All Films

Tripoli

1912 • 10 min • Italy

The flat tops of the houses give the town an Eastern appearance - the narrow, roughly paved thorough fare through which loosely cloaked natives proceed on mule-back, the marabouts or travelling priests, the palm trees which are frequently encountered, are all typical of a life widely different from that of the bustling Western world.

Esercito italiano: Plotone nuotatori di cavalleria

1912 • 15 min

Cavalry manoeuvres held on July 27, 1912, by the Ticino river, in front of the Count of Torino: descent to the Ticino river, pontoon boats transportation, river crossing on horses. This event is documented in various film versions, held by different Italian archives, but with variations in framing, editing and length: probably in all probability, the event was filmed with more than one camera and then published with different editing.

Cunégonde is a Woman of the World

1912 • 9 min • France

The mistress of Cunégonde is going out so Cunégonde puts on her mistress' clothes. When she goes out into the street, she encounters an instantly enamoured gentleman who takes her to his house. However, when the man is about to declare his love the actual owner of the house barges in. Cunegonde's gentleman turns out to be just a regular servant and Cunégonde walks away annoyed. When Cunégonde meets the servant the next day she is still mad at him and quarrels with him. At the police station he declares his love for her in spite of her being a maid. They happily fall into each other's arms.

Bandits En Automobile - Episode 1: The Gray Car Gang

1912 • 12 min

In 1913 early French film pioneer Victorin-Hippolyte Jasset died abruptly at the age of 51. His filmography of about 60 titles includes all film genres but is today mostly lost. He was particularly interested in detective or crime genres and with series like Nick Carter and Zigomar he is considered as one of the creators of the serial. The spectacular siege of Jules Bonnot's Gang at Choisy-le-Roi near Paris on April 28th 1912 inspired Jasset to make this 'Bandits en automobile'. French audiences recognized immediately the resemblances with the actual Bonnot Gang, a reason for which the film was prohibited in many cities.

For the Honor of the Muffler

1912 • 6 min

Italian short comedy from the Itala Film company.

Zigoto's Outing with Friends

1912 • 6 min • France

The short by Jean Durand begins with his frequent character, Zigoto (Lucien Bataille) reading a boring book. So, instead he goes on an outing in his new car with his friends. The captioning says it's a new '101 horsepower car'--this, during an age when the horsepower of cars actually was between 4-30 horsepower! So, in other words, it's supposed to be a super-fast car.

Jimmy Pulls The Trigger

1912 • 8 min • France

A short from Feuillade's Bébé series

Picturesque Luxemburg

1912 • 6 min • Luxembourg

1912 short film on Luxemburg.

Buster in Nodland

1912 • 7 min

A comedy about little Buster/Toto, who dreams that he and his girlfriend are kidnapped by cowboys.

Japanese Expedition to Antarctica

1912 • 46 min • Japan

Footage shot during Japanese Army Lieutenant Nobu Shirase’s second Antarctica expedition.

Un drama en Puerto Rico

1912 • 10 min • Puerto Rico

First Puerto Rican non-documentary film.

Hairdresser Bébé

1912 • 6 min

Venise la reine de l'Adriatique

1912 • 14 min • France

Venice, Queen of the Adriatic

The Waves of the Sea and Love

1912 • 42 min • Germany, Hungary

Romantic silent film about a merchant ship carrying gunpowder, while two men vie for the hand of the captain’s daughter.

An Adventurous Adoption

1912 • 12 min

Our young friend Jimmie forms a sudden attachment for a little waif in the streets whom he finds playing an accordion for alms. The little urchin late that night rises from his pallet and goes to serenade his new friend. Jimmie makes a rope of the bed-clothes up which clambers the ragged Archie. Disregarding the formalities of undressing Jimmie puts Archie in his own immaculate bed, dirty shoes and all, while he himself sleeps upon the mat like a faithful Towser. In the morning Jimmie hides Archie in a closet until he should have returned from school. In the evening when he arrives, the key to the closet is missing. There is an interchange of notes and Archie directs Jimmie to go to his nefarious companions who have the somewhat sinister occupation of second story men and tell them of Archie's imprisonment.

Les salamandres

1912 • 6 min • France

Scientific film about different types of salamanders with an accurate report of their developments and natural environment.

Cunégonde Loves Her Employer

1912 • 7 min • France

A married couple is employing the pretty Anna as their domestic servant, but the wife does not like her because her husband loves her too much. The wife decides to hire an ugly servant (Cunegonde) instead. However, Cunégonde falls in love with the husband and becomes so clumsy that she is sent away again.

Le dytique

1912 • 7 min • France

The Dytiscus is a species of the water beetle and they are abundant in stagnant water. The pictures give an unusually accurate idea of the development of this carnivorous insect. These scientific subjects are difficult to make, owing to the details necessary and this particular film contains a struggle between a Tripon which has been caught in the jaws of the Dytiscus for which the camera man had to wait a number of days before the exact situations desired could be secured.

Gorki, The Demon Detective

1912 • 28 min • Denmark

Hjalmar leads a double life; during the day, he is a clerk at his father’s bank while at night, he leads a notorious gang known as “Heldet” (Fortune) to pay for his prodigious womanising and gambling. When “Heldet” knocks over his own bank, Hjalmar distracts the guard while the rest of the gang cleans out the vault, then he calls the police to allay any suspicion. But master detective Gorki is on the case, and Hjalmar might not have been as careful as he thinks. (stumfilm.dk)

