The American Motion Picture Industry

Eadward Muybridge and Cornelius Jabez Hughes, two photographers of the 19th century, introduced revolutionary ideas impacting the way photographs could be taken, categorized, and used. Muybridge, better known as the ‘father of the motion picture,’ studied landscape photos and invented a device that drastically improved their quality. In addition, he helped to pioneer work in the studies of motion and motion-picture projection. Hughes developed new technology related to photography and helped to guide many other amateur photographers into producing better forms of photography. The two had lasting impacts on the growth and importance of photography in the art, science, and everyday realms.

Photography, meaning “drawing with lights” in Greek, is an art as well as a science of capturing light and storing it on a medium with unprecedented accuracy. Yet, up until the late 18th century, history was mainly recorded through the techniques of painting and the press. These mediums unarguably contained a certain degree of a truth, though, it was not uncommon for events, such as war to be composed with glorified details, or an unfavorable bias from the artist at hand. Beginning in the 1830’s, cameras provided a revolutionary solution by combining the advancements in optics and chemistry. Consequently, the new medium of photography was established and forever changed how history would be visually captured. Unlike other methods, photography

Another way to break down movements into a series of still pictures is a so called “video flipbook”. A flipbook is the simplest way of making a sequence of still pictures appears to move. The intervals of darkness necessary for the illusion of motion are provided by the turn, or flip of each page. The nineteenth-century photographic experiments of Eadweard Muybridge and Etienne-Jules Marey broke down the movements of animals into a series of still pictures. When displayed in rapid succession, these pictures appear to be moving, recreating the original motion that the images document.

1877 – Muybridge built special track with a camera house with 12 electrically operated cameras, and a marked fence along the track to give precise measurements of a horse’s position in each shot → each camera fitted with an electromagnetic shutter that

The 1800s was a time of, “advancement, invention and enterprise in the world of moving images.” Thomas Edison, with the help of his assistants, created and patented the Kinetograph and Kinetoscope in 1891. These tools later created series of still frames that passed at a continuous rate. Because of the defect persistence of vision, the average person views a moving image. By “1894, attempts [by Lumiere Brothers] were made to replicate and improve Edison’s Kinetoscope design.”

Certain mile stones in taking pictures during the first two decades of photography were marked by rapid commercialization and many photographers bowed to the commerciality and uninspired demands of their customers, however there were those who were separating themselves from the bustling photographic factories and portrait studios and instead immersed themselves into a new class of “artist” by using the camera to express creative photographic visions. Whether it was used in society, documentation, or art the camera was obviously used, and are used to this day.

The Australian film industry is currently in a point of crisis due to the lack of audiences attending Australian films, hence creating a decline in the revenue received towards our national industry. However, this is not due to the lack of creative talent, it is rather the many underlying issues that don?t allow the Australian public with the awareness and accessibility of these films. These problems are within the distribution, marketing and funding of these Australian films, allowing the national Australian community to not seek for films made by people within their nation due to negative pre-conceived notions and the convenience of going to see a Hollywood Blockbuster. These issues are seen through the poor release of both critically received films, Jennifer Kent?s The Babadook (2014) and Hugh Sullivan?s The Infinite Man (2014), both not gaining a wide audience. Through these issues within the industry, Australian filmmakers have not been able to create the revenue needed for these films to branch out to be easily attained by the public.

The United States vs. Paramount decision changed the filmmaking business by making block booking illegal. It also made the ‘Big Five’ movie studios sell their movie theaters. The ‘Big Five’ consisted of Paramount, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), Warner Bros., 20th Century Fox, and RKO Radio Pictures.

The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), the people in charge of what you and your family can and cannot see at the theaters. The idea of the system is quite helpful. They regulate the amount of violence, sex and nudity, and coarse language that is allowed in a G, PG, R and NC-17 ratings. They determine the ideal age group that will watch the movie and the age group that is not permitted to see it. In retrospect, movie ratings are great and quite helpful when deciding to what a movie with your parents and younger siblings as oppose to watching a movie by yourself or with friends. Yet, not everything is perfect. There are multiple issues with the MPAA’s rating system. The fact that ratings do not always accurately reflect the content

To understand film as history or rather, history as film – is to be able to differentiate and acknowledge not only “[the] source or a document only of its aesthetic history, but of history in general.” Although some individuals may interpret history to come before film, the collection and portrayal of past historical events would have been difficult, if not impossible, without the invention of the kinetoscope in 1888, by famous persona Thomas Edison. “Kineto” to mean movement and “scope” to watch – it was originally to be viewed by a single person at a time, however, through the modern use of technology, films can be viewed by many around the world. The perception that film can function as history is not to be mistaken with the misunderstanding

The birth of film began in 1872, when Leland Stanford bet a friend that a horse lifts all four of its legs off the ground when running. To settle the disagreement, Stanford employed photographer Eadweard Muybridge to take pictures. After settling the debate, Muybridge developed the first primitive cinema that he called “zoöpraxiscope”. The first films lasted only about a minute long, were black and white, and had no entertainment

Australian film industry had good and bad times or 'boom and bust' (Stratton, 1990) in period of last 100 years and that is why it can be called a fragile industry. If we look at the history, era before 1914, we find out that Australia was counted as one of the biggest film making countries of the world. This Australian film industry took the honor of being first to produce world's first feature film in 1906, The Story of the Kelly Gang.

Muybridge’s legacy still embedded in our popular culture of Hollywood, Cartoon and TV shows. His influence still propels many, all the way from Thomas Edison to invention of the Kinetoscopes, Andy Warhol repetitive paintings of cane sup or grids of painting of Marilyn Monroe to the movie Metrix where they use camera set up from every angles of circles to capture 360 degrees, that is the same techniques used by Muybridge to captured the galloping feet of hours above the ground. Muybridge will always be remembered for his admirable photography and new invention that and cold blooded murderer. He will always be remembered as the man who made many names for himself. As he once stated “I am going to make a name for myself. If I fail, you will never hear of me

Over the years the studio system has changed faces multiple times. Beginning in the early twentieth century with competition between the independent filmmakers and the Motion Picture Patents Company, to the studio system’s peak times of production, profit and theatres, the film industry adapted an organization of the studio system, saw it rise to a golden age, and saw its decline.

The second golden era of the film industry, new hollywood, came about from 1969 through 1980. As the 1960’s started off positive and hopeful, there was now many Americans left devastated from the depressing events that occurred after the assassination of John F. Kennedy, such as the Vietnam War. There was also a conflict in the movie scene because Hollywood directors were torn between the old styles of filming and the new techniques. By 1980, this conflict was finally resolved and a new hollywood era was created. Although the old styles of filming still existed, new directors did not follow the production code and decided to recreate genres. Directors also started to mix different genres together into one film such as comedy, romance, and