36) FILM HISTORY SECTION A - ARRIVAL OF A TRAIN (TASK ONE)

THE ARRIVAL OF A TRAIN (1896)


The Plotline:

A train arrives at La Ciotat station.

Created by:

Auguste Lumière, Louis Lumière

Who's in it?

A group of people are standing in a straight line along the platform of a railway station, waiting for a train, which is seen coming at some distance. When the train stops at the platform, the line dissolves. The doors of the railway-cars open, and people on the platform help passengers to get off.

The available technology:

The short film is known to be one of the first motion pictures to exist, created in 1896 by the Lumière brothers (although more an experiment from the Lumière brothers to use their 'invention' of film, it shows a train arriving at a passenger station--and that's it). It is not a complex storyline, and is only 41 seconds long; they made us of the recording equipment but not to it's full potential. However, a good start in cinematography.

Audience Reactions and Opinions:

When this film was shown for the first time, reports say that the audience fled the showing in terror, fearing being run over by the "approaching" train. This description has since been identified as promotional embellishment, however The Lumière brothers were complimented for their work highly.

"Since this was the first motion picture some people had ever seen, reportedly audience members in the front row sometimes attempted to jump out the way of the train, as they thought it was going to hit them."

Legacy:

Overall, the film is still remembered today - not for the storyline but for the ability of creation with such lack of technology in comparison to what we are able to access today.