Sundry Cutting Room Equipment

Film bins or barrels are large metal or fibre bins lined with linen bags. Above the bins are editing racks, consisting of clips or pegs from which individual shots can be suspended. You need the trims bin when you start to break your rushes down into individual shots. You can hang each shot on a separate clip in the bin. When you make your first assembly you can take the shots out of the bin and assemble them in a roll. When you make your fine cut you can return the part of the scene you have not used to the appropriate peg in the bin, hence the name trims bin.

Wall cuts racks

Wall cuts racks are also found in many cutting rooms. They are basically the same as the trims bin except that they are designed, as the name suggests, to be permanently fixed to a wall, whereas trim bins are frequently mounted on wheels so that they can be moved if necessary.

Rewind arms

Different types of rewind arm are used in the cutting room. Hand powered rewinds need to be carefully chosen. Make sure they are well designed and ruggedly built and that the gear ratio is acting in your favour. Some rewinds are geared in a way that makes the simplest job a major effort. One turn of the handle to four turns of the spindle is the minimum to settle for. On the right of the editing bench you will need a rewind arm with a long spindle. It should be long enough to take four or five reels at a time. The reels can be placed on the same spindle alongside each other, separated only by small springs and, together, held firmly in position by a suitable clamp. Film fed through the synchroniser can be taken up on these reels and, by turning the rewind arm the tension can be taken up and the film wound on the reels. On the left of the synchroniser, at the left hand end of the work bench, a similar long spindle rewind arm can be fitted. Alternatively, a film horse can be used to hold the reels of film needed to supply the synchroniser.

Film horse

Film horses usually consist of three or four thin but sturdy metal poles about eighteen inches high and half an inch thick, permanently attached to a weighted metal base. A removable rod passes through the divisions of the partitions mid-way between the top of the poles and the weighted base. The film horse is designed to hold several reels of film side by side at the same level. Separate reels are placed in between the metal poles on the crossbar which passes through the centre of each reel. Film rotates when drawn off the reels and, as there is no obstruction, leaves the horse quite freely.

ANIMATED VIEWERS

1. A trims bin (film barrel in the USA)
Mark scene and take numbers, writing in chinagraph on and above the film before you hang shots in the bin. A linen bag limits scratching.

2. Wall cuts rack
Always mark the scene and take on the film as well as above the peg. If it falls off the peg it remains identifiable.

3. Rewind arm
Make sure it is geared in your favour. One turn of the handle to four of the spindle is the minimum to settle for.