Post One - Pre 1930's Cinema Defining Moments

1. Monkeyshines No1

 
Thomas Edison and William K.L Dickson are stated to be the reasons behind the birth of US cinema. Although Edison gets credit, Dickson invented the first camera and projector. The Kinetograph was invented in November 1890. It photographed motion pictures through a motor powered camera and was one of the main reasons film grew to be so popular in the late 1890’s. Dickson also invented the first projector called the Kinetoscope. Monkeyshines No 1 was Dickson’s first film, it features one of his laboratory assistants, Sacco Albanese and is was filmed by the Kinetoscope.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PVintjK5lKU

http://www.filmsite.org/pre20sintro.html

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0361921/

2. The Lumiere Brothers

The Lumiere Brothers followed Edison's and Dickson's footsteps and also invented a movie camera projector combination called the Cinematographe. The device was more profitable as an audience was now able to view the filmed piece. The first public test of the Cinematographe was on March 22nd 1895. The film consisted of workers leaving the Lumiere factory and was projected in the Lumiere Brother's basement on December 28th of the same year. This was the first commercial exhibition of motion picture and where cinema as we know today was born.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OYpKZx090UE

http://www.filmsite.org/pre20sintro2.html

http://www.holonet.khm.de/visual_alchemy/lumiere.html

3. First Science Fiction Film

 

Georges Melies was a French director whom directed the first ever science fiction film. Voyage dans la Lune/ A Trip to the Moon was a 14 minute feature loosely based on a book by Jules Verne (From Earth to the Moon, 1865) and a book by H.G Wells (First Men on the moon, 1901) and as told by the title features a mission to the moon. Melies didn't just direct the film he wrote, acted, designed the set, photographed and produced this movie. Melies also perfected the art of editing in this film making it a sought after piece and has certainly paved the way for science fiction today.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7JDaOOw0MEE

http://www.filmsite.org/voya.html

4. Kinemacolor

Kinemacolor was developed in 1906 and produced some of the first colour films. It was invented by American Charles Urban and British George Albert Smith. It was an early breakthrough in colour and worked by a simple two step additive process using red and green. A Visit to the Seaside was the first commercially produced film in this natural colour. The clip shown above was one of the world's first coloured feature films, it is a documentary called The Durbar of Delhi. Unfortunately Kinemcolor didn't take off due to the First World War and patenting problems.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kMYSMH-eMkU&feature=related

http://www.filmsite.org/pre20sintro4.html

5. Charlie Chaplin

Charlie Chaplin is one if not the most well known actor pre 1930's. His film debut was during the silent films era in Kid Auto Races At Venice (1914). He was well known for his moustache and baggy trousers. The clip above shows Chaplin in The Tramp (1915) where he shows off his signature look along with a walk his character was known for. His routines were classed as slapstick comedy which certainly set a high standard for comedy throughout the years including likes of Laurel and Hardy.

http://www.filmsite.org/pre20sintro4.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YPwEEHAF6tc&feature=related

Hello...

Hey and welcome to my blog. It has been created for my Cinema and Society class for my 4th year at Robert Gordon's University studying Communication with Public Relations. I will be posting up various clips and reviews to build up a good base of information on cinema and society.


Here's a link to my Cinema and Society class:


http://rgucinemasociety.blogspot.com/