Images from Norman Dawn, Percy Day & other pioneers

[dstipes]

I am looking for info and images from pioneer matte artists such as Norman Dawn, Percy Day, Mario Larrinaga and others.

I have researched the sources listed on this site. I am wondering if members have any other leads.

Also, does Linwood Dunn's famous sample reel exist anywhere? Are copies available?

David

[Maryam]

There are sites in our Links section such as:

http://es.geocities.com/chominart/matteartist.html

check them out.

NORMAN DAWN
http://es.geocities.com/chominart/Normandawn.JPG
http://es.geocities.com/chominart/Normandawn1.jpg

[cameo]

I know the Invisible Art comes with a CD thats meant to feature many of the images in the book. Ive not actually put it in my computer yet though so cant confirm whats on it. I doubt the reel you speak of is on there though..more likely to be just still images.

[dstipes]

Hello!

Thank you for the response. The Invisible Art CD does include photos and some Quick time movie examples of matte shots.

I am amazed that so few photo examples exists of Percy Day's and Norman Dawn's work considering the extensive careers that they enjoyed.

(Hey, the same could go for Cosgrove, Larrinaga, Fulton and others!)

David

PS: I'm still looking for Linwood Dunn's effects sample/ demo reel.

[Maryam]

Here is a link about Linwood G. Dunn
http://www.photosonics.com/Milestone%20 ... 20dunn.htm (http://www.photosonics.com/Milestone%20HTLM/linwood%20dunn.htm)

Also a quote from
Matting film to make a star appear as twins
by John Cunningham 1998
"If you taped the series HOLLYWOOD off of AMC in 1997 (the series narrated by Ed Asner about RKO studios), there is one episode in which special effects wizard Linwood Dunn (who pioneered the modern use of matte effects) explains some of this using film clips from CITIZEN KANE (1941) and BRINGING UP BABY (1938)..."
Read more... (http://www.reelclassics.com/Techtalk/matting-article.htm)

Hope it helps to find some samples.

[cbarron]

Hi David-

I’ve been working on a project to have one of Linwood Dunn's matte painting show reels put on CD-ROM or DVD for the Visual Effects Society and the Academy. It’s going be a task to get funding to cover the expenses but it's a project I hope to make happen sometime next year. It may get shot down due to copyrights. I also might be doing a lecture sometime in the near future in Los Angeles that could cover more of Dunn’s reels and work with matte painting. I’ll let you know!

As far as being surprised that so little work of Norman Dawn exists today remember that only about 10 to 15 percent of the films made during the silent era survive today. There are a couple later films like “Tundra,” 1936 and “Two Lost Worlds,” 1950 that are available on video but I’ve never seen any of his early work. He did make many illustrated technical journals that I was able to include examples from in “The Invisible Art: The Legends of Movie Matte Painting.” More on Dawn in “A Technological History of Motion Pictures and Television” and “The Technique of Special Effects Cinematography,” both by Raymond Fielding.

Percy Day’s work is featured in many films like Things to Come, The Thief of Baghdad, Stairway to Heaven and Black Narcissus. His creative collaborations with Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger lead to some of the most imaginative moves of British Cinema. More in Kevin Brownlow’s “Napoleon, Abel Gance's Classic Film” Also articles he wrote "Special Effects teams save Time and Money", Kinematographic Weekly 2 October 1947. "The Origin and Development of the Matte Shot", Photographic Journal, October 1948. However, I’ve found some errors in the above articles because matte painting technologies were being developed in England and the US around the sometime - who did what first is hard to say.

-Craig

[dstipes]

Hi Craig!

I saw that you had joined the memberlist. Welcome!

Thank you for the response. I am so happy that Linwood's reel survives! I had the privilege of seeing one of his live presentations with his reel. Great stuff!

Are copies of Dawn's journals available to read anywhere?


BTW, I am now teaching a matte painting course and we use your book as the class text. :D

(Some of my students are submitting images to this site.)


I look forward to your comments and contributions to these forums.

David Stipes

[cbarron]

David-

Unfortunately the Norman O. Dawn journals are unpublished. The collection can be researched at The Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center at the University of Texas at Austin.

-Craig

[Nazgul]

I bought "The Invisible Art" book from a bookstore and it did not contain a CDROM..

no mention of it in the book