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Indulge Yourself In The Vintage Catalogue Of Magician And Special Effects Pioneer Georges Méliès6/5/2024
From the early days of still photography and all the camera tricks that inventive people sought to employ, the onset of film and moving pictures gave rise to another level of creativity. A whole new dimension of media was outlaid before our very eyes with clever use of illusion and exposure giving rise to a whole new world of visual experience. Realising the full potential of the format required exceptional minds who could imagine the process as a series of tools that can be used to bring joy and information to people all over the world.
We’ve all probably seen the film clip of a human face made to look like the moon with a rocket in one of its eyes. A black and white silent production, the iconic image sems to stick around even to this day. That film is just one of hundreds made by the French film pioneer Georges Méliès. Because of the ground-breaking and classic nature of this cult film producer, the works are lovingly kept alive across various platforms. The two online go-to places are YouTube and the Internet Archive. Both of these repositories contain a large collection of major and lesser-known examples. The actor and film producer was born in France, Paris, where he lived until he died in 1938 aged 76. During his life as a performer Georges Méliès was able to manifest a lively and dynamic imaginary universe in which ghouls and ghosts danced alongside mad scientists and maidens. A jagged and off-centre style kept audiences on their toes as the imagery and concepts leapt from one tangent to another across his run of highly entertaining creations. Having learned how to manipulate puppets as a boy and discovered a thrill in the art of entertaining others, Georges began to learn magic when he witnessed tricks by two prominent British illusionists, John Maskelyne, the inventor of the pay toilet, and David Devant, famous for his magic kettle. When he came of age and inherited some money from his father’s side, Méliès invested his capital in a small magic show theatre previously owned by his long-term mentor Jean-Eugène Robert-Houdin. Soon after this acquisition, he was able to witness one of the world’s first displays of the Lumière brothers’ cinematograph. This immediately struck him as a novel and potential world-changing method of demonstrating his genre of entertainment. Using his theatre and his knowledge of performance art and illusion, Georges Méliès applied himself completely to the manufacturing of short and entertaining films. He soon found success with this venture, as it became a perfect extension of what he was already well-known for in Paris. His experience as an assistant for Robert-Houdin and then his following chairing of the theatre had provided him with a local fame and respect that could be immediately applied to his new media style. With the proceeds of his filmmaking, Georges Méliès again invested his capital in an expensive yet fully furnished film studio at his grounds just outside the city of Paris. A risky yet fortunately wise investment, the quality of the productions increased by an order of magnitude. It was at this new studio that many of his ground-breaking and genre defining works were made. A completely glass-made building, with natural light making up a large feature of the studio, the venue played host to the making of all his films until the end of his career. Sadly, for Georges Méliès, he did not survive his risk-taking personality forever. His career fizzled out with an accumulation of debts and unmanageable overheads. The one-of-a-kind glass house film studio was demolished just after the end of the Second World War, not long after its illustrious occupant had deceased. Let this be a lesson to all of those who enjoy the arts, look after your artists, and ensure they can live a happy life. After-all, they’ve given one to you. Never-the-less, his amazing collection of creative genius is available to all via the magic of the modern-day internet. Let’s hope they stay relevant for another one hundred years or more. Visit the Georges Méliès Section in theInternet Archive And view this Curated YouTube Playlist A kindred spirit? Why not get to know him better with this beautiful illustrated paperback Your Resource For Creative And Artistic Enrichment Please consider supporting this free-to-read journal by shopping with the following partners:
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CategoriesAuthorAlternative Fruit by Rowan B. Colver Archives
January 2025
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