[net.movies] FP as the first color film

burton (09/09/82)

Okay, okay. I've received mucho flacko from all over the net because I
asked the silly question about Forbidden Planet being the first color
film. Well, excuuuuuuuuuuse meeeeeeee! What I really meant to ask
was, "was FP the first color SCIENCE FICTION film?" By the way, I don't
count Wizard of Oz as SF. Does anyone know of any SF films prior to
FP that were filmed in color. And please, try not to humiliate me! I'm
just a poor EE working for Bell Labs; I don't know everything!

Doug Burton
Bell Labs, IN
inuxc!burton

mcewan (09/10/82)

#R:inuxc:-38000:uiucdcs:10700009:000:143
uiucdcs!mcewan    Sep 10 13:32:00 1982


You can also eliminate Wizard of Oz by rephrasing the question "What was
the first SF movie FILMED in color?". Wizard of Oz was hand colored.

cfh (09/12/82)

Wizard of Oz was most definitely not hand colored.  Where did
you ever get that idea?

  Christopher Herot
  cfh@cca
  decvax!cca!cfh

mag (09/12/82)

"Wizard of Oz" was NOT hand-colored.  The scenes in Oz were filmed on
Kodachrome at ASA 10, and processed by Technicolor, I think.  It is not
practical to hand color 7 million frames for a low-budget picture
expected to have a limited appeal, as W. of O. was expected to.
They were easily capable of color as a routine by 1935, as witness
GWTW.  W. of O. was made in 1939.  The only frame-by-frame hand
coloring I know of for a long photographic sequence was done to GWTW in
the late 60s, and this was retouching, not original coloring. It looked
BAD.  Read the credits next time you catch W. of O.  Mike Gray.

adb (09/13/82)

not hand colored.  Check the words "Technicolor consultant -- Natalie Kalmus"
on the credits.  No one could afford to pay for 90 minutes of frame by frame
tinting in 1940.

berry@sri-unix (09/13/82)

Georges Melies "A trip to the moon" is arguable the first color film, as
well as the first color SF film.  It was not however, "filmed" in color
rather the color was painted in by hand later.  This interesting film
dates from the turn of the century.  I don't have the exact date with me,
though....

  --Berry Kercheval
    Zehntel Inc.