George Albert Smith
Directing · Born 1864-01-04 · age 95 at death · Brighton, East Sussex, England, UK
Along with his better-known French counterpart Georges Méliès, George Albert Smith, usually credited as G.A. Smith, was one of the first filmmakers to explore fictional and fantastic themes, often using surprisingly sophisticated special effects. His background was ideal – an established portrait photographer, he also had a long-standing interest in show business, running a tourist attraction in his native Brighton featuring a fortune teller. His films were among the first to feature such innovations as superimposition (Smith patented a double-exposure system in 1897), close-ups and scene transitions involving wipes and focus pulls. He also patented Kinemacolor – the world's first commercial cinema color system--in 1906, which was extremely successful for a time, despite the special equipment required to project it
Titles
The Kiss in the Tunnel
Grandma's Reading Glass
The Sick Kitten
The X-Ray Fiend
Santa Claus
Mary Jane's Mishap
Let Me Dream Again
As Seen Through a Telescope
The Miller and the Sweep
The Coronation of Edward VII
Comic Face
The Old Maid's Valentine
The House That Jack Built
Making Sausages
Grand Display of Brock's Fireworks at the Crystal Palace
The Death of Poor Joe
A Visit to the Seaside
Spiders on a Web
A Quick Shave and Brush Up
Cinderella
Comic Shaving
Early Fashions on Brighton Pier
The Inexhaustible Cab
Tartans of Scottish Clans
Woman Draped in Patterned Handkerchiefs
Weary Willie
Two Clowns
Hanging Out the Clothes
The Dull Razor
Photographing a Ghost
The Sign Writer
The Corsican Brothers
Brighton Seagoing Electric Car
Faust and Mephistopheles
Two Old Sports
Photograph Taken From An Area Window
Dorothy's Dream
Animated Doll and Toy Town Circus
Old London Street Scenes
Grandma Threading Her Needle
The Rival Clothiers
Visit to Pompeii
The Maid in the Garden
Scandal Over the Teacups
Policeman and Burglar
The Little Doctor And The Sick Kitten
Ally Sloper
Train Entering Hove Station
Venice and the Grand Canal
Mother Goose Nursery Rhymes
Early British Films from the Filmoteca de Catalunya 1897-1909
Sir Hiram Maxim's Captive Flying Machines