Blacksmith Scene, 1893 - You may not be able to tell because it's only 34 seconds long, but the men are actors performing roles, not real blacksmiths. This is the earliest example of actors performing in a role.
The Kiss, 1896 - It is listed as the first ever kiss on film, but I would also daresay it was the first awkward moment on film. It is 18 seconds of really bad kissing (I'm not an expert, but watch it for yourself).
Star Theatre, 1901 - is a two-minute documentary showing the time lapsed demolition of the Star Theatre.
The Great Train Robbery, 1903 - is a Western that used many film techniques for the first time: shooting on location, frequent camera movement, and new editing methods. It is twelve minutes long. It did have an annoying 'new' soundtrack that was added, I think if you're going to add music, don't add something that gives people headaches.
Dickson Experimental Sound Film, 1894 This is the first example of a synchronized soundtrack; the version from the Library of Congress doesn't have the sound, but I found a couple of versions that do. It's not world class violin playing, but still, when you think that the first full length feature with sound didn't come out until over thirty years later, it is pretty cool.
A Corner in Wheat, 1909 - This is a chance to see an early film by D.W. Griffith, who also directed the iconic Birth of a Nation and Intolerance. It's a morality tale, with the greedy speculator getting his just desserts after driving up the price of wheat, making it hard for poor people to buy bread.
Princess Nicotine, 1909 I didn't quite get it, not that there was much to get at only five minutes long, but it seemed like the main character, a smoker (of cigarettes, I assume) was hallucinating. Little smoke/cigarette fairies come and play around. Yeah, I don't know. Sweet Caporal, who also sponsored early 20th century baseball cards, were the cigarettes featured in the film. I suppose it may be more noted for the special effects, including the miniature fairies and smoke, but otherwise, I'm not sure what was landmark about it.
Tin Toy, Best Animated Short, 1988 This Pixar short won an Oscar (Pixar's first) and is on the National Film Registry. It used new technology to tell the story of a little baby who terrorizes his toys. There are hints of what was to come with Toy Story.
Is it Always Right to be Right? Best Animated Short 1970
After you watch Is it Always Right to be Right? you will get the distinct impression that things have not changed in forty-six years, especially during this political cycle. The narrator (Orson Welles) tells us that in an unknown country, people are fighting among themselves, young versus old, black versus white. They're fighting and yelling, but not listening to each other, and things take a terrible turn, until one time when someone admits that they might not be right and the other person might not be wrong. It may seem simplistic, but I actually believe that is one of the biggest problems today. We're not listening, just shouting to get our point across, unwilling to back down. I think it's worth giving this a look; it's on Youtube and less than ten minutes.
