1895-1928: The Birth of Cinema

1. The first film made by the Lumiere brothers was Employees leaving the Lumiere factory, (1895).
2. The ‘Phantom Ride’ was where a tracking shot was created by filming from the front of a moving train, creating an effect a moving ghost.
3. The ground breaking thing about the films ‘The Sick Kitten’ and the ‘Life of an American fireman’ is that cutting was used as an editing technique without the fear of breaking up continuity. The sick kitten uses an effective closeup.
4. Florence Lawrence was the first film star in Hollywood.
5. The hub of film production is thought to have moved from the East Coast to the west coast due to the good weather, and east coast films and technology being patented.
6. The Danish film industry was described as best in the world due to its morphing of film into an art of light.
7. Kristian Levring – HAXAN, Dreyer – The Passion of Joan Arc.
8. D.W Griffiths Directed Birth of a Nation. Racism and the negative depiction of Black characters makes the film controversial, however critics still hold it up high on its ground breaking cut.
9. American Comedy Directors:

Buster Keaton, Harold Lloyd and Charlie Chaplin were comedy directors.

Keaton’s famous works include ‘Sherlock Jr’, where editing is used to change setting. ‘The General’ was a film where Keaton played a Train driver during the American Civil War, the pacing of the film notably helps with its comedic value.

Ellie Suleman takes from Keaton, by keeping the shot in pan and making grumpiness a comedic theme.

Charlie Chaplin’s comedy focused more on body movement. ‘City Lights’ is a film where he displays his skill on using his body & character. ‘The Kid’ recreated the childhood Chaplin grew up in, showing how he was able to target complex themes through comedy.

Nicholas Roeg mimics Chaplin’s use of manuerisms, focusing on people’s fidgetting & expressions.

Harold Lloyd was an actor and his scenes involved stunts & action for comedy. ‘Safety Last’ was a film where Lloyd appears to climb a large building and swing across blocks by rope.

Yasujiro Ozu was inspired most by Lloyd, as his films contained stunts and visually funny humour.

1895 – 1918: The World Discovers A New Art Form

What was the name of the first film made by the Lumiere Brother and when was it? Employees Leaving the Lumiere Factory (1895)

What was the ‘Phantom Ride’? A tracking shot from the front of a vehicle to show the process of it moving, like a ghost.

What was so ground-breaking about the silent films “The Sick Kitten” and “Life of an American Fireman” It was the first use of a close up and continuous editing being used to show action in two different places.

What was the name of the first ‘film star’ in Hollywood? Florence Lawrence

PART 1

1895 – 1918 The World Discovers A New Art Form: The Birth of Cinema

What was the name of the first film made by the Lumiere brother’s and when was this? The Lumiere brother’s first film was called: Employees leaving the Lumiere Factory (1895)

What’s the “Phantom Ride”? A “Phantom Ride” is a tracking shot from front of a moving train (as if a ghost was floating through the air).

What was ground-breaking about silent films “The Sick Kitten” and “Life of an American Fireman”? The ground breaking aspect of these silent films were the use of cutting and editing (inside and outside continuity); fragmented shots emphasising movement – “Life of an American Fireman”. Along with introduction of the close up – “The Sick Kitten”

What was the name of the first Hollywood “Film star”? Florence Lawrence

1903-1918 The Thrill Becomes Story: The Hollywood Dream

According to Cousin’s, why did the hub of film production in the USA move from the East Coast of America to Hollywood? The film process had been copyrighted in the East Coast and California was far away from these rights owners (so easier to break the laws there). Thomas Edison.

Which nation’s film industry does Cousin’s describe as “the best in the world” in the 1910’s and why? Denmark – doing most innovative things, using the medium creatively

Find 2 films and 2 directors from this time cited by Cousin’s as remarkable. Carl Theodor Dreyer – The Passion of Joan of Arc and Benjamin Christensen- Häxan

Who Directed Birth of a Nation (1915) and why has the film continued to divide opinions among film critics, practitioners and theorists? D.W. Griffith’s – Racism and a negative portrayal of Black characters (white men in black face, politically unacceptable in modern standards) makes the film controversial, but the opinion is divided by critics due to it’s use of cuts.

PART 2

1918-1928

Who were Buster Keaton, Charlie Chaplin and Harold Lloyd and why were they so influential? American comedy directors, black and white silent film.

Keaton- greatest comic image maker, defined silent cinema, physical comedy with deadpan expression

Chaplin- body movement, improvisation, politics

Lloyd- Actor, comedian, stunt performer, influenced by Chaplin

Some films they made and other filmmakers they influenced.

Chaplin- City Lights (1931), The Kid (1921), The Great Dictator (1940)

Lloyd- Safety Last (1923),

Palestinian film maker Elia Suleiman is influenced by Keaton.

Influenced by Chaplin- Nicolas Roeg, Jacques Tati, Harold Lloyd (Actor), Yasujiro Ozu.

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