Artigenda
International Cinema Day
When: annually, December 28.
On December 28, the world reflects on the concept of cinema on International Cinema Day. On this day in 1895, the Lumière brothers first showed their films to a paying audience in a café in Paris.
The Day of the Short Movie or Day of the Short Film is also on the same day as the International Cinema Day. In other countries, this day takes place on December 21, on the same day.
Source: Open Verse.
Was it a real cinema?
It was a café where Auguste Lumière (October 19, 1862 – April 10. 1954) and Louis Lumière (October 5, 1864 – June 6, 1948) showed their short films. That first screening consisted of ten short films of a few seconds (maximum 49 seconds). You wouldn’t say that if the length of the film reels were involved. The 49-second film, “Le Jardinier” was a whopping 17 metres long.
Source: Open Verse.
It was not a real cinema as we know it today. The screening took place in Salon Indien du Grand Café. A café, in other words. Except that it was a non-public screening of films. Visitors could not enter “freely”. That is the principle of a cinema. Moreover, it was the start of a sequel. This not only consisted of a tour of some major world cities, including Brussels, London, New York, Mumbai and Montreal. It also led to the Lumière brothers opening what could best be described as a cinema in the seaside resort of La Ciotat. They had a summer house there and a short film about arriving and departing trains at the station was the source of inspiration for the film shown on March 21, 1899. After that, developments accelerated.
L'Ideal Cinéma
On January 26, 1902, the L’Ideal Cinéma opened in the northern French town of Aniche. It was part of the accommodation of La Chambre Syndicale des Verriers (The Glassmakers’ Association). Besides showing films, the hall was also for meetings. It was not until November 23, 1905, that the first films were shown there. These were a 1902 film by George Méliès (December 8, 1861 – January 21, 1938) about a trip to the moon (“Le voyage dans la lune”). This film was based on Jules Verne’s books “De la Terre à la Lune, trajet direct en 97 heures 20 minutes” (“From the Earth to the Moon”) and “Autour de la Lune” (“The voyage around the moon”) from 1865 and 1870. Famous in that film was the scene where the moon was hit by a rocket fired from Earth via a cannonball.
The above version features music. There is also a modified, colourised, version with music by Air.
Summer house
L’Ideal Cinéma is sometimes said to be the oldest cinema in the world. Strictly speaking, the Lumière brothers’ summer house was an earlier initiative. This initiative just did not last as long. Meanwhile, the cinema in Aniche no longer exists; the building was demolished in 1993. Two years later, the L’Ideal Cinéma Jacques Tati emerged. This building was named after the original building and after Jacques Tati (October 9, 1907 – November 5, 1982). Tati was a French actor, comedian and director. With only four short films and six feature-length films, his influence on French cinema was nevertheless great. Incidentally, the cinema had already closed for good in the late 1970s, due to declining attendance. The cinema in its original form thus existed between 1902 and 1977 and was continued from 1995. Since then, the cinema has met the modern requirements of what a cinema should meet. Meanwhile, the cinema has a 3D system.
What is it all about?
This day is all about the history of cinemas and is a good time to decide whether to visit a cinema. It just doesn’t have to be limited to this day. It is a great time to learn more about history. There is so much more to tell. It was not only the Lumière brothers and George Méliès who showed (short) films. More filmmakers showed or had films shown in what we would now describe as cinemas. Not only in France, later also abroad.
