Film and Cinema is now over a century old, and a big part of our everyday lives, alongside Television. Technology has advanced beyond belief over those 100 years, so I wanted to research the story behind special effects. From all over the world, cinema has many roots. Starting from the Renaissance period in Europe to the 18th century, the visual arts took front row. There was a magnificent rise in interest of the arts such as paintings, theatre and architecture. People began to experiment with techniques, always wanting to excite and appeal to the audience.
Shadow puppetry, or 'ombres chinoises' travelled from China to England, fascinating all social classes and providing a new wave of entertainment. This used light behind a canvas, with small paper or wooden puppets which had moveable arms and legs. By placing these infront of the light but behind the canvas, it created shadow for the audience to watch. Using light to create an art became increasingly popular, and German artist Phillipe de Loutherbourg grasped hold of this idea. He created series of paintings, to be exhibited in a theatrical environment. He used lighting to emphasise and provide a sense of reality to his 2-D pieces, as well as using sound to increase this sense of belief from the audience. His pieces had a high visual impact on the viewer, as the scenes he displayed were beautiful but horrific at the same time. He produced images of the sea thrashing ships into rocks, fires, and storms. The sound and lighting would have had a massive emphasis on the experience for the spectators.
Louis Daguere, a photographer and 'father of the camera', used Dioramas. These were paintings on clear guaze, hung infant of each other, and lit separately. The images would dissolve into one another, making this a really intricate experience. Dark rooms became more popular, being called 'camera obscura'. It works in the same way a pinhole camera works, with the inverted image of the outside world being emitted onto the inside wall. Inventors and artists together began experimenting more and more with light and shadow, when came along the 'magic lantern'. These are similar to modern projectors used in the 2000's, and were very popular, and manufactured in their masses. This fascination of light took another turn, when photograph and film became the new technology of the day. The idea that an the light could show flickering images of people in scenes astounded people. But this could not be without the human body. Our eyes manage to register an image for a minuscule fraction of a second, before it moves out of our view. This is called 'persistence of vision', where our eyes manage to put together a quick paced section of moving images, making the images become continuous, without any gaps. Without this, we would not be able to watch any films or television smoothly.
By the turn of the century, the photographic resources available were slowly advancing. In the 1870's, sensitive emulsions were being used which managed to capture photographs in less than a second. Kodak founder George Eastman released his newest invention, a sensitised strip of celluloid film. People all over the world were in a frenzy. Some wanted it, some battled to make an even better version. At the end of the 1880's, the phonograph was available by Thomas Edison, and his new project was to create an apparatus that recorded moving images. The Kinetograph was produced by Edison's assistant Dickson. To use this, the viewer had to look through a hole the size of a keyhole, giving this piece of equipment the nickname 'What The Butler Saw'. Kinetographs were being placed on piers, and shops everywhere. It was beginning to be recognized that people would pay a large amount of money if the images were to be projected onto a larger screen, for people to come and watch.
Next on the timeline of the history of special effects was the French brothers, the Lumiere's. They showed short films at the Grand Cafe in Paris, thinking that this would be a passing craze that society now had. Little did they know, they had created cinema. But it is unfair to just credit these brothers, as all inventors at the time played their own part in the creation of film. 'Demolition d'un Mur (Demolition of a Wall) was shown to the Lumiere's cafe, and people were amazed. This is the first documented film that contains trick photography, as the film is run backwards to make it seem as though a wall has build itself back up. This was the beginning of the special effects used in film and cinema. 'The Execution of Queen Mary' was released in 1895, which had the audience gasping. The film showed Queen Mary being beheaded. This, obviously, was not real, and the director Alfred Clark used the stop-start technique, where the film was stopped just as Mary was about to be beheaded, and her body replaced by a mannequin. Many audience members believed that an actress had sacrificed her life for the sake of the film, when actually it was the clever idea of Alfred Clarke.
From this, special effects began to be increasingly popular, next showing up in a film by George Melies. Melies was an illusionist, using cinematography to showcase his abilities to shock his audiences. 'A Trip to the Moon' in 1902 was a French silent film, which used the stop-trick technique, making selenites disappear in puffs of smokes. He used pyrotechnics in his productions, which made the films seem even more magical.
In 1922, the first horror film, Nosferatu, was released. This was influenced by Bram Stoker's Dracula. Here, Special effects makeup was used to create a bald-headed monster with two long fangs. The film was unauthorised by Stoker, who filed law suits against the film maker, F.W Murnau. Murnau changed the name of Vampire to Nosferatu, and Count Dracula was named Count Orlock. In terms of the makeup, on the film Count Orlock is undeniably creepy to look at. His small, bald head sits unevenly against his large coat that hangs off his small frame. His fingers are extended into sharp claws, and his teeth extended into shape fangs. For the time the film was produced, and the little products they had at this time, I feel that the film team did a great job at turning an ordinary man into a monster.
The 1950's saw many horror and science-fiction films pass through the years, as they became increasingly popular. The stop-motion technique allowed figurines to look as if they were terrorising cities by themselves, in movies such as Godzilla and King Kong. Ray Harryhausen was a big name during this time, creating special effects in a large number of movies. Mighty Joe Young was a film that Ray worked on, which landed an Academy Award for best special effects.
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| Example of shadow puppetry. http://www.puppeteers.org/2012/06/05/stories-from-the-ground-shadow-puppetry/ |
Shadow puppetry, or 'ombres chinoises' travelled from China to England, fascinating all social classes and providing a new wave of entertainment. This used light behind a canvas, with small paper or wooden puppets which had moveable arms and legs. By placing these infront of the light but behind the canvas, it created shadow for the audience to watch. Using light to create an art became increasingly popular, and German artist Phillipe de Loutherbourg grasped hold of this idea. He created series of paintings, to be exhibited in a theatrical environment. He used lighting to emphasise and provide a sense of reality to his 2-D pieces, as well as using sound to increase this sense of belief from the audience. His pieces had a high visual impact on the viewer, as the scenes he displayed were beautiful but horrific at the same time. He produced images of the sea thrashing ships into rocks, fires, and storms. The sound and lighting would have had a massive emphasis on the experience for the spectators.
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| Phillipe de Loutherbourg 'Coatbrookdale by Night' 1801, oil on canvas. theredlist.com |
By the turn of the century, the photographic resources available were slowly advancing. In the 1870's, sensitive emulsions were being used which managed to capture photographs in less than a second. Kodak founder George Eastman released his newest invention, a sensitised strip of celluloid film. People all over the world were in a frenzy. Some wanted it, some battled to make an even better version. At the end of the 1880's, the phonograph was available by Thomas Edison, and his new project was to create an apparatus that recorded moving images. The Kinetograph was produced by Edison's assistant Dickson. To use this, the viewer had to look through a hole the size of a keyhole, giving this piece of equipment the nickname 'What The Butler Saw'. Kinetographs were being placed on piers, and shops everywhere. It was beginning to be recognized that people would pay a large amount of money if the images were to be projected onto a larger screen, for people to come and watch.
Next on the timeline of the history of special effects was the French brothers, the Lumiere's. They showed short films at the Grand Cafe in Paris, thinking that this would be a passing craze that society now had. Little did they know, they had created cinema. But it is unfair to just credit these brothers, as all inventors at the time played their own part in the creation of film. 'Demolition d'un Mur (Demolition of a Wall) was shown to the Lumiere's cafe, and people were amazed. This is the first documented film that contains trick photography, as the film is run backwards to make it seem as though a wall has build itself back up. This was the beginning of the special effects used in film and cinema. 'The Execution of Queen Mary' was released in 1895, which had the audience gasping. The film showed Queen Mary being beheaded. This, obviously, was not real, and the director Alfred Clark used the stop-start technique, where the film was stopped just as Mary was about to be beheaded, and her body replaced by a mannequin. Many audience members believed that an actress had sacrificed her life for the sake of the film, when actually it was the clever idea of Alfred Clarke.
From this, special effects began to be increasingly popular, next showing up in a film by George Melies. Melies was an illusionist, using cinematography to showcase his abilities to shock his audiences. 'A Trip to the Moon' in 1902 was a French silent film, which used the stop-trick technique, making selenites disappear in puffs of smokes. He used pyrotechnics in his productions, which made the films seem even more magical.
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| Count Orlock, 1922. http://www.biography.com/people/max-schreck--20693551 |
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| Max Schrek as Count Orlock, 1922. Promo Still for the Movie. http://www.biography.com/people/max-schreck--20693551 |
The 1950's saw many horror and science-fiction films pass through the years, as they became increasingly popular. The stop-motion technique allowed figurines to look as if they were terrorising cities by themselves, in movies such as Godzilla and King Kong. Ray Harryhausen was a big name during this time, creating special effects in a large number of movies. Mighty Joe Young was a film that Ray worked on, which landed an Academy Award for best special effects.
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| Ray Harryhausen, beside his figurines. bradscribe.wordpress.com |
-Ray Harryhausen, 1920-2013.
Special Effects was used thoroughly in almost all films from the 1950's, which has then led on to the advance in technology of Computer Generated Images, or CGI. CGI threatens some makeup work nowadays, as monsters can be created quickly, and without touch ups during shooting. Not all makeup is threatened, such as bullet wounds and cuts. This is much easier to do by hand, than to do by computer. There is a future for makeup and special effects, whether it be part technological and part practical. The use of Performance Capture Technology is used to create CGI characters, such as in the film Avatar, 2009. It is important to remember that the use of special effects in 1890 would have shocked and appealed to the audience then, but 15 years down the line, it would not have appealed to many. In the same way, 1950's films can be seen as cliche and unbelievable to the society of today. Technology is advancing more and more, and special effects makeup will continue to advance side by side.
Special Effects was used thoroughly in almost all films from the 1950's, which has then led on to the advance in technology of Computer Generated Images, or CGI. CGI threatens some makeup work nowadays, as monsters can be created quickly, and without touch ups during shooting. Not all makeup is threatened, such as bullet wounds and cuts. This is much easier to do by hand, than to do by computer. There is a future for makeup and special effects, whether it be part technological and part practical. The use of Performance Capture Technology is used to create CGI characters, such as in the film Avatar, 2009. It is important to remember that the use of special effects in 1890 would have shocked and appealed to the audience then, but 15 years down the line, it would not have appealed to many. In the same way, 1950's films can be seen as cliche and unbelievable to the society of today. Technology is advancing more and more, and special effects makeup will continue to advance side by side.
America, P. of (2012) ‘Sign Up’, 5 June. Available at: http://www.puppeteers.org/2012/06/05/stories-from-the-ground-shadow-puppetry/ (Accessed: 6 October 2015).
Horror Film Countdown: Nosferatu (1922) (2014) Available at: http://non-productive.com/blog/horror-film-countdown-nosferatu-1922/ (Accessed: 7 October 2015).
Vinther, J. (2003) Special Effects for Film and Theatre. 1st edn. New York, NY: Routledge Member of the Taylor and Francis Group.
mlbradford (2015) Posts about Ray Harryhausen on Bradscribe. Available at: https://bradscribe.wordpress.com/category/ray-harryhausen/ (Accessed: 7 October 2015).
Rickitt, R. and Harryhausen, R. (2007) Special effects: the history and technique. New York, NY: Billboard Books.
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