As we continue to inventory the collections, we record the format of each item we inventory, creating a kind of format map of the archive. This will help us better address reformatting parts of the collection. So when we set off on the inventory last year and created a database that could account for all kinds of current and obsolete formats - film, video, audio, even hard drives – we didn't think much about what to do if we came across any gear. There wasn't supposed to be any – not in the archive. And well over a year into the inventory there wasn't any, until now.
Lyra Hill, who is inventorying all the of the film elements, opened a box and found this:
The Auricon Sound-On-Film Recording
Amplifier
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| "Singing with music" |
What is it?
In short, it is part of a system
designed by Auricon that allowed filmmakers to record sound directly
to film with an optical soundtrack, in-camera. The sound quality wasn't
great and the system was bulky – Auricon later released cameras
that would record sound onto film with magnetic sound tracks
which became more common. When Kartemquin bought its Auricon, Camera #1, they
stripped it of this gear because they were not interested in
recording sound on film in this way and modified the camera to their
own specifications.
The amplifier and a few of its accessories were packed in a box, taken to The Hall and forgotten.
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| The original Auricon ribbon microphone (as heavy as it looks) |
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| RCA electron tube |
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| Yes, that's a tiny bottle of motor oil |
Lyra and I needed a little help from Kartemquin's tech guru, Jim Morrissette, to understand more about how this thing functioned. We were all pretty fascinated by it. It's beautiful to look at and in great condition though there are no batteries and the various odd connectors spilling out of it show their age.
Gordon said, "it's junk", but we're keeping it. In spite of being obsolete, obscure, and something that Kartemquin never even used, it taught us about one more way filmmakers could record sound on film and fleshed out a little more of Camera #1's history. It is also evidence of how evolving technologies shaped the way filmmakers worked, while filmmakers continued to transform those technologies into the tools they desired.
As an active production company, Kartmequin has and maintains quite a bit of production equipment – cameras, lights, sound gear, etc. All of it is very well organized, secured and maintained, including historic items like Camera #1. We have removed the Auricon Sound-On-Film Recording Amplifier from the inventory and are turning it over to the equipment room at KTQ for safe-keeping with the other historic gear.
Post by Carolyn Faber
Photos by Lyra Hill
The Kartemquin Inventory Project is generously funded by:
