It is exactly 120 years since the filming of what is widely considered the first motion picture in history.
“Workers Leaving the Lumière Factory” was shot by France’s famous Lumiere brothers on March 19 1895.
That film and other offerings earned the brothers from Lyon the title ‘Fathers of Modern Cinema’ – their primitive cameras for the first time allowing films to be projected for large audiences.
Nearly as old as the silver screen itself, Portugal’s Manoel de Oliveira is still making movies at 106.
For him, it is much more than entertainment.
“Cinema is the mirror of life…The only mirror of life is the cinema,” he says.
“And being the mirror of life, it is also the memory of life.”
Wise words.
And as you weigh them up, why not take a look at where it all began, with these Lumiere classics.
L’Arroseur Arrosé (The Sprinkler Sprinkled)
La Voltige (Vaulting a horse)
La Pêche aux poissons rouges (Goldfish fishing)
