I'D LIKE TO TAKE A FEW MOMENTS TO SHOW YOU A SHORT

PIECE OF FILM PREPARED TO COMMEMORATE THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF

IRRELEVENT.

THE DIRECTORS' GUILD OF AMERICA. SOME OF IT IS IN BLACK AND WHITE AND SOME OF IT IS IN COLOR, BUT FOR THE MOMENT THAT IS IT LASTS ONLY SIX AND ONE-HALF MINUTES AND I PROMISE IT WON'T BORE YOU. IT'S A SMALL PART OF THE LIBRARY OF AMERICAN FILM ART AND IT IS ENTITLED, "PRECIOUS IMAGES".

(FILM RUNS HERE)

IT'S IMPOSSIBLE FOR ME TO WATCH THAT COLLECTION OF PRECIOUS IMAGES WITHOUT A FLOOD OF ASSOCIATIONS OF MY OWN, AND THIS COUNTRY'S, PAST. THE OPERATIVE WORD IN THE TITLE IS "PRECIOUS". THESE FILMS ARE A PART OF OUR CULTURAL HISTORY. LIKE ALL ACCURATE REPRESENTATIONS OF WHO AND WHAT WE WERE, THEY DESERVE PRESERVATION IN THEIR AUTHENTIC FORM. LIKE A BUILDING, A PHOTOGRAPH, OR A DOCUMENT IT HELPS LOCATE US IN TIME AND GIVES US A SENSE OF THE GEOGRAPHY OF OUR LIVES. WE NEED AN ACCURATE UNDERSTANDING OF THE PAST IN ORDER TO POINT

US ACCURATELY TOWARD THE FUTURE.

I DON'T WANT TO ARGUE HERE THE RELATIVE MERITS OF

BLACK AND WHITE VS. COLOR, I BELIEVE OUR PREMISES HERE ARE CLEARER THAN THAT. THE FIRST IS TO PLEAD FOR THE RESPECT

THAT ANY CULTURAL HERITAGE DESERVES.

THE SECOND IS REALLY

QUITE SIMPLE: THAT IT IS MORALLY UNACCEPTABLE TO ALTER THE
PRODUCT OF A PERSON'S CREATIVE LIFE WITHOUT THAT PERSON'S

PERMISSION.
YOU HAVE SEEN A DEMONSTRATION OF A NEW
TECHNOLOGY THAT, LIKE ALL TECHNOLOGIES, WILL GET BETTER AND
BETTER WITH USE. THE FUNDAMENTAL ISSUE AT HAND IS NOT HOW

.NOT WHETHER OR NOT COLOR IS IPSO-FACTO BETTER

THAN BLACK AND WHITE, BUT THAT IT IS NOT IN ANY SENSE THE SAME AS BLACK AND WHITE.

THAT IT REPRESENTS A CREATIVE

CHOICE. THAT THE WHOLE ART OF DIRECTING IS BASED ENTIRELY ON

A SERIES OF CHOICES

THEREFORE

THE

RELATIVE WORTH OF A

DIRECTOR IS TAKEN FROM THE SUM OF HIS OR HER CHOICES, AND TO TAKE THAT AWAY FROM THE DIRECTOR IS ESSENTIALLY TO ROB HIM OR HER OF WHO AND WHAT THEY ARE.

FROM THE MOMENT OF CHOOSING TO DO A SPECIFIC FILM

THE PROCESS BEGINS. THROUGH THE CHOICE OF WRITER OR WRITERS, AND WITH THE WRITER THE CHOICE OF CONTENT IN EACH SCENE, THE CHOICE OF WHO WILL PLAY THE ROLES, WHO WILL PHOTOGRAPH THE FILM, DESIGN THE SETS, IN WHAT CITY WILL IT BE SHOT, SHALL IT BE WIDE SCREEN OR FLAT, WHAT WILL THE ACTORS WEAR, WHO WILL DESIGN THE CLOTHES, WHO WILL EDIT THE EXPOSED FILM WHEN SHOOTING IS FINISHED, WHAT SHALL THE STYLE BE?.

.HARD AND

GRITTY OR LYRICAL?. .FULL OF MOVEMENT OR IN SHORT, STACCATO BURSTS?. . .WHERE WILL THE ACTORS MOVE, HOW LONG SHOULD THEY PAUSE BETWEEN MOMENTS, SHOULD WE SEE THEM FROM THE FRONT OR THE BACK, IN CLOSE UP OR LONG SHOT, BRIGHTLY LIT OR SKETCHY? SHOULD HE WEAR A WATCH?.

