Directing

George Albert Smith

Born January 4, 1864 · Brighton, East Sussex, England, UK

Died May 17, 1959 · aged 95

Along with his better-known French counterpart Georges Méliès, George Albert Smith, usually credited as G.A. Smith, was one of the first filmmakers to explore fictional and fantastic themes, often using surprisingly sophisticated special effects. His background was ideal – an established portrait photographer, he also had a long-standing interest in show business, running a tourist attraction in h…

Known For

The Coronation of Edward VII

The Coronation of Edward VII · 1902

The Coronation of Edward VII

King Edward VII's coronation ceremony.

Cinderella

Cinderella · 1898

An adaptation of the folk tale.

Early British Films from the Filmoteca de Catalunya 1897-1909

Early British Films from the Filmoteca de Catalunya 1897-1909 · 2023

Early British Films from the Filmoteca de Catalunya 1897-1909

MovieDocumentaryComedy

A collection of early British Films from the Filmoteca de Catalunya. Films include: Brighton Seagoing Electric Car (1897), The Inexhaustible Cab (1899), From Dalmeny to Dunfermline, Scotland via the Firth of Forth Bridge (series) (1899), Review of Lord George Sanger's Circus by the Queen (series) (1899), Sanger Circus Passing Through Inverness (1900), The “Poly” Paper Chase (1900), The Wintry Alps (series) (1903), An Affair of Honor (1904), Perzina's Troupe of Educated Monkeys (1904), Elephants Bathing in Ceylon River (1904), [Drill of the Reedham Orphans] (c.1904–1912), Venice and the Grand Canal (1901?/1904?), Edge's Motor Boat. The Napier Minor (1904), Fixing the Swing (1904), Eccentric Burglary (1905), Her Morning Dip (1906), Automobile Fête Before King Alfonso and Princess Ena (1906), The Royal Spanish Wedding (series) (1906), Lace Making (1908), The Robber's Ruse, or Foiled by Fido (1909).

The X-Ray Fiend

The X-Ray Fiend · 1897

The X-Ray Fiend

MovieComedyHorror

A romantic couple are transformed into skeletons via X-Rays. The film combines two very recent innovations: Wilhelm Roentgen's discovery of X-rays in 1895, and Georges Méliès' accidental realisation of the special-effects potential of the jump-cut in 1896.

The Death of Poor Joe

The Death of Poor Joe · 1901

The Death of Poor Joe

A scene from Charles Dickens' Bleak House. Despite the common belief, this is NOT the world's first Dickens' adaptation in cinema.

The Sick Kitten

The Sick Kitten · 1903

The Sick Kitten

A simple scene of two rather flamboyantly-dressed Edwardian children attempting to feed a spoonful of medicine to a sick kitten. The film is important for being one of the earliest films to cut to a close-up, then back again to the same medium shot as before.

Grandma's Reading Glass

Grandma's Reading Glass · 1900

Grandma's Reading Glass

A child borrows his grandmother's magnifying glass to look at a newspaper ad for Bovril, at a watch, and then at a bird. The child shows grandma what he is doing. The child looks next at grandma's eye, then at a kitten.

Comic Face

Comic Face · 1897

An old man gets progressively livelier - and drunker - as he downs his bottle of beer. Finally, he cocks a snook - and doesn't bother to uncock it as he continues to drink.

Filmography

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The Coronation of Edward VII

The Coronation of Edward VII · 1902

The Coronation of Edward VII

King Edward VII's coronation ceremony.

Camera Operator

Cinderella

Cinderella · 1898

An adaptation of the folk tale.

