14x11 - Graphite Pencil Leads/Clarinets/Special Effects

[bunniefuu]

Narrator:
despite the name "lead,"

The core of a pencil
isn't actually made of lead.

It's made primarily of graphite,

A form of carbon that's very
abundant in the earth's crust.

To produce pencil leads,

They combine graphite powder
with water and clay.

The higher the ratio of clay,
the harder the lead.

Quality graphite pencil leads
don't break easily

And glide smoothly on the page.

Graphite is mined from both
open-pit mines and shaft mines,

Like this one in germany.

Miners use hammer drills
to bore holes for expl*sives.

The chunks of ore must contain
at least 30% graphite

To make the area
financially viable for mining.

At the surface, a crusher breaks
the ore into small pieces.

Then, adding water and oil,

They pulverize it
in a rotating mill.

This ore soup
then flows into a system

That separates the graphite
from the impurities.

The graphite particles
cling to the air bubbles

And float to the surface.

Skimmers send
this layer of graphite foam

Back into the mill.


Concentration is 96%.

However, it's soaking wet,
so it has to go into a dryer.

After spinning around
at 572 degrees fahrenheit

For about 30 seconds,

The graphite becomes
a completely dry, fine powder.

Mined and processed,

It's ready to be shipped
to the pencil factory.

To make pencil leads,

The factory combines graphite
powder with clay and water.

During the 35-minute
mixing cycle,

It's critical to control
the blending speed,

Pressure, temperature,
and moisture level.

This produces
h*m* granules --

The key to ensuring
that all the leads

Will be uniform in quality.

The granules go into
a hydraulic press,

Which shapes them
into a cylindrical block.

Workers then wrap the block
in film to prevent drying out

And set it aside for a week
to cure.

They load each cured block
into a hydraulic press,

Which pushes it through
a forming die,

Producing one long,
continuous lead.

Different dies
give different-sized leads.

The next machine then cuts
the continuous lead

Into pencil lengths.

The leads are
the right thickness and length,

But they're soft and pliable

Because they still contain water
from the mixing process.

Workers load the leads
into a rotary dryer

At 320 degrees fahrenheit.


Exit the dryer straight,

But not quite strong enough,

So next they go into a kiln
for 10 hours

At more than


This firing transforms the clay
that's mixed with the graphite,

Strengthening the leads
to their final hardness.

Finally, a 12-hour bath in
a mixture of high-quality waxes.

The waxes fill the pores
in the leads,

Leaving them with a surface that
glides smoothly across paper.

Throughout
the production process,

The factory puts samples
through quality-control testing

To check hardness,
break resistance, diameter,

And, of course, writing quality.

This company produces
three different qualities

Of graphite leads
in 16 different hardness levels,

Plus a full array
of colored leads made similarly,

But with pigment powders
and waxes rather than graphite.

Narrator: when the clarinetist
blows into the instrument,

A reed in the mouthpiece
vibrates, creating sound.

To turn that basic sound
into different notes,

The player manipulates
the length of the air column

Inside the instrument

By opening and closing
different tone holes.

The standard clarinet
has 24 tone holes.

The musician covers
some with his fingers,

The rest by pressing keys.

Those keys are made of nickel
silver or, sometimes, brass.

They inject hot wax into a
plaster mold of a specific key.

Then, using hot wax,

They attach several models
of the same key onto a stem.

They put this tree,
as it's called, into a cylinder,

Then into a mold-making machine,

Which fills the space
around the tree

With a silica-based
ceramic material.

When the ceramic hardens,

They melt out the way through
an exit hole at the bottom,

Leaving behind
a tree-shaped cavity.

Now they transfer the mold
to a casting machine

And load nickel silver
into a miniature furnace.

The metal melts
and fills the entire cavity.

To cool and solidify
the casting,

They submerge the mold
in lukewarm water.

The metal contracts
as its temperature drops,

Loosening from the mold.

They extract the tree
and remove the keys.

Then they grind off the little
stub left on each key.

Next the keys go into a tumbler
filled with synthetic stones.

The stones polish the keys,

Preparing their surface
for silver plating.

Silver doesn't adhere directly
to nickel silver,

So they plate the keys
in copper first.

For each layer, they submerge
the keys in a chemical solution,

Then apply
a negative electric charge

While running a positive charge
to pieces of the plating metal.

Like a magnet, this draws
particles of the plating metal

Onto the keys,
forming a thin overall coat.

A clarinet's two-part body
is typically made of wood

Or, like these, plastic resin.

A computer-guided drill
bores 24 tone holes

And 40 smaller holes
for the posts,

Which support
the key mechanisms.

A sonic welding machine

Presses each post
into its respective hole

While zapping it with
a high-frequency sound wave

To melt the plastic
around the base.

This anchors the post securely.

The next machine reams a hole
through the head of each post

For the rods
that operate the keys.

They wrap natural cork around
the connecting ends of the body,

Then illuminate the interior for
a quality-control inspection.

It's time for
the final assembly.

They lubricate
all the moving parts,

Then install the 17 keys
onto their mechanisms.

Each key has a foam pad
to prevent air

From leaking out
when the hole's covered.

They use a strip of foil

To test whether the seal
is tight enough.

With both body sections
of the instrument finished,

A musician assembles them

And checks that each
and every key moves fluidly.

Then, after attaching the bell
and the mouthpiece,

She conducts
a sound-quality test,

Performing a set
of musical exercises.

The clarinet now goes
to the packing department

Where the packager
gently removes fingerprints,

Lint, and lubricant residue,

Then lays the instrument parts
in a velvet-lined case.