.SUSPENDERS?.

.PERHAPS HE

FIDDLES WITH RUBBER BANDS, MAYBE SHE CHEWS GUM. IT ALL MAKES A DIFFERENCE, YOU SEE. SHOULD WE PLAY THE SCENE INSIDE THE

IT A BRIGHT SUNNY DAY OR SHOULD WE MAKE RAIN?. . .HOW MANY

CONFUSED. . .HARD TO SEE AND HEAR THEM.

ONLY IN SNATCHES.

.MORE OF AN IMPRESSION? SHOULD WE SEE

HER FALL DOWN OR ONLY HEAR THE SOUND AND PHOTOGRAPH SOMETHING ELSE? SHOULD WE PUT THE TITLES OVER BLACK OR OVER THE FIRST

SCENE? SHOULD THIS SCENE BEGIN IN A CLOSE SHOT OR IN A LONG

.PERHAPS WE SHOULD CUT THE NEXT SCENE .MAYBE THE FOURTH SCENE SHOULD BE THE THIRD

SCENE, WHAT HAPPENS IF WE TAKE OUT THE DIALOGUE AND JUST PLAY MUSIC? WHO WILL WRITE THE MUSIC? WHERE WILL IT GO. . .AT THE BEGINNING OF THIS SCENE. . .OR IN THE MIDDLE? WHAT WILL A SINGLE INSTRUMENT WITH NO RHYTHM, OR A

BE ITS TEXTURE?

FULL ORCHESTRA

PLAYING SOMETHING GRAND?

OR IS IT MORE

.PERHAPS NO SOUND AT ALL OTHER

EFFECTIVE TO HAVE NO MUSIC.

THAN BREATHING, EVEN THOUGH WE ARE OUTSIDE AND SEE TRAFFIC AND CHILDREN PLAYING? THE PRINT IS TOO DARK, OR TOO LIGHT OR BLUE IS COLDER, MAKES A DIFFERENT

TOO YELLOW OR TOO BLUE.

MOOD, THE PEOPLE SEEM HAPPIER WHEN THEIR FACES ARE MORE YELLOW. .WARMER. EACH CHOICE CHANGES, IN SOME WAY, THE SIGNALS WE ARE SENDING TO THE AUDIENCE. EACH AREA REQUIRES FLUENCY IN ONE OF THE VOCABULARIES WE USE TO COMMUNICATE, TOOL OUT OF WHICH ONE SCULPTS THE FINISHED FILM. IT IS MADE OF NOTHING ELSE. NOTHING. ONLY THE SUM OF THESE CHOICES.

A

IT IS NOT

THERE IS A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A FILM IN BLACK AND WHITE AND A FILM IN COLOR. BLACK AND WHITE PHOTOGRAPHY IS NOT COLOR PHOTOGRAPHY WITH THE COLOR REMOVED. BETTER OR WORSE IN GENERAL, BUT IT IS DIFFERENT. IT IS. . .A CHOICE. A FILMMAKER HAS NOTHING OTHER THAN THE QUALITY AND INTEGRITY OF HIS OR HER WORK, AND THAT QUALITY AND INTEGRITY ARE MADE OF ABSOLUTELY NOTHING BUT THIS SERIES OF CHOICES. WE ARE HERE TO PROTECT THOSE CHOICES, EVEN TO SAY THAT A

DIRECTOR WHO DOES NOT MAKE THOSE CHOICES IS NOT DIRECTING. WHAT YOU SEE AND HEAR IS WHAT THE FILM IS.

SEE IS ALTERING WHAT THE FILM IS.

CHANGING WHAT YOU

IT IS IRONIC THAT IN THE UNITED STATES, WHERE THE MOTION PICTURE WAS CREATED, WE WHO MAKE THE FILMS HAVE LESS PROTECTION WITH OUR OWN COUNTRY THAN WE HAVE IN FRANCE, OR

ITALY OR JAPAN.

