Ftv 106a Essay

Edwin S. Porter was a filmmaker at Edison Manufacturing Company from 1898 to 1909. As a technician and a showman, he knew what the audiences were interested in while he was a touring projectionist. He employed new techniques and camera movements to boost visual communication, which became basic modes of filmmaking. For the decade, Porter was the most important and influential filmmaker in the US.

had been around for decades, but it was not until the 1920’s that scientists perfected the advanced technology. Many inventors came into play when it came to the various systems used to create the first T.V., but no one is to be named the “inventor.” Scientists spent decades trying to find a breakthrough, and it was not until the 21th century that it was found. Charles Francis Jenkin’s system helped lead to the first construction of the T.V. He had demonstrated a scanning system with a revolving disk, he called it “radio vision.” Jenkins system worked but the images were blurry. Another inventor named Herbert E. Ives invented his own system called the “185 line system.” Philo Taylor Farnsworth was another key inventor. In 1927, he developed the “image dissector.” This was the first ever working electronic camera tube. Philo was motivated by his system and continued trying. His hard work led him to invent the first fully electronic T.V. system. A radio corporation named the RCA, was very intrigued by his work and sent their own engineer to Philo’s lab. This engineer perfected Philo’s “iconoscope;” a camera tube ("History of Television”). After this perfection of the T.V., the United States of America was changed forever. Soon after, there was a rapid growth in technology. The T.V. brought entertainment and opened peoples eyes to the good and bad parts of American culture, through the images and movies shown on the screen. Today, over 238 million T.V.’s

With the original motion picture format, each frame as tall as four perforations with an aspect ration totaling 1.375:1. It was originally designed by Thomas Edison and was used for years by film companies. When sound became common in movies, the image ratio was changed to 0.860 inches by 0.820 inches.

He wanted to make something that "does for the eye what the phonograph does for the ear". He wasn't the first to come up with the idea of moving pictures though. Photographer Edweard Muybridge experimented with moving photographs with animals as subject. Muybridge made a visit to Edison's lab in West Orange, New Jersey and suggested they collaborate, but Edison was not interested. In 1888, Edison assembled a team to help him, and they developed the Strip Kinetograph which was basically what we now know as a film strip.

But motion pictures had captured the imagination of the public, not least of which was famous inventor (and credit-taker) Thomas Edison. Edison company photographer William Dickson was put to work on creating what would be called the Kinetograph. Edison intended for the machine to “do for the eyes what the phonograph does for the ear.” Though he credited himself with the invention, Dickson did the major legwork in building the actual machine

A common luxury in America today is television and movies, but have you ever wondered how visual entertainment on screen began? Since the late 1800’s the way we view things in cinema has changed profoundly. Living in the 21st Century, in which is the digital revolution, we no longer have to leave our homes to see a movie or event. How did it all start? Who came up with the idea? Who built the first camera? How did it have an impact on cinema today? Credit must be given to an early motion picture device called the Kinetoscope, which set the standard for all cinematic projections that we have today.

Thomas Edison was known for a many patented things, but was mostly know as a businessman. He improved his career and lifeworks by copying other people’s inventions and taking credit for them. For example, he never gave credit to the other twenty-two men, who had started working on the light bulb, long before he had. The only reason he was recognized for this invention, is because none of the other men were able to successfully make their ideas possible. This means that the invention that he is most popular for is a sham. In the process of stealing the patent for the lightbulb, he got himself sued.

The emergence of film brought about many cultural changes as cinema continuously evolved and progressed at a fast pace. During the 1880s scientists began to develop equipment for motion photography. A more convenient type of recording material, sensitized paper on a roll, was developed by George Eastman as an alternative to the previously used coated glass or gelatin plates ( Sklar 47). The first film loaded box camera was introduced by Eastman in 1888, under the trade name “Kodak” (47). In the twentieth century, film became a common leisure activity, prompting the need for motion picture theaters. Eventually, criticism towards featured films became “the norm” among social groups, allowing people to become more involved in the art of cinematography (Sklar 48). This ultimately heightened the pressure for filmmakers to deliver aesthetically pleasing, high quality, and meaningful films. Film creators began developing movies that conveyed messages specific to the lives of different types of people. Members of both ends of the social and

Throughout chapter one we are well informed about cinema from 1880 to the 1904. Cinema was invented in 1890; it offered a cheaper way of providing entertainment to a mass amount of people. Before cinema there were preconditions for motion pictures. There were five of these conditions: 1. Scientist had to realize how the human eye perceived motion images. 2. How were they going to project a rapid display of images? 3. How could they use photography to make clear images? 4. How could the photos be flexible? 5. Finding a suitable machine for cameras and projectors.

Thomas Edison created motion picture technology in the 1880’s, movies became #1 source of entertainment till the radio and television.  D.W. Griffith’s Birth of A Nation (1915) was the world’s 1st silent film & it included racist images & Ku Klux Klan.

In the early years of the 20th century, Thomas Edison’s monopoly in film was being constantly challenged. Amid various patent and copyright infringement lawsuits, Edison sought to preserve his monopoly by setting up exclusive organizations to cut out his competition. As film transitioned from a technological novelty to a form of art, Edison’s insistence on protecting his patents diverted his attention from a film industry that was rapidly focusing on artistic value, leading directly to his relegation from the film industry.

Shortly after, the brothers Auguste and Louis Lumiere created a hand-cranked machine called the cinematographe, which could both capture pictures and project still frames in quick succession. The first motion picture studio, Nestor Motion Picture Company, was built, then one year later merged with Universal Film Company. By 1912, at least 15 independent studios located around the town were ready to shoot.The first color movie is housed at the Electric Theatre in 1912. In 1915, Hollywood began taking it’s famous shape: glamour, fame, and stardom, and thus the American dream is born! In 1915, a film that was supposedly the most important film of all time, D. W. Griffith's “The Birth of a Nation” uses brand new techniques such as story flashbacks, dramatic close ups, and cross cutting. Along with the start of Warner Brother Studios by four brothers (not Grauman) Film Director William Desmond Taylor is murdered at his home a few blocks away from his studio office in 1922. The crime is never solved. In 1922, Rin Tin Tin, the famous trained German Shepherd makes his first appearance (appears in

film was indeed art. In the year 1921 525 films were released out of those 525,

The time of 1905 – 1912 denoted a progression of fights in court over camera and projector licenses that demonstrated conclusive in silver screen's future. To put it plainly, a gathering driven by Edison framed the Motion Picture Patents Company (MPPC) and endeavored to corner film making by compelling out all contenders. Edison created an organization where all filmmakers had to be a member to avoid liability for using equipment that was needed to make films, for which he had pattens, Thus, the contenders battled back, banding together to shape their own particular organization, the Independent Motion Picture Company (IMP). While the MPPC battled the IMP until the point that a 1915 court choice announced the MPPC a trust (a gathering of organizations acting to limit exchange) and it

He took his new found knowledge and put it to use. In his lifetime, Edison patented over one thousand inventions. Among these, were the alkaline batteries. While Edison was experimenting with a iron and nickel battery, he discovered an Alkaline solution which produced a longer lasting battery. This discovery turned out to be on of the most successful productions in the early 1900’s. Another one of those patents was Kinetographic camera. Starting from scratch, Edison made his own projector and motion picture production studio. From there, Edison continued to work and seven years later he created the first motion picture. Edison shows that from every mistake you gain that much more knowledge.