Early History of motion pictures Flashcards
Persistence of vision
the brain maintains an image for a split second before it goes away. Blinking-close for a split second and things moving fast in front of space, because this film break to a black screen for a split second because constant images would blur in our brains.
optical toys
Little gadgets/gizmos that use the idea of persistence of vision to show movement, usually spinning toys that show people or animals moving. Was a big hit since seeing things move on paper was a brand new thing and helped make the film the way it is today.
Preconditions necessary for the invention on cinema
Scientists had to realize the human eye will perceive motion if a series of slightly different images are placed before it in rapid succession. The capacity to project a rapid series of images on a surface. Rapid photography and photographs are printed on a flexible base. And finally an intermittent mechanism for cameras and projectors.
Celluloid Film
The first film was ever used but was very unstable and if not stored correctly could catch on fire or turn into dust losing the movie to time.
Kinetoscope
A box with a peephole that showed films that lasted at most 20 seconds. It was made by W.K.L Dickson, though it didn’t last long since other inventors found better ways to show films.
Motion Picture patents company
The Motion Picture Patents Company (MPPC, also known as the Edison Trust), founded in December 1908 and terminated seven years later in 1915 after conflicts within the industry, was a trust of all the major US film companies and local foreign-branches (Edison,) and the biggest supplier of raw film stock, Eastman Kodak. The MPPC ended the domination of foreign films on US screens, standardized the manner in which films were distributed and exhibited within the US, and improved the quality of US motion pictures by internal competition. But it also discouraged its members’ entry into feature film production, and the use of outside financing, both to its members’ eventual detriment.
Biograph studio
D. W. Griffith began as a director, and quickly became the studio’s focus. Griffith found and developed for the company stars
Nickelodeons
Theaters began to pop up everywhere and admission at these theaters was usually only a nickel. They were not seasonal attractions and stayed in one place and were shorter which gave more leisure time and it became less of a novelty and more of a regular entertainment to the masses. Expenses were also low to keep up a nickelodeon plus films were now rented not bought to be shown and can change what they were to be showing more often.
Movie palaces
Richer people wanted a movie theater for them to go to since higher-class movies started to be made, and nickelodeon couldn’t withstand the wants and desires they wanted. These theaters had larger seating places and were more s, liand made the average person feel like royalty. Atmospheric th
Birth of a nation (racist film)
An extremely racist film made by D.W Griffith, about black people being stereotyped as the bad guys and the k being the good guys. Has backlash and released another film after this as a response to the backlash. Named the most racist film ever made.
Keystone
A film company that was big in the silent comedy section of film, had chaplin work with get his starting in film comedy. Was known for clueless cops, gags, and chase scenes.
Star system
Actors first weren’t put on the credits so that they would not demand higher wages. But after 1908 actors began appearing more often in films with longer contracts, and fans not knowing actor stars’ names would give them fake names for the most popular stars. in 1910 companies started publicizing their biggest stars.
