Everyone thinks they’re an expert in this amusing amateur instructional film with staged scenarios, which illustrates some do’s and don’ts of cine camera use. Includes footage of Newcastle’s new Civic Centre. This small-gauge film was produced by members of the Newcastle & District Amateur Cinematographers Association (ACA). Title: Using the Camera: A Lesson on Cine by Group B Title: Saint Title: or Sinner A man wanders along the forecourt of the Newcastle Civic Centre. A woman...

Everyone thinks they’re an expert in this amusing amateur instructional film with staged scenarios, which illustrates some do’s and don’ts of cine camera use. Includes footage of Newcastle’s new Civic Centre. This small-gauge film was produced by members of the Newcastle & District Amateur Cinematographers Association (ACA). Title: Using the Camera: A Lesson on Cine by Group B Title: Saint Title: or Sinner A man wanders along the forecourt of the Newcastle Civic Centre. A woman wanders past a demolition site, probably off St Mary’s Place. She suddenly spots the Civic Centre and begins to film using a small gauge cine camera. A man is wandering towards her, also looking around. An erratic panning shot across the Civic Centre building follows, as we see what and how the woman is filming with her camera. Portrait shot of the woman with her camera is intercut with her footage. She smiles with satisfaction and nods her head. She believes that she’s got a great shot. A portly man is setting up his Bolex cine camera on a tripod. He looks through the viewfinder. He uses an exposure wheel, or meter, to work out his camera settings. The woman filmmaker comes up behind him nosily, sees what he’s doing and shakes her head. Close-up of the man adjusting the lens aperture of his cine camera. She disapproves and shakes her head again. He begins to shoot film. He looks up. The woman is now filming him filming the Newcastle Civic Hall. She backs away as she shoots and bumps into a young woman walking behind her. As the young woman hops around injured on one foot, the woman filmmaker begins to take footage of her too. The portly man is now slowly panning along the length of the modernist Newcastle Civic Hall building. He looks up and spots the prominent Civic Hall carillon, or bell tower, topped with seahorses designed by John McCheyne. He tilts his camera to start filming this architectural feature. We see the frame as he zooms out. He looks through the camera viewfinder to film. The woman amateur filmmaker is now sitting on a bench, still looking around for suitable film subjects. She spots something and begins to film again. She walks forward. She moves off camera. The portly man with the Bolex and tripod now unscrews his camera. He uses a bench to steady his camera as he shoots more footage. He’s happy. He walks away with his equipment. The woman is dashing here and there, filming the Church of St Thomas the Martyr from the park on St Mary’s Place now. She looks up a tree, still filming. The portly man walks up to her, and hands her a leaflet: “Camera Technique by Ann X Peace”. She looks at it and flings it over her shoulder dismissively. She continues to film something up the tree. The man walks slowly away through the park.