European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - June 14, 1968, Darmstadt, Hesse                              L Steve Gibson staff writer infers by the thousands Are be mine Hometown television celeb cause of the Usa eur Pic Center located in Kaiserslautern or for television series such Asfe picture and Arnty reports rial Center teams shoot thousands of motion picture film each year Iff Europe stationed soldiers at and play in countries from nor be twp Snoop color motion pictures Forton and training films plus lots Wark and White for spot news and Leal releases explained 1st it. T it m Bach officer in charge of i renter we Are currently shooting Golf of footage on project partnership 1 the Usa eur Public affairs office Lich is our biggest  television shorts Bach con led let the people at Home know although we Aren t fighting in a voting Battle we Are soldiers protect their  x he motion picture cameramen i photographers Laboratory tech ans script writers directors and in other specialists who form the ing Force of what could be called Hollywood of Germany Are also irs with full Field Layouts inspect and formations. But their mansion is photography. A Good example of one aspect of lir photographic Mission is our recent of eduction you re the target we re Feied an assignment from the army pictorial Center in Long Island City,if.y., to produce a film about efforts by the enemy to get information Fromor troops in Usa eur explained 1st to. Richard e. Van Wert motion Pic ure director for the Center. Pc sent j director from the states and restarted on what turned out to be a free month  training film to be shown to sol Iii ers in Europe illustrates that no mat Ter what Job a Soldier has he knows something that can be of use to the enemy and the enemy uses every Means available to get this  we had limited funds for the production so the cast had to come Pri Marily from servicemen and their de Pendents. Even our motor Pool dispatcher was in a scene Van Wert said. We shot footage of Kaiserslautern citizens on the Street soldiers in a bar and there was even a bedroom scene which is unusual for a training  the film is currently being edited in Newyork. Other soldiers Are being filmed in current production about Usa eur religious retreats to show a Side of Soldier that is Seldom seen. The usar eur chief chaplain s office in Heidel Berg is sponsoring the film. 10 produce a 30-minute film takes hundreds of Man hours. For every Sec Ond of finished film there Are Many minutes of work before the camera Start to Whir. Van Wert said that Al though you re the target will be a30 to 40 minute film when edited it took several months to  the technical work in a production is done by pictorial Center personnel the script is usually prepared elsewhere Bach  often Means the usar eur pictorial office in Heidelberg where Robert g. Crossley Usa eur pictorial officer Calls the men of the pictorial Center Unsung  Center personnel also film for armed forces television beamed locally. First it. Gary Burger in charge of the labs at the Center originated the idea of news coverage for local Ameri can television. News reporting teams Are not limited to the immediate area for coverage How Ever. They covered the Sicily Earth quake in january for instance. We were doing some routine work one morning when we got a Call from Usa eur telling us to pick up our camera gear an air plane was waiting o Lake us to Sicily to cover the results of the earthquakes there said Bach. Hie him from Sicily was flown to new York where it was developed and sea to show the army s role in Rescue a rebuilding activities. A assignment occasionally require Stu u thought to put Over Points desired. 1968 the Star is Usa eur pictorial censer filmed target is you designed to Alert soldiers to dangers of spies. Is an important but not Ionly Lone army pro Rotor film in pictorial Center movie team films troops in the Field. The stars and stripes the pictorial Center personnel As a example were asked to show How a schoolteacher in a dependent school i Germany serves the Serviceman and his family. A classroom in Germany can lookalike a classroom anywhere said Bach. We had to come up with ways to show the viewers that this classroom was in Germany. So what did we do we Hada Young girl walk into the classroom with a dirndl dress on while the teacher wrote some German on the Black  picture work function of the Center one. The Center is the Cessor of 3."5 my still Kropo. Staff still photographers also shoot Good Deal of Black and White film. Prints Are used for briefings historical Pur poses and often for release to outside Media by the Sakl Luu Public affairs  photographers also do a lot of travelling with assignments ranging from the nato military Tattoo at Aru hem. Holland to the four Day March Inni Mege a Holland. They also shoot several project partnership features each month. Tim ital a grounds of men work ing at the Center Are As interesting As the jobs they Are required to film. Sec Ond m. Michael j. I Luni Stoul of of still photography was a disc jockey Van Wal was an actor in Newport Blu a Calif. Spec. 5 Kent. , sound motion picture photographer was a t inti editor in new York. The Job in t All Hollywood a Lam Wiir though. We also have a wartime Mission that requires us to be . A e Hac a motor Pool mess Hall and hitlers As Well As our pictorial Center to keep in shape Jiachi said.  13