Tuesday, November 12, 1968
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
7
A crowd of KU radio-TV-film students and faculty gather around a camera on the "Learning Tree" carnival set as Burney Guffey (in cowboy hat), director of photography for the film, gives instructions to a cameraman. Guffey also was director of photography for "Bonnie and Clyde" for which he won the Academy Award for color cinematography.
Jim Rohr (center) discusses his job in the picture, film editing, with Ivan Wang, Taipei, Taiwan, graduate student, and Richard MacCann, associate professor of radio-TV-film.
Gordon Parks returned to Fort Scott last month.
When he lived there, he was just one of several small Negro boys running around the streets of this Kansas town. When he returned it was as the creator of "The Learing Tree"—a fictionalized autobiographical novel and soon, a Warner Bros.—Seven Arts motion picture.
Parks wrote the book based on his early days in Fort Scott, fabricated the screenplay, composed the music, and now is producing and directing the film.
'THE LEARNING TREE'
Photos by Peter Dart
Jimmy Lydon, associate producer of "The Learning Tree," discusses a problem of shooting on the location set with Prof. Linton.
They were filming the carnival scenes when a group of faculty and students from KU's radio-TV-film department visited the location set. Besides being able to view first-hand the techniques and problems of location shooting, the visitors had the opportunity to discuss aspects of creating a motion picture with Parks as well as with cameramen, film editors, promotion men and anyone who could spare a moment from a busy shooting day.
Between takes Guffey and Gordon Parks relax and mull over the next scene. Parks not only is the producer and director of "The Learning Tree" but wrote the book on which the film is based, the screenplay and composed the music.
Several members of the KU group corner Vincent Tubbs (right) to learn more about his duties of promotion for the film. From left are Thomas Swale, Prairie Village graduate student; Prof. Bruce Linton, director of the radio-TV-film department; MacCann; Nicholas Eliopoulos, Prairie Village senior, and Wang.