Scientific and Technical Award Entry Form

Synopsis: A young outsider, working alone, builds an impossible device that is then used to shoot the most important scene in the most important movie.

The opening scene of The Godfather is one of the most memorable and iconic scenes in the history of filmmaking. The device that made it possible is revolutionary. This is the first computer-controlled device to be used in a major motion picture. At a time when computers filled entire rooms, weighed tons, and used kilowatts of electricity, the computer described here weighed less than three ounces and, for control systems, could outperform an IBM mainframe.

Zoom controllers at this time were relatively simple, with the speed controlled by hand. The start and stop positions of the zoom were also controlled by hand. It was difficult to set up even the simplest of zooms, with no way of repeating a zoom for multiple retakes of a scene. Adding a computer and programmability changed everything. Through a simple interface, the director or cinematographer could set up a complex zoom. Choosing the framing of the beginning and then the endpoint of the zoom, then dialing in the time it should take. A soft start and stop could also be added. Press a button to run the zoom, another to pause, and another button to instantly reset for the next take.

The opening scene of The Godfather is a zoom that lasts almost three minutes. It begins with a tight close-up and moves back until an office scene is revealed. It happens so slowly and so smoothly that at first you're not aware that it's happening. Zoom controllers of the time could not make this move. Their motors had an extremely limited speed range. The device described here had an infinite speed range, with no low speed limit. A zoom back on a sunset or a flower blossoming or the opening scene of The Godfather were all within its capabilities. To accomplish this, it used a revolutionary new method for controlling motors.

The concepts of computer control and programmability were new to cinematography in 1970 and, in many ways, they still are. Programmability allowed the director or cinematographer to conceive a zoom move and then program it themselves. It also adds repeatability -- the move can be repeated as many times as necessary. Programmability and computer control add to the vocabulary of cinematography.

Perhaps the most interesting part is how many puzzles had to be solved that were clearly impossible. Designing a portable, battery-operated computer, designing a way of giving ordinary motors an infinite speed range, and designing a simple interface to the system that would let a director or cinematographer directly program a move. In 1969, given the state of the art, engineering knowledge, and available components, any competent engineer would have declared the project impossible and not worth the effort. But I didn't have an engineering background, so I didn't know that these things were impossible. So I went ahead and did them.

(British Cinematographer Magazine) - The Godfather won three Academy Awards for Best Picture, Best Actor and Best Adapted Screenplay. The film could win a fourth next year, this time in the Academy's Sci-Tech (Science and Technology) category for the computer-controlled zoom lens used to facilitate the movie's famous opening sequence, among the greatest in cinema history. The scene and the technology that made it possible, designed by Tony Karp, are receiving renewed attention amid the general acclaim being given to Francis Ford Coppola's gangster masterpiece.

(Reuters Graphics) - "The Godfather" opens with a man's face filling the screen, delivering an angry and mournful speech. As he talks, the camera zooms out imperceptibly for a very long time -- about 2-1/2 minutes -- slowly revealing the speaker, his surroundings and the man he is speaking to, Don Vito Corleone, his "godfather."
As the scene unfolds visually, it sets up the rest of the film by encapsulating the power dynamics at play and the relationships that the family business hinges on. In the 1970s, it would have been a huge challenge for a camera operator to manually zoom out slowly and smoothly for such a long time, take after take. So Coppola harnessed a new tool: A computerized zoom lens made by Tony Karp of Discovery Technology.

This device was submitted last year, but the entry was in outline form, so it was not investigated and I was asked to re-submit it this year, but with more detail. This year's entry greatly expands on last year's by adding far more detail on the the design, development, and construction of the device used to shoot the opening scene of The Godfather.

Despite the complexity of its function, the interface is simple and easy to use.The director or cinematographer sets the START and FINISH framing of the zoom while looking through the camera lens. The length of time the zoom will take is set with the digital switches at the top. The DAMPING control sets an optional soft start and stop, so the zoom will blend in.The zoom is triggered by pressing the RUN button. The HOLD button lets you pause the zoom if it is running too fast. The REV button lets you reverse the zoom. The RESET button lets you instantly reset the zoom for the next take.

The analog computer was comprised of 12 operational amplifiers and passive components including precision resistors and capacitors. Advantages of analog computers include: small size, low weight, low power consumption, simple programming, infinite resolution, and real-time operation.

This is the central theory of motion control. Run between two points in a given amount of time. To do this, the computer must solve two equations. The first equation tells us the speed the lens should move at during a zoom. The second mathematical operation gives us the position the lens will be at, at every moment in time. The computer calculated the position during the zoom, and the motor control matched it. Continuously, in real time.

There was no way to measure the speed of the motor at extremely slow speeds. Instead, the computer generated a continuously changing position that was easy to follow.

Getting ordinary motors to run at extremely slow speeds required inventing a new way to control motors.

Note: This was done in 1969-1971, when computers were huge machines that drew thousands of watts of power. This computer was built on a card measuring two and a half by four inches, weighing less than two ounces, and running on milliwatts. Sounds like science fiction.

The system is 100% analog: Computer, sensors, motor control.

