal brought an heroic era to the screen but had a distinct educational effect.
The rehabilitation of European studios closed by the World War brought forth many excellent photoplays, but the domination of world markets by the industry in the United States reduced their opportunities for international distribution. Two pictures produced in Germany were especially notable, Passion and The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. Both were exhibited to large attendance in the United States and had an effect upon the trend of American production of the period. With the introduction of sound, printed captions which could be translated into any language gave way to spoken dialogue, bringing new difficulties. Attempts were made to substitute separately recorded translations but non-synchroniza tion of lip-movement and words prevented complete success. Some American companies produced complete foreign-language versions for commercially important countries but the accepted practice has been to superimpose printed translations on the pic ture film by a photographic process.
During the years 1928 and 1929, all major American film studios entered the production of "talking" pictures. The advent of
sound had a revolutionary effect upon many phases of production. Sound-proof stages were necessary. Arc and mercury vapour lights, previously used, were discarded because of noises and in candescent lamps were substituted. Cameras were muffled and became electrically instead of manually operated. Many players, successful in silent pictures, were found to have voices unsuited to recording. On the other hand, spoken dialogue attracted many stage players to the films. Writers experienced in the spoken drama, musicians, and composers became important factors in the preparation of material for the screen. See Motion Picture Direc tion and Sound Motion Picture Technology below.
Colour Pictures.—Colour in motion pictures, long the goal of experimenters, has reached a high state of development.
Many pictures, especially those having spectacular value, have been photographed in colour, but this process has not displaced the black-and-white film. The excessive amount of light necessary to colour photography, and the high cost of processing have been its disadvantageous features. Its use has been limited to ex tremely high-cost productions and to certain short-length novelties and animated cartoons.