It's a fitting finale
to the making of an instrument

That looks as good as it sounds.

Narrator: special effects
in animated films

Breathe life
into characters and scenes

That are completely imaginary.

It usually takes a mix
of different effects

To give the fantasy
a realistic texture.

From miniature-scale models
to computer-generated imagery,

It's all about the big picture.


And photographic tricks

Make this miniature village
loom large on the big screen.

It all starts
at the drawing board.

An artist sketches
the various components

Of the fantasy village.

Once he gets it down on paper,

The rest of the crew
can build it.

Using one of the sketches
as a reference,

A sculptor carves foam
into sections of a roof,

And he glues the pieces
together.

This foam roof will then be used
to make a mold.

The mold maker
builds a box around the roof,

Which is now gray-colored
due to the application

Of a nonstick substance.

He pours liquid silicon rubber
onto the foam roof in the box.

After 12 hours,
they pull apart the box

And remove the foam
to reveal the mold.

This mold will be used
to cast multiple roof parts

For the mini film set.

They mix a two-part
urethane solution

And pour it into the mold.

A chemical reaction
causes the urethane to solidify,

And as it does,
it takes the shape of the mold

With all the details.

After half an hour,

He extracts the cured urethane
from the mold.

It's a perfect copy
of the original roof carving.

They mold various roofs
for visual interest.

The crew then paints

All the molded parts
of the mini village set

In colors that are true to life.

The palette
has been selected beforehand,

But if it doesn't look right
to the eye,

Adjustments can be made.

For larger-scale structures,

A technician arranges reflective
dots in a grid pattern.

These dots
serve as reference points

To laser-scan the image
of the house into a computer.

The technician transfers
the image a section at a time.

Once the image has been loaded
into the computer,

Animators can really play around
with it.

They can insert
digital characters

Or impose a digital image over
a filmed one to cast a shadow.

Meanwhile,
another member of the crew

Plants molded trees
onto hills of plastic

And shapes the landscape
of the set.

The trees and vegetation
are very small-scale

Because the landscape
will be in the background.

In the world
of digital animation,

Clumps of moss can mimic shrubs,

And a hot-glue g*n
is an indispensable tool.

Once buildings
have been inserted in the set,

The crew brings up the lights
and checks the effect.

They add props,
and, sometimes, take others away

To improve the look
of each scene.

Technicians tweak the lighting,

Which can add visual depth
and credibility to any scene,

But it's even more critical
with a small-scale vista.

Little rectangular mirrors
attached to the lights

Allow for minute adjustments.

The director of photography
operates the camera remotely.

Adjustments to the shot's frame
or depth of field

Can trick the eye and make
miniatures seem much larger.

The computer
records the camera movements

So they can be repeated
at any time.

Later, water will be digitally
added to this riverbed.

Coming up next, animated
characters enter the scene

With the help
of computer-generated tricks.

Narrator: today, virtual beings
are a hollywood phenomenon.

Computer effects have rocketed


Into superstardom,

But even for digital creatures,
fame doesn't come easy.

It takes years of work

And a large crew
of skilled professionals

To make them look good
on the big screen.

It all starts with a good,
old-fashioned sketch pad.

Once the character
is defined on paper,

The artist sculpts him
with clay.

Then the high-tech wizardry
begins

As they laser-scan the


And load the image
into the computer.

Once he's been captured,

The computer artist
wraps the character

In a digital wire frame.

He manipulates the wire mesh

To make the character move
and breathe.

After he creates a dozen or more
facial expressions,

This machine makes hard copies
of those many faces.

It repeatedly deposits
layers of plastic

To build up a physical version
of the image.

They insert eyes in the sockets,

Then give these washed-out
plastic faces some color.

An artist paints each one of
the faces along the same lines.

Continuity is critical

Because the faces will be filmed
and the images edited together

To create
the illusion of movement.

It's a traditional animation
technique called stop-motion,

And these plastic models
are called puppets.

Next a seamstress
builds a suit of clothes

For one of the puppets.

He has to look great

Because he'll be used to promote
the character to merchandisers

Who might market him as a toy.

They scan the fabric and wrap it
around the digital character

To give him the same outfit,

Then add creases
for a more realistic texture.

The crew lights the mini set

For one of the character's
big scenes

And plans the camera moves.

It's a kind of dress rehearsal.

One of the puppets acts
as a stand-in

For the animated character.

They move him around in a
process called rough placement.

It's a critical step

Which ensures that everyone
is in sync --

Cinematographers,
lighting artists, and animators.

Seeing the puppet in the room

Will help animators
place his digital counterpart

In the various visuals.

They literally cover
all the angles

And leave nothing to chance.

Now the physical merges
with the virtual

In a special-effects trick
called human motion capture.

A man walks around
in a special suit

Covered with reflective dots.

The computer recognizes the dots
to transfer the man's movements

To a version of the digital
character instantaneously.

The computer artist
uses those captured movements

To manipulate the character
and insert him into the scene.

The effect is one
of a digital character

Who moves
just like a human being.

They layer digitized images
of the set

And blend them seamlessly
into a single image.

This digital layering
is called compositing.

It allows animators

To accurately place
the character in the scene.

The blend
of high-tech special effects

With traditional
animation techniques

Gives the best of both worlds.

Combined, all these
special-effects tricks

Can generate 3-d characters
with star quality.

They are virtual puppets,

And the animators
are the puppeteers.

And on the big screen,

The fantasy
has never looked so real.

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