Ideal-world interface design: How do you design an interface for something that never existed before? The only existing computer interfaces at the time were keypunch cards and typewriter terminals. So I closed my eyes and asked myself what if there were no limitations on what could be built, no restraints? And what I saw was what I built. It was an exact representation of the functionality I needed. It's one of the very first computer interfaces made for a specific purpose.

The Godfather crew rented the programmable zoom lens from Camera Service Center (CSC) in New York City. The opening scene was filmed at a studio in Harlem. I received a call from John Clapp at CSC saying that they had a request to make the zoom interval longer than the 100 seconds in the original design. I made some modifications to the computer that extended the time to 300 seconds, and that seemed to fill the requirement. No instruction on how to use the lens was needed. The camera crew figured it out on their own.

The programmable zoom lens was also used in the filming of Doug Trumbull's film Silent Running.

A note about technology transfer: Fifty years ago, I designed and built the programmable zoom controller used to shoot the opening scene of The Godfather. At the time, it seemed like an impossible task, but somehow things worked out. Now, fifty years later, it turns out that this was the only programmable zoom controller ever built. In spite of all of the technological advances since then, that's it. Today, there is an opportunity to build something new. It's an opportunity to add new camera moves and storytelling tools. I'm 85 years old, and I've long since hung up my soldering iron. But I still have all of the knowledge that it took to build the original (and maybe a little bit more). And my days are free. Surely, there must be folks in the cinematography equipment industry who are looking to build something new. A new set of tools that will extend the vocabulary of cinematography.

A more complete description of the technology, chronology of development, along with pictures and mathematics is available online:
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http://disco-tech.us/_-godfather-zoom.htm

This device was developed for the motion picture industry - Programmability, precise timing, and an infinite speed range enabled new moves that added to the vocabulary of cinematography.

Unknown.

My zoom control was the first piece of computerized equipment designed especially for motion picture use. It was the very first piece of computer technology used in the shooting of a major motion picture. It was the first to have an interface that could be programmed directly by the camera crew. And, very likely, the first battery-powered portable computer.

This device is not based on prior art.

A detailed chronology, including pictures, equations, etc, that traces the development from inception to finished product is available online.

http://disco-tech.us/_-godfather-zoom.htm

Industrial Scripts
"Is The Godfather Opening Scene the Best Opening Scene EVER?"
https://industrialscripts.com/the-godfather-opening-scene/

Discovery Technology
"Doing the impossible - A computerized zoom lens for The Godfather"
http://disco-tech.us/_-godfather-zoom.htm
This a long article by the designer of this device. It documents and discusses the various elements of the design process. It also gives some insights into the design of impossible devices.

British Cinematographer
"THE GODFATHER OF ZOOM CONTROL"
https://britishcinematographer.co.uk/tony-karp-zoom-control/
"The opening of 1972's The Godfather showcases the power of the zoom lens in a scene made possible by Tony Karp's pioneering computerized controller."

British Cinematographer
"Tony Karp on the zen of zooming"
https://britishcinematographer.co.uk/tony-karp-on-the-zen-of-zooming/
'The opening scene of The Godfather is a zoom that lasts almost three minutes. Some feel that this is the most important scene in the most important movie.'

Reuters Graphics
"The 50th anniversary of The Godfather"
http://disco-tech.us/_-reuters-godfather-50th.htm
'In the 1970s, it would have been a huge challenge for a camera operator to manually zoom out slowly and smoothly for such a long time, take after take. So Coppola harnessed a new tool: A computerized zoom lens made by Tony Karp of Discovery Technology.'

American Cinematographer
"A Century of Inspiration"
http://disco-tech.us/_-asc-mag-godfather.htm
Although director Francis Ford Coppola and cinematographer Gordon Willis, ASC had established a "no zooms" rule for the movie, they suspended this policy for Bonasera's initial monologue, when the camera introduces the character in a tight close-up before zooming back slowly to reveal the Don's dark, somber den and the side of his face. "The zoom-out seemed to take forever while the actor was talking, but it worked," Willis recalled. "It was applied in a very particular fashion for that one scene, and we never used a zoom again on the Godfather pictures."

Time Magazine
"That Opening Shot"
http://disco-tech.us/_-time-mag-godfather-40th.htm
'Using a "high technology" computerized zoom lens, Coppola started with a tight shot of the undertaker's face, and then pulled back slowly for 2 min. 20 sec., before holding the shot for another 30 sec. while the undertaker whispers in the don's ear."

Discovery Technology
"Zoom lenses, Pan heads, and Computers, Oh my!"
http://disco-tech.us/_-pt-zif.htm
This is an essay about the future of computer-controlled programmable cine equipment and how it will expand the vocabulary of cinematography by creating moves that are not possible with today's cinematography equipment.

(Reuters Graphics): 'In the 1970s, it would have been a huge challenge for a camera operator to manually zoom out slowly and smoothly for such a long time, take after take. So Coppola harnessed a new tool: A computerized zoom lens made by Tony Karp of Discovery Technology.'

Today, the use of computers in making movies is common. Given that, you would think that someone, in the last fifty years or so, would have duplicated my zoom control in a more modern, or in an improved form. But no one has. If you use your favorite search engine, the only computerized zoom control you'll find is the one that I built, all of those years ago. Maybe that's why, in the years since then, no one has shot another "Godfather."

04/1970