A Selection of Overlooked Films – Part Two

Matte Shot – a tribute to Golden Era & Traditional Special Effects is a tribute to the artistry and ingenuity of traditional matte painters, this collection celebrates the hand‑crafted movie magic that once shaped cinema — from grand, epic vistas to invisible effects even seasoned viewers might miss. It’s designed for both casual fans and dedicated enthusiasts, offering a renewed appreciation for skills largely forgotten today.

So, here’s the latest from the Archives of Matte Shot …

I love old time matte shots, and have a personal preference for the early days, with the 1940’s being my own ‘prime’ favourite matte period where the artform was in maximum use and at its peak, in terms of bold application and a certain, though soon to be, long lost sense of romance of old Hollywood. Today’s blast from the past is a revealing glimpse at the matte process at Paramount Studios, circa late 1920’s to early 1930’s. These wonderful historic photographs below – just a portion of a sizeable collection – generously came to me from the daughter of career matte artist Jan Domela some years ago, for which I remain ever so grateful.

Both Domela and Roberts started at Paramount on the West Coast about the same time in 1926 and worked on every film the studio produced that required mattes. From the early thirties Gordon Jennings would head up the effects department up until his untimely death in 1953, after which John P. Fulton would take charge.
Late in the game, around the mid 1950’s, Irmin got more involved in Second Unit D.O.P work and won acclaim for his astounding location photography on films like SHANE as well as designing the now famous ‘trombone-zoom’ trick for Hitchcock’s VERTIGO (which would later be used by many other directors over the years, the most impressive being Steven Spielberg for one particularly brilliant shot in JAWS.) and later assisted on other big effects shows like TORA!, TORA!, TORA! with vfx master, L.B Abbott…

…Read the Full Article @ Matte Shot…