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Lost Silent Film Found in Attic Trunk
13 Apr
Summary
- A lost film by cinema pioneer Georges Melies was found.
- The film was discovered in a century-old family trunk.
- The US Library of Congress has restored and digitized the film.
A previously lost short film by French cinema pioneer Georges Melies, "Gugusse and the Automaton," has been unearthed. The 1897 film, made just two years after the dawn of cinema, was found in a century-old family trunk donated to the US Library of Congress.
The discovery was made by Bill McFarland, who inherited the trunk from his great-grandfather, who had toured with silent movies. Initially unaware of the treasure, McFarland eventually brought the reels to the Library of Congress last September.
Archivists identified the 45-second film, featuring a magician and an automaton, as a rare work by Melies. The reel, likely a third-generation copy, has been carefully restored and digitized by specialists, preserving a piece of early cinematic innovation for public viewing.