Director

Early British Films from the Filmoteca de Catalunya 1897-1909

Early British Films from the Filmoteca de Catalunya 1897-1909 · 2023

Early British Films from the Filmoteca de Catalunya 1897-1909

MovieDocumentaryComedy

A collection of early British Films from the Filmoteca de Catalunya. Films include: Brighton Seagoing Electric Car (1897), The Inexhaustible Cab (1899), From Dalmeny to Dunfermline, Scotland via the Firth of Forth Bridge (series) (1899), Review of Lord George Sanger's Circus by the Queen (series) (1899), Sanger Circus Passing Through Inverness (1900), The “Poly” Paper Chase (1900), The Wintry Alps (series) (1903), An Affair of Honor (1904), Perzina's Troupe of Educated Monkeys (1904), Elephants Bathing in Ceylon River (1904), [Drill of the Reedham Orphans] (c.1904–1912), Venice and the Grand Canal (1901?/1904?), Edge's Motor Boat. The Napier Minor (1904), Fixing the Swing (1904), Eccentric Burglary (1905), Her Morning Dip (1906), Automobile Fête Before King Alfonso and Princess Ena (1906), The Royal Spanish Wedding (series) (1906), Lace Making (1908), The Robber's Ruse, or Foiled by Fido (1909).

Director

The X-Ray Fiend

The X-Ray Fiend · 1897

The X-Ray Fiend

MovieComedyHorror

A romantic couple are transformed into skeletons via X-Rays. The film combines two very recent innovations: Wilhelm Roentgen's discovery of X-rays in 1895, and Georges Méliès' accidental realisation of the special-effects potential of the jump-cut in 1896.

Producer

The Death of Poor Joe

The Death of Poor Joe · 1901

The Death of Poor Joe

A scene from Charles Dickens' Bleak House. Despite the common belief, this is NOT the world's first Dickens' adaptation in cinema.

Director

The Sick Kitten

The Sick Kitten · 1903

The Sick Kitten

A simple scene of two rather flamboyantly-dressed Edwardian children attempting to feed a spoonful of medicine to a sick kitten. The film is important for being one of the earliest films to cut to a close-up, then back again to the same medium shot as before.

Director

Grandma's Reading Glass

Grandma's Reading Glass · 1900

Grandma's Reading Glass

A child borrows his grandmother's magnifying glass to look at a newspaper ad for Bovril, at a watch, and then at a bird. The child shows grandma what he is doing. The child looks next at grandma's eye, then at a kitten.

Producer

Comic Face

Comic Face · 1897

An old man gets progressively livelier - and drunker - as he downs his bottle of beer. Finally, he cocks a snook - and doesn't bother to uncock it as he continues to drink.

Director

Tartans of Scottish Clans

Tartans of Scottish Clans · 1906

Tartans of Scottish Clans

MovieDocumentary

It's common knowledge that Scotsmen are macho enough to pull off wearing a skirt - perhaps it's all that caber-tossing. This disarmingly simple film concentrates on the tartan cloths of various clans rather than the men who wore them, and is an early filmic reminder of their huge importance to both Scottish national identity and the thriving tourist industry north of the border. The film's unique selling point was that pioneering filmmaker G. A. Smith showed off the vibrant designs in Kinemacolor, among the earliest colour film processes that didn't involve meticulous hand-painting. And no dangly bits in sight.

Director

Let Me Dream Again

Let Me Dream Again · 1900

Let Me Dream Again

MovieRomanceComedy

Possibly the first film to utilize the technique of focus pulling. A man kisses a beautiful and lively woman, then the image blurs and dissolves into a clear image of the man waking up to his nagging wife.

Director

Santa Claus

Santa Claus · 1898

MovieFamilyFantasy

Santa arrives at a house on Christmas Eve to deliver his presents for the children.

Director

The Kiss in the Tunnel

The Kiss in the Tunnel · 1899

The Kiss in the Tunnel

MovieComedyRomance

Produced and directed by George Albert Smith, the film shows a couple sharing a brief kiss as their train passes through a tunnel. The Kiss in the Tunnel is said to mark the beginnings of narrative editing. It is in fact, two films in one, hence the 2 min length. Firstly, the G.A. Smith film here for the central cheeky scene in the carriage. The train view footage however is Cecil Hepworth's work, entitled 'View From An Engine Front - Shilla Mill Tunnel', edited into two halves in order to provide a visual narrative of the train entering the tunnel before the kiss and then leaving afterwards. More information about the filming of the phantom train ride can be found searching for the Hepworth film separately.

