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Cows, the weather and Grandfather Prof
Animation, or taking frames one at a time outside in the open air presented many problems too. The sun would go in and out, a cow would wander into the shot, or something would move and they would have to wait and start again. David would often have to keep perfectly still in a certain position and wait while the sun came out or something was fixed. This could be uncomfortable to say the least and it could take a day or more just to shoot a few minutes of film.
Pictured right: David was sometimes called upon to play 'Grandfather Prof' but in fact played many many parts including a soldier, schoolboy and so forth. David Wyatt also doubled for The Prof too.
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Techniques of stop-frame animation
Between the three of them, they would come up with some wonderful gags. Tony was an expert at working out the technical side - bipack* work for instance, where they ran two films in the camera at the same time. David Wyatt came up with some excellent visual gags to add comedy to the tricks. It was very much a team effort. They would think of the impossible and then try to make it work technically - one frame at a time (right).
There was one instance where the Prof became an engine (on the video), with furniture for carriages. The Prof would have to move a few inches and then the furniture would all have to be moved a few inches. With 25 frame per second, you can imagine how long it took. |
Bipack: The running of two films simultaneously through a camera to either expose both or expose one through the other, using the one nearest to the lens as a mask.
The surreal element was a big part of their style. The Prof would find a ladder standing in a field. The Prof climbed it - nothing at the top except sky - he climbed down - the bottom would be in thin air with no means of support. He'd climb up again and a passing train in the sky would nearly knock him off the ladder. Finally he jumps off but falls sideways - gravity has now changed. It was always great when someone commented on their work. Jim Franklin who directed the 'Goodies' often asked them how they did certain things.
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Tide of change
The Prof gained quite a following, and there was even a suggestion that he should have his own show but it never happened. A puppet Prof was made at Bristol and he would come out of a box on Tony Hart's desk. David complained that the character was theirs and that they should have been asked. The puppet was promptly dropped by the producer Patrick Dowling and Morph appeared around that time. The only time that David actually met the Vision On team was at the production meetings when they discussed ideas for the next series.
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Prof - The celebrity
The Prof (or rather David) was recognised by children wherever he went. He'd open fetes, answer photo calls and there was even a 'Vision On' book with photographic sequences in taken by the boys. The series would run for around 13 weeks, then viewers would get 'Animal Magic' with Johnny Morris followed by a repeat of Vision On in the Spring & Summer before the new series in September. As David relates "We were only a small part of the programme. We made hundreds of these short films over the years and many were not as good as we'd have liked, but there were some we were really proud of."
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From The Prof To Cid Sleuth
Before we move on to Cid Sleuth its worth remembering that the 'Prof' and 'Cid Sleuth' films still stand up today and are great examples of clever film technique. They're also very entertaining, and a couple of clips have been included on this site for your enjoyment.
A video (compiled by David Cleveland) is now available (see 'latest') - priced at £15.99 as well as a DVD transfer for £20.99. Its been some 30 odd years since these films were last seen, and now at last, we can see them once more. We feel all the more richer for having that opportunity! |
>>Prof Story Part3 & Cid Sleuth<<
All Prof Enquiries: PO box 7608, Manningtree, Essex.
The content of this site was written, researched and designed by Ralph Morris
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