Debrie Parvo 35mm cine camera

PART OF:: The Kodak Museum Collection

Made:: 1908 in Paris

maker:: Joseph Jules Debrie

The Kodak Collection at the National Media Museum, Bradford
Science Museum Group Collection

Debrie Parvo Cine camera made by Andre Debre in 1908. For 35mm film in 300 foot magazines, serial number 536. Fitted with a Taylor Hobson Cooke cinema lens F: 2 1/4 inches f/3.1-11, Series 1, in interchangeable mount. Lever adjusted helical focusing mount, with rotating scale on camera top. Iris adjustable by lever on camera side. Lens mount with hood and matte box. Hand turned. Film speed indicator on rear. Shutter adjustable from front exterior. Folding frame optical finder with sliding mask. Footage/ frame counter, clock type. Through-the-film focusing, from camera rear. J Debrie, 111 Rue St Maur, Paris.

The Parvo held approximately 400 feet of film inside without the need for an external film magazine, allowing for nearly 6 minutes of film at the standard 16 frames per second silent film rate. It allowed the camera operator to focus the camera lens but had a side optical viewfinder to be used during filming. The Parvo was extremely popular during the silend film era, directors who used it included Dziga Vertov, Abel Gance, Leni Riefenstahl and Sergei Eisenstein.

Details

Category:: Cinematography

Collection:: Kodak Collection

Object Number:: 1990-5036/3283

Materials:: metal (unknown), wood (unidentified) and glass

type:: cine camera

credit:: The Kodak Collection at the National Media Museum, Bradford

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Parts

Main body of Debrie Parvo 35mm cine camera.

Debrie Parvo

Main body of Debrie Parvo 35mm cine camera.

The Debrie Parvo was developed by Joseph Jules Debrie, built by his son Andre Debrie and was a relatively compact camera for the time. The internal magazines were held side by side, with the film fed from the magazine through the gate to a take up magazine through two skewed loops. The Parvo held approximately 400 feet of film inside without the need for an external film magazine, allowing for nearly 6 minutes of film at the standard 16 frames per second silent film rate. It allowed the camera operator to focus the camera lens but had a side optical viewfinder to be used during filming. It was hand-cranked and from 1922 onwards was produced with a metal body.

The Parvo was extremely popular during the silend film era, directors who used it included Dziga Vertov, Abel Gance, Leni Riefenstahl and Sergei Eisenstein.