SCFZ

Choose your favorite films from 1895 (according to IMDb).

– Each person votes for up to 20 movies. Do not feel compelled to fill the maximum allowable number, if you're enthusiastic about fewer than twenty.
– Do not rank the films except the number 1, it gets two points..

Users are urged to post their provisional lists as soon as possible so that others may use them for recommendations. You may, of course, revise your lists at any point prior to the deadline.

Ballots posted by new members who have not participated in other parts of the forum will not be counted.

Deadline for 1895 lists will be Thursday, April 1st at approximately 5 PM Pacific Time.

Prelim:

Execution Of Mary Queen Of Scots
L'Arroseur Arrose
Les Forgerons

only seen seven, according to LB. Sad, huh?

Annabelle Serpentine Dance (William KL Dickson/William Heise)

Le Dejeuner du Chat (Louis Lumiere)
Boat Leaving the Port (Louis Lumiere)
Workers Leaving the Lumiere Factory (Louis Lumiere)
Transformation by Hats (Louis Lumiere)

i've only seen eight per imdb, but i gave all of the above an above-average rating

There are 53 titles on LBD, of which I've seen 35. Might as well finish the lot, before making a ballot. I'll also want to rewatch many as I have some fuzzy memories. greennui recently shared a wonderful resto of Lumiere films, including the big name '95s, so I'll be sure to lean on those.

ballot...
1. Italian Peasant Dance • Italienischer Bauertanz (Emil Skladanowsky, Max Skladanowsky)
Apotheose (Max Skladanowsky)
Annabelle Serpentine Dance (William K.L. Dickson, William Heise)
Princess Ali (William Heise)
The Photographical Congress Arrives in Lyon • Neuville-sur-Saone: Débarquement du Congres des Photographes a Lyon (Louis Lumière)
Boat Leaving the Port • Barque Sortant du Port (Louis Lumière)
The Sea • Baignade en Mer (Louis Lumière)
Goldfish Bowl • Bocal aux Poissons-Rouges (Louis Lumière)
Jumping the Blanket • Le Saut a la Couverture (Louis Lumière)
Trick Riding • La Voltige (Louis Lumière)

https://youtu.be/C94aWd4fk_8
https://youtu.be/3A1mL4BZJq4

The Skladanowsky Brothers: The Devil Knows (Stephen Barber, Senses of Cinema, 2010)
https://www.sensesofcinema.com/2010/fea ... vil-knows/

watched in the past (1!)...
ANNABELLE SERPENTINE DANCE (William K.L. Dickson, William Heise)
EMPLOYEES LEAVING THE LUMIÈRE FACTORY (Louis Lumière)

watched for the poll (9!)...
ITALIAN PEASANT DANCE (Emil Skladanowsky, Max Skladanowsky)
ACROBATIC POTPOURRI (Max Skladanowsky)
SERPENTINE DANCE (Max Skladanowsky)
GOLDFISH BOWL (Louis Lumière)
5/ TRANSFORMATION BY HATS (Louis Lumière)
PRINCESS ALI (William Heise)
APOTHEOSE (Max Skladanowsky)
THE EXECUTION OF MARY, QUEEN OF SCOTS (Alfred Clark)
WRESTLERS (Emil Skladanowsky, Max Skladanowsky)
10/ BABY'S DINNER (Louis Lumière)
THE JUGGLER (Max Skladanowsky)
CORDELIERS' SQUARE IN LYON (Louis Lumière)
THE PHOTOGRAPHICAL CONGRESS ARRIVES IN LYON (Louis Lumière)
https://youtu.be/2ESMQDR-pwo
THE SEA (Louis Lumière)
15/ ROUGH SEA AT DOVER (Birt Acres)
BOAT LEAVING THE PORT (Louis Lumière)
TRICK RIDING (Louis Lumière)
JUMPING THE BLANKET (Louis Lumière)
FISHING FOR GOLDFISH (Louis Lumière)
20/

Rough Sea at Dover (Birt Acres)
Workers Leaving the Lumiere Factory (Louis Lumiere)
Boat Leaving the Port (Louis Lumiere)
Le Dejeuner du Chat (Louis Lumiere)
Annabelle Serpentine Dance (William KL Dickson/William Heise)
Baignade en mer (Louis Lumiere)

going to try and watch as many as possible, but pretty sure nothing is going to beat boat leaving the port - it's beautiful, a condensation of almost everything i love about movies - there's the hint of a narrative, the symbolism, the composition of the shot, above all, the sea. the lumières were such poets...

1. Transformation by Hats (Lumiere)
Boat Leaving the Port (Lumiere)
Baignade en mer (Lumiere)
Le Dejeuner du Chat (Lumiere)
The Mechanical Butcher (Lumiere)

I've finished watching all 1895 movies that are labelled as such on Letterboxd, save for ones that either don't survive or aren't available and save for those which I ruled out as not true '95s according to Catalogue Lumiere. So, my top 20 votes lie below. First ten are all great by (my) standards for earliest cinema, second ten have an interesting facet without approaching excellence.

1. La sortie de l'usine Lumière à Lyon (Lumière)
Annabelle Serpentine Dance (Dickson-Edison)
The Execution of Mary, Queen of Scots (Alfred Clark-Edison)
Lyon, place Bellecour (Lumière)
Débarquement du congrès des photographes à Lyon (Lumière)
Photographe (Lumière)
Kamarinskaja (Skladanowsky)
Place des Cordeliers à Lyon (Lumière)
New Blacksmith Shop (Dickson-Edison)
Billy Edwards and the Unknown (Dickson-Edison)

Barque sortant du port (Lumière)
Performing Animals; or, Skipping Dogs (Acres and Paul)
Repas de bébé (Lumière)
La pêche aux poissons rouges (Lumière)
Le déjeuner du chat (Lumière)
The Derby (Acres and Paul)
Apotheose (Skladanowsky)
Akrobatisches potpourri (Skladanowsky)
L'arroseur arrosé (Lumière)
Les forgerons (Lumière)

1
Annabelle Serpentine Dance (Dickson-Edison)
Barque sortant du port (Lumière)

3
Le déjeuner du chat (Lumière)

4
Baignade en mer (Lumiere)
Transformation by Hats (Lumiere)

6 - 13
Apotheose (Skladanowsky)
L'arroseur arrosé (Lumière)
Débarquement du congrès des photographes à Lyon (Lumière)
The Execution of Mary, Queen of Scots (Alfred Clark-Edison)
Les forgerons (Lumière)
Italian Peasant Dance • Italienischer Bauertanz (Emil Skladanowsky, Max Skladanowsky)
La sortie de l'usine Lumière à Lyon (Lumière)'
Workers Leaving the Lumiere Factory (Louis Lumiere)