Former still photographer and lab technician, first associated with director
D.W. Griffith as minor actor, then assistant to cinematographer
G.W. Bitzer. Invented the double-printing technique used for the crucifixion scenes in
Intolerance (1916), on which he worked as second cameraman. Later perfected the miniature projection process, used for magnification from small models (for example,
King Kong (1933)). In the late 1930s started a new career, writing or adapting screenplays for several B-productions, several of which starred
Boris Karloff.