According to their annual statement for last year the Famous Players-Lasky Corporation, the well known cinematograph producers, made a net profit of G.$5,337,129 as compared with G.$3,132,985 for 1919. If these figures are not enough to give some idea of the present day immensity of the film business (for; the Players-Lasky Corporation is only one among many) during the week ended March 14 of this year no less that 1,500,000 feet of film were shipped by them to all parts of the world: their average weekly shipment, however, is 500,000 ft. Then, as showing the large sums spent in production, the producers of the Paramount picture 'Experience' are spending no less than G.$100,- 000 on furs for the three leading characters. Possibly when money is lavished on this scale in producing these pictures the gross turnover of such a concern as the Famous Players-Lasky "must be something stupendous and it is here that the cinema is removed from the list of factors in propaganda work. It is inconceivable that such sums of money should be raised for propaganda even if the public at large was inclined to be patient with it. Certainly it would not pay money to see films of that class when all that money can buy and artistic minds evolve secures the support it does throughout the world. Propaganda has to be cheap and—that is why the public does not like it.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.