THE FACT THAT I HAPPEN TO PREFER BLACK AND WHITE FOR "THE MALTESE FALCON" IS NOT FINALLY THE DECIDING FACTOR. THE FACT THAT I AGREE WITH VINCENT CANBY WHO WROTE IN THE NEW YORK TIMES, SUNDAY, APRIL 19TH: "THROUGH THE AUSPICES OF COLOR SYSTEMS TECHNOLOGY, 'THE MALTESE FALCON IS NOW MOSTLY GRAYISH-BLUE. MARY ASTOR'S BATHROBE COMES OUT A BABY GRAYISH-BLUE, HUMPHREY BOGART'S PIN-STRIPE SUIT IS A DARK GRAYISH-BLUE, AND HIS FEDORA A CHANGEABLE, LIGHT GRAYISH-BLUE (THOUGH IT FREQUENTLY TURNS KHAKI COLOR, EVEN WHILE ON HIS HEAD). THE OLD BLACK MAGIC OF THE ORIGINAL BARELY SHINES THROUGH THIS SINGULARLY INEPT 'COLOR CONVERSION.' ALL THE ACTORS APPEAR TO BE WEARING THE SAME ORANGEY MAX FACTOR PANCAKE MAKEUP, CREATING HEAVENLY HALOS AROUND THEIR FACES IN LONG SHOTS. EVERYONE HAS THE SAME, SIMILARLY TINTED BEIGE LIPS AND THE SAME BROWN-BUTTON EYES. ONE OF THE CURIOUS SIDE

EFFECTS OF THIS TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCE:

EVERY MAN IN THE CAST

SEEMS TO HAVE DYED HIS HAIR IN THE SAME VAT OF RAISIN-COLORED

RINSE.

OPPONENTS OF SO-CALLED

FOR A BETTER ARGUMENT THAN THIS."

'COLORIZATION' COULDN'T ASK

PERHAPS THESE CONCERNS

MUST BE BRUSHED ASIDE IN THE INTERESTS OF WHAT WE ARE TOLD IS PROGRESS. EVEN THE FACT THAT I AM HEARTBROKEN AT THE

PROSPECT OF SEEING INGRID BERGMAN SAY THAT LAST GOODBYE TO 'BOGIE' THROUGH ALL THAT FOG (IN "CASABLANCA") IN SOME KIND OF MADE UP, TACKED ON COLOR, IS PERHAPS BESIDE THE POINT. BUT THE PROSPECT OF SOMEONE TAKING AWAY FROM THE FILM DIRECTOR WHO HE OR SHE IS AND WHAT HE OR SHE DOES, WHICH IS MAKE THE SERIES OF CHOICES THAT

PICTURE IS NOT BESIDE THE POINT.

FINALLY BECOME A MOTION

IT IS THE POINT AND WE

Senator LEAHY. Thank you, Mr. Pollack. I think you made your position very clear.

Mr. Allen, if we could have testimony from you, sir, and then from Mr. Forman. Then I will have a series of questions for the panel.

STATEMENT OF WOODY ALLEN

Mr. ALLEN. Let us just say that a very rich man has purchased all the films ever made in Hollywood. He calls together his staff and says, "Take all the black and white ones and turn them into color using our new computer." The technicians get right to work implementing this because they are used to following orders. One man among them, however, is puzzled and asks his employer, “I don't understand-why paint them over with color?"

And the boss says, "Because more people will watch them." "Really?" the underling asks.

"Yes," the boss answers. "The American public is very, very stupid, very infantile. In fact they're idiots. They can't enjoy a film unless it's full of bright colors and rock music. The story means nothing-the plot-the acting-just give the fools reds and yellows and they'll smile."

The worker is confused, and tells his boss that for generations people have been watching and adoring films in black and white. He points to "It's A Wonderful Life," viewed by millions every Christmas on television. He points to "Yankee Doodle Dandy" and "Sergeant York" and "Citizen Kane" and "The Maltese Falcon" and "On The Waterfront."

"They're great films," the boss says. "But I'm going to improve them. They'll be greater when I'm finished with them.'

"But the director of 'Citizen Kane' is dead. Who'll tell you what colors it should be?"

"We have men to do that. It's true-they've never directed films and know nothing about it, but they sure can work computers and between you and me-does it really make a difference if James Cagney's jacket is green or yellow when he shoots Humphrey Bogart in 'Public Enemy'?"

The poor underling is losing his resolve. "By the way," he asks, "you mentioned adding rock music?"

"Oh, that's in the future," the boss says. "First color, then maybe we replace the score of 'Gone With The Wind' with rock. I have lots of ideas."

Now, you might get the impression from all this that I am against colorization of black-and-white films but, believe it or not, you would be wrong. If a movie director wishes his film to be colorized, then I say by all means, let him color it. If he prefers it to remain in black and white, then it is sinful to force him to change it. If the director is not alive and his work has been historically established in black and white, it should remain true to its origin. The presumption that the colorizers are doing him a favor and bettering his movie is a transparent attempt to justify the mutilation of art for a few extra dollars.

The colorizers will tell you that it's proven no one wants black and white, but this is not true, and if it were-if audiences who