The year 1903 in film involved many significant events in cinema.
Events
*
Thomas Edison
Thomas Alva Edison (February 11, 1847October 18, 1931) was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices in fields such as electric power generation, mass communication, sound recording, and motion pictures. These invent ...
demolishes "America's First Movie Studio", the
Black Maria.
* The three elder
Warner Bros. begin in the exhibition business and open their first theater, the
Cascade
Cascade, Cascades or Cascading may refer to:
Science and technology Science
* Cascade waterfalls, or series of waterfalls
* Cascade, the CRISPR-associated complex for antiviral defense (a protein complex)
* Cascade (grape), a type of fruit
* B ...
.
*
Gaston Méliès, Georges' brother, opens a branch of Star Film in New York to defend its production's copyrights.
*
Adolph Zukor
Adolph Zukor (; hu, Zukor Adolf; January 7, 1873 – June 10, 1976) was a Hungarian-American film producer best known as one of the three founders of Paramount Pictures.Obituary '' Variety'' (June 16, 1976), p. 76. He produced one of America' ...
and
Marcus Loew
Marcus Loew (May 7, 1870 - September 5, 1927) was an American business magnate and a pioneer of the motion picture industry who formed Loew's Theatres and the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film studio (MGM).
Life and career
Loew was born in New York City, ...
partner with
Mitchell Mark
Mitchel H. Mark a.k.a. Mitchell Mark a.k.a. Mitchell H. Mark (born as Mitchel Henry Mark) (1868 – March 20, 1918) was a pioneer of motion picture exhibition in the United States.
Early life
Mitchel Henry Mark was born in 1868 in Richmond Virgin ...
to expand his chain of movie theaters.
*
William N. Selig's
war film
War film is a film genre concerned with warfare, typically about naval, air, or land battles, with combat scenes central to the drama. It has been strongly associated with the 20th century. The fateful nature of battle scenes means that wa ...
''A Soldier's Dream'' is released. The film shows soldiers playing cards and music around a campfire. Scholars have speculated that the
double-exposed image used to create one soldier's dream sequence may have been inspired by Méliès.
Films released in 1903
A
* ''
Alice in Wonderland
''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (commonly ''Alice in Wonderland'') is an 1865 English novel by Lewis Carroll. It details the story of a young girl named Alice who falls through a rabbit hole into a fantasy world of anthropomorphic creature ...
'', directed by
Cecil Hepworth and
Percy Stow
Percy Stow (1876 – 10 July 1919) was a British director of short films. He was also the co-founder of Clarendon Film Company. He was born in Islington, London, England.
He was previously associated with Cecil Hepworth from 1901 to 1903, wher ...
, based on the 1865
novel
A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itsel ...
by
Lewis Carroll
Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (; 27 January 1832 – 14 January 1898), better known by his pen name Lewis Carroll, was an English author, poet and mathematician. His most notable works are ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (1865) and its sequel ...
– (
GB)
* ''
The Apparition (Le Revenant)'', directed by
Georges Méliès
Marie-Georges-Jean Méliès (; ; 8 December 1861 – 21 January 1938) was a French illusionist, actor, and film director. He led many technical and narrative developments in the earliest days of cinema.
Méliès was well known for the use o ...
– (
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...
)
C
* ''
Capital Execution (Henrettelsen)'', directed by
Peter Elfelt – (
Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark
, establishe ...
)
* ''
A Chess Dispute'', directed by
Robert W. Paul – (
GB)
D
* ''
The Damnation of Faust'', directed by
Georges Méliès
Marie-Georges-Jean Méliès (; ; 8 December 1861 – 21 January 1938) was a French illusionist, actor, and film director. He led many technical and narrative developments in the earliest days of cinema.
Méliès was well known for the use o ...
– (
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...
)
* ''
A Daring Daylight Burglary'', by
Frank Mottershaw
Frank Mottershaw (1850–1932) (often confused with his second son, Frank Storm Mottershaw) was an early English cinema director based in Sheffield, Yorkshire. His films, '' A Daring Daylight Burglary'' and ''The Robbery of the Mail Coach'' (fe ...