Producer

Brighton Seagoing Electric Car

Brighton Seagoing Electric Car · 1897

Brighton Seagoing Electric Car

MovieDocumentary

A view taken from Brighton beach on the Channel coast of the transit of Magnus Volk’s amazing seagoing electric railway, long celebrated as one of the world’s more bizarre railway experiments. All aboard for “A Sea Voyage on Wheels!"

Director

Mary Jane's Mishap

Mary Jane's Mishap · 1903

Mary Jane's Mishap

Mary Jane tries to light the oven. When she's unsuccessful, she plays around, getting black boot polish on her face. She mugs before a mirror. Then, it's back to work. When the stove still won't light, she pours in paraffin, winks at the camera, and lights a match. Kaboom! Is there any rest for the foolish, even in the grave?

Director

Policeman and Burglar

Policeman and Burglar · 1902

Policeman and Burglar

A bracing fight scene

Director

Faust and Mephistopheles

Faust and Mephistopheles · 1898

Faust and Mephistopheles

Satan conjures a vision of a girl, for whom an old man signs a pact and is made young. This is a lost film from George Albert Smith

Director

As Seen Through a Telescope

As Seen Through a Telescope · 1900

As Seen Through a Telescope

An elderly gentleman in a silk hat sits on a stool in front of a store on the main street of town. He has a telescope that focuses on the ankle of a young woman who is a short distance away. Her husband catches the gent looking. What will the two men do now?

Producer

The Old Maid's Valentine

The Old Maid's Valentine · 1900

The Old Maid's Valentine

MovieComedyRomance

An old spinster receives an unexpected Valentine's letter.

Director

Mother Goose Nursery Rhymes

Mother Goose Nursery Rhymes · 1902

Mother Goose Nursery Rhymes

MovieComedyFantasy

Compilation of 7 short scenes: ‘Sing a Song of Sixpence’; ‘Old Mother Hubbard’; ‘Little Miss Muffet’; ‘Goosey Gander’; ‘Jack and Jill’; ‘Old Woman in a Shoe’; ‘Hey Diddle Diddle’. Only the last one is known to have survived and to be available to watch.

Director

The House That Jack Built

The House That Jack Built · 1900

The House That Jack Built

A cleverly conceived picture of a little boy and girl with building blocks. The little girl has erected a pretty structure, which the boy proceeds to demolish with pokes of his fingers. When the demolition of the house is completed, the film is shown in reverse, and the little building comes back to its original form in a most marvellous manner.

Director

Train Entering Hove Station

Train Entering Hove Station · 1897

Train Entering Hove Station

MovieDocumentaryHistory

Most movie fans know that the first filmmakers liked to shoot trains entering stations. This example by Sussex film pioneer George Albert Smith illustrates why. The train's rush towards the audience brings movement and visual drama. The flurry of human activity offers plenty for the audience to engage with - who are these people and where are they going? And the time pressure exerted by the fact that the train must soon depart adds narrative tension - will everyone get on and off in time?

Director

Hanging Out the Clothes

Hanging Out the Clothes · 1897

Hanging Out the Clothes

Lovers are comically interrupted

Producer

Two Clowns

Two Clowns · 1906

A male and female clown drink, smoke, and flirt in this early Kinemacolor short.

Director

Grandma Threading Her Needle

Grandma Threading Her Needle · 1900

Grandma Threading Her Needle

An old lady is seated at a table with her work basket and her cat washing its paws beside her. The old lady makes several attempts to thread a needle and a look of triumph appears on her face as she finally succeeds.

Director