After watching the George Méliès’ film A Trip to the Moon (1902) think about the differences and similarities between how you believed someone would had processed that movie then emotionally, intellectually, and spiritually (among numerous ways) and how you processed the last “big event” or blockbuster movie you saw. Tell us what you think are different and similar.
Going beyond the entertainment value of a non-documentary movie, what other value do you get out of seeing movie?
Reference specific vocabulary and concepts from the Course Content to describe what you observed.
Readings/Resources:
Week 1: Early Cinematic Origins
The History of Pre-1920s Cinema
The first reading for this week provides introductions to the origins of cinema and its earliest incarnations. These readings also discuss some of the most significant figures, roughly in chronological order, in the development of cinema as a medium. As you will see, the individuals are responsible for moving cinema from spectacle to an art form. Read Parts 1 – 5 to prepare for your discussion for this week and the upcoming Paper One (due at the end of Week 4).
http://www.filmsite.org/pre20sintro.html
Brief Timeline of Early Cinema
A companion piece to the first reading for this week, this brief timeline offers some additional insight into the technological advances which made film possible. Read the timeline noting the rapid pace of the development of technology to capture and exhibit motion pictures. This reading will help to provide context for this week’s discussion and the upcoming Paper One (due at the end of Week 4).
https://www.infoplease.com/arts-entertainment/movies-and-videos/movie-timeline
Eadweard Muybridge’s First Experiments in Photograph Motion
As you will realize from the first two readings for this week, Eadweard Muybridge made significant advancements in his attempts to capture motion through still photography. The final reading for this week illustrates his scientific explorations and how his determination to support his hypothesis led to great discoveries. This reading will help to provide context for this week’s discussion and the upcoming Paper One (due at the end of Week 4).
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/how-19th-century-photographer-first-gif-galloping-horse-180970990/
Zoetrope – Cinemachine
This very brief video showcases a Zoetrope in motion. This will provide a better understanding of the ways early inventors attempted to recreate motion. This short lecture provides further exploration of the technology covered in this week’s first reading. This has background music, but no voice-over.
10 Thomas Edison Films In 3 Minutes – The First Films Made In America
The first screening from this week is a collection of Thomas Edison films. These films are among many short pieces that were shot in Edison’s Black Maria studio. These are among some of the earliest successful attempts to capture motion. Watch these films to see the earliest works of these filmmakers to help place this week’s third screening in context. This will also help in this week’s discussion.
The Lumiere Brothers’ First Films
The second screening for this week is a collection of films directed by the Lumiere Brothers. As noted in this week’s readings and in the first lecture, these films and their filmmakers played a significant role in making film an experience best had with an audience. Watch these films to see the earliest works of these filmmakers to help place this week’s third screening in context. This will also help in this week’s discussion. This has background music, but no voice-over.
George Melies – The First Auteur
The third screening for this week is a collection of films from early filmmaker, George Melies. Melies is the filmmaker focused upon in this week’s discussion. While you have read about Melies in this week’s first two readings, these films help to illustrate some of his early and innovative work. Note the striking advances and risks Melies was taking with his films in comparison to his contemporaries Thomas Edison and the Lumiere Brothers as you watched in this week’s first two screenings. These films will help to place the final screening for this week in context. Additionally, these films will help with your discussion for this week. This has background music, but no voice-over.
A Trip to the Moon (film)
The final screening for this week is George Melies’s A Trip to the Moon (1902). Discussed in this week’s first two readings and briefly highlighted in the third screening for this week, this film offers a showcase of tremendous advancement for cinema. Watch this film in its entirety before completing your initial post in this week’s discussion. This has background music, but no voice-over.
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