– (
GB)
* ''
Desperate Poaching Affray'', directed by
William Haggar – (
GB)
* ''
Diving Lucy'', produced by
Mitchell and Kenyon
The Mitchell & Kenyon film company was a pioneer of early commercial motion pictures based in Blackburn in Lancashire, England, at the start of the 20th century. They were originally best known for minor contributions to early fictional narrative ...
– (
GB)
E
* ''
Electrocuting an Elephant'', directed by
Edwin S. Porter – (
US)
* ''
The Enchanted Well (Le Puits fantastique)'', directed by
Georges Méliès
Marie-Georges-Jean Méliès (; ; 8 December 1861 – 21 January 1938) was a French illusionist, actor, and film director. He led many technical and narrative developments in the earliest days of cinema.
Méliès was well known for the use o ...
– (
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...
)
* ''
An Extraordinary Cab Accident'', directed by
Robert W. Paul – (
GB)
F
* ''Faust and Mephistopheles'', directed by
Alice Guy – (
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...
)
* ''From Show Girl to Burlesque Queen'', directed by A. E. Weed – (
US)
G
* ''The Gay Shoe Clerk'', directed by
Edwin S. Porter – (
US)
* ''The Georgetown Loop (Colorado)'', directed by
Billy Bitzer
Gottfried Wilhelm Bitzer (April 21, 1872 – April 29, 1944) was an American cinematographer, notable for his close association and pioneering work with D. W. Griffith.
Biography
Prior to his career as a cameraman, working as a motion picture pro ...
– (
US)
* ''
The Great Train Robbery'', directed by
Edwin S. Porter, starring
Broncho Billy Anderson – (
US)
H
* ''
Hiawatha, the Messiah of the Ojibway
''Hiawatha, the Messiah of the Ojibway'' is a 1903 dramatic short film shot in Canada directed by the American pioneering cinematographer and director Joe Rosenthal, based on the Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's famous poem, ''The Song of Hiawatha'', ...
'' (lost), directed by Joe Rosenthal – (
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...
)
I
* ''
The Infernal Cake Walk
''Le Cake-Walk infernal'', sold in the United States as ''The Cake Walk Infernal'' and in Britain as ''The Infernal Cake Walk'', is a 1903 French short film, short silent film by Georges Méliès. It was sold by Méliès's Star Film Company and i ...
(Le Cake-Walk infernal)'', directed by
Georges Méliès
Marie-Georges-Jean Méliès (; ; 8 December 1861 – 21 January 1938) was a French illusionist, actor, and film director. He led many technical and narrative developments in the earliest days of cinema.
Méliès was well known for the use o ...
– (
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...
)
* ''
The Infernal Cauldron
''Le Chaudron infernal'', released in Britain as ''The Infernal Cauldron'' and in the United States as ''The Infernal Caldron and the Phantasmal Vapors'', is a 1903 French silent trick film directed by Georges Méliès. It was released by Méliès ...
(Le Chaudron infernal)'', directed by
Georges Méliès
Marie-Georges-Jean Méliès (; ; 8 December 1861 – 21 January 1938) was a French illusionist, actor, and film director. He led many technical and narrative developments in the earliest days of cinema.
Méliès was well known for the use o ...
– (
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...
)
* ''
The Inn Where No Man Rests
''L'Auberge du bon repos'', sold in the United States as ''The Inn Where No Man Rests'' and in Britain as ''The Inn of "Good Rest"'', is a 1903 French short silent comedy film by Georges Méliès. Set in an inn, the film addresses the state of ...
(L'Auberge du bon repos)'', directed by
Georges Méliès
Marie-Georges-Jean Méliès (; ; 8 December 1861 – 21 January 1938) was a French illusionist, actor, and film director. He led many technical and narrative developments in the earliest days of cinema.
Méliès was well known for the use o ...
– (
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...
)
K
* ''
The Kingdom of the Fairies (Le Royaume des fées)'', directed by
Georges Méliès
Marie-Georges-Jean Méliès (; ; 8 December 1861 – 21 January 1938) was a French illusionist, actor, and film director. He led many technical and narrative developments in the earliest days of cinema.
Méliès was well known for the use o ...
– (
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...
)
L
* ''
Life and Passion of the Christ (Vie et Passion du Christ)'', directed by
Lucien Nonguet and
Ferdinand Zecca – (
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...
)
* ''
Life of an American Fireman'', directed by
Edwin S. Porter – (
US)
M
* ''
The Magic Lantern
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in En ...
(La Lanterne magique)'', directed by
Georges Méliès
Marie-Georges-Jean Méliès (; ; 8 December 1861 – 21 January 1938) was a French illusionist, actor, and film director. He led many technical and narrative developments in the earliest days of cinema.
Méliès was well known for the use o ...
– (
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...
)
* ''
Mary Jane's Mishap
''Mary Jane's Mishap; or, Don't Fool with the Paraffin'' is a 1903 British short silent comedy film, directed by George Albert Smith, depicting disaster following when housemaid Mary Jane uses paraffin to light the kitchen stove. The ''tri ...
'', directed by
George Albert Smith
George Albert Smith Sr. (April 4, 1870 – April 4, 1951) was an American religious leader who served as the eighth president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church).
Early life
Born in Salt Lake City, Utah Territo ...
– (
GB)
* ''
The Melomaniac (Le Mélomane)'', directed by
Georges Méliès
Marie-Georges-Jean Méliès (; ; 8 December 1861 – 21 January 1938) was a French illusionist, actor, and film director. He led many technical and narrative developments in the earliest days of cinema.
Méliès was well known for the use o ...
– (
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...
)
* ''
A Message from Mars'' (lost), by
Franklyn Barrett – (
NZ)
* ''
Misfortune Never Comes Alone (Un malheur n'arrive jamais seul)'', directed by
Georges Méliès
Marie-Georges-Jean Méliès (; ; 8 December 1861 – 21 January 1938) was a French illusionist, actor, and film director. He led many technical and narrative developments in the earliest days of cinema.
Méliès was well known for the use o ...
– (
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...
)
* ''
Momijigari (Viewing Scarlet Maple Leaves)'', directed by
Tsunekichi Shibata was one of Japan's first filmmakers. He worked for the photographer Shirō Asano and the Konishi Camera shop, the first in Japan to import a motion picture camera. Along with Kanzo Shirai, he made the earliest films in Japan, mostly of geisha, ...
, based on the 15th century
kabuki play
is a classical form of Japanese dance-drama. Kabuki theatre is known for its heavily-stylised performances, the often-glamorous costumes worn by performers, and for the elaborate make-up worn by some of its performers.
Kabuki is thought to ...
by
Kanze Nobumitsu – (
Japan)
* ''
The Monster (Le Monstre)'', directed by
Georges Méliès
Marie-Georges-Jean Méliès (; ; 8 December 1861 – 21 January 1938) was a French illusionist, actor, and film director. He led many technical and narrative developments in the earliest days of cinema.
Méliès was well known for the use o ...
– (
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...
)
* ''
The Mysterious Box (La Boîte à malice)'', directed by
Georges Méliès
Marie-Georges-Jean Méliès (; ; 8 December 1861 – 21 January 1938) was a French illusionist, actor, and film director. He led many technical and narrative developments in the earliest days of cinema.
Méliès was well known for the use o ...
– (
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...
)
O
* ''Old London Street Scenes'', directed by
George Albert Smith
George Albert Smith Sr. (April 4, 1870 – April 4, 1951) was an American religious leader who served as the eighth president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church).
Early life
Born in Salt Lake City, Utah Territo ...
– (
GB)
* ''
The Oracle of Delphi
''The Oracle of Delphi'' is a Big Finish Productions audio drama featuring Lisa Bowerman as Bernice Summerfield, a character from the spin-off media based on the long-running British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''.
Plot ...
(L'Oracle de Delphes)'', directed by
Georges Méliès
Marie-Georges-Jean Méliès (; ; 8 December 1861 – 21 January 1938) was a French illusionist, actor, and film director. He led many technical and narrative developments in the earliest days of cinema.
Méliès was well known for the use o ...
– (
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...
)
P
* ''Panorama of Beach and Cliff House'', produced by the
American Mutoscope and Biograph Company
The Biograph Company, also known as the American Mutoscope and Biograph Company, was a motion picture company founded in 1895 and active until 1916. It was the first company in the United States devoted entirely to film production and exhibition ...
– (
US)
* ''Petticoat Lane'' – (
GB)
R
* ''
Rip Van Winkle
"Rip Van Winkle" is a short story by the American author Washington Irving, first published in 1819. It follows a Dutch-American villager in colonial America named Rip Van Winkle who meets mysterious Dutchmen, imbibes their liquor and falls asle ...
'', directed by
William K. L. Dickson, based on the 1819
short story
A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest t ...
by
Washington Irving
Washington Irving (April 3, 1783 – November 28, 1859) was an American short-story writer, essayist, biographer, historian, and diplomat of the early 19th century. He is best known for his short stories " Rip Van Winkle" (1819) and " The Lege ...
– (
US)
* ''
Runaway Match
''Runaway Match'' or ''The Runaway Match, or Marriage by Motor'' (UK title ''Elopement à la Mode'') is a 1903 short silent film consisting of nine shots. It may be the "first auto-centered narrative film" and the first car chase in the movies.
P ...
'', directed by
Alf Collins – (
GB)
S
* ''
The Sick Kitten
''The Sick Kitten'' is a 1903 British short silent comedy film, directed by George Albert Smith, featuring two young children tending to a sick kitten.
Significance
A remake of the director's now-lost ''The Little Doctor'' (1901), ''The Sic ...
'', directed by
George Albert Smith
George Albert Smith Sr. (April 4, 1870 – April 4, 1951) was an American religious leader who served as the eighth president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church).
Early life
Born in Salt Lake City, Utah Territo ...
– (
GB)
* ''Skyscrapers of New York City, from the North River'', directed by J.B. Smith – (
US)
* ''
A Spiritualistic Photographer (La Portrait Spirite)'', directed by
Georges Méliès
Marie-Georges-Jean Méliès (; ; 8 December 1861 – 21 January 1938) was a French illusionist, actor, and film director. He led many technical and narrative developments in the earliest days of cinema.
Méliès was well known for the use o ...
– (
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...
)
T
* ''
The Terrible Turkish Executioner (Le Bourreau turc)'', directed by
Georges Méliès
Marie-Georges-Jean Méliès (; ; 8 December 1861 – 21 January 1938) was a French illusionist, actor, and film director. He led many technical and narrative developments in the earliest days of cinema.
Méliès was well known for the use o ...
– (
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...
)
U
* ''
Uncle Tom's Cabin
''Uncle Tom's Cabin; or, Life Among the Lowly'' is an anti-slavery novel by American author Harriet Beecher Stowe. Published in two volumes in 1852, the novel had a profound effect on attitudes toward African Americans and slavery in the U ...
'', directed by
Edwin S. Porter, based on the 1852
novel
A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itsel ...
by
Harriet Beecher Stowe
Harriet Elisabeth Beecher Stowe (; June 14, 1811 – July 1, 1896) was an American author and abolitionist. She came from the religious Beecher family and became best known for her novel '' Uncle Tom's Cabin'' (1852), which depicts the ha ...
– (
US)
W
* ''
What Happened in the Tunnel'', directed by
Edwin S. Porter – (
US)
* ''
The Witch's Revenge (Le Sorcier)'', directed by
Georges Méliès
Marie-Georges-Jean Méliès (; ; 8 December 1861 – 21 January 1938) was a French illusionist, actor, and film director. He led many technical and narrative developments in the earliest days of cinema.
Méliès was well known for the use o ...
[Kinnard,Roy (1995). "Horror in Silent Films". McFarland and Company Inc. . Page 18.] – (
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...
)
Births
Deaths
* c. February 15 – Julie Verstraete-Lacquet, Flemish actress, dies at 69
Debut
G. M. Anderson
Gilbert M. "Broncho Billy" Anderson (born Maxwell Henry Aronson; March 21, 1880 – January 20, 1971) was an American actor, writer, film director, and film producer, who was the first star of the Western film genre. He was a founder and star ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:1903 In Film
Film by year