Thomas Edison and the Lumière Brothers became prominent figures in the invention of cinema because their experiments led to the development of innovative technologies replacing hand-painted dioramas and live performances. Edison invented the kinetoscope, while his assistant, W. K. L. Dickson, improved the device by introducing perforated 35mm film strips, which became the standard in modern cinema. The Lumière Brothers, who operated a family company in France, invented the Cinématographe, a projection system that turned cinema into an international commercial industry. The inventors used Edison’s kinetoscope as a source of inspiration and designed a cheaper and smaller camera with an intermittent mechanism and a film speed of sixteen frames per second.
The Lumière and the early Edison films are characteristic of the first years of cinema, as they established the practice of public screenings, developed popular themes, and helped to spread the cinema across the world. There were several differences between Edison’s and the Lumière Brothers’ films. The main themes of Edison’s kinetoscope films produced in his Black Maria studio were sports, vaudeville acts, dance, and acrobatics featuring popular performers. In contrast, Lumière’s programs introduced staged fiction films with the elements of comedy, including Arroseur Arose (1895). Additionally, kinetoscope films were 20-second-long and shot at forty-six frames per second, while Lumière’s films were about 1-minute-long and supported the speed of sixteen frames per second.
George Méliès’ A Trip to the Moon (1902) represents the developments in motion picture technique and aesthetics since the inventions of Thomas Edison and the Lumière Brothers. The performing magician examined the projector invented by R. W. Paul and created his own camera. In The Vanishing Lady (1896), Méliès’ developed innovative camera techniques and tricks produced by manipulating the device and using stop motion to transform the scene. In Cinderella (1899), he implemented the technique of joining multiple shots to create a single film, which demonstrated the complexity of the cinema. The aesthetics of the films were also unique, as they represented a break from the traditional Lumière-style genres. Méliès’ fantasy movies featured special effects, complex magic scenes, and mysterious backgrounds painted on canvas flats.
In 1902, movie audiences were fascinated by Méliès’ latest production, A Trip to the Moon. The fantasy film was special because it combined the comedy genre with science-fiction and featured innovative technology and flawless editing mastery. Special effects achieved by employing time-lapsed photography and double exposure impressed the audience because they created vivid scenes featuring realistic monsters, devils, or subterranean creatures. Moreover, Méliès’ films were perceived as magical at the time because he created aesthetically pleasing and elaborate mise-en-scene by carefully applying tinting techniques.
The scenes from A Trip to the Moon can explain why the iconic film became a major advance for turn-of-the-century cinema. For instance, the famous eye scene surprised the audience as it depicted how the lunar capsule landed on the moon decades before space exploration programs started. Another important moment of the film is the scene where space travelers’ dreams appear and vanish, demonstrating the creative use of slow motion, double exposure, and superimposition. Finally, the intense chase scene with lunar inhabitants employs the special effects of pyrotechnics, elaborate costumes, and choreography to produce the dramatic effect and capture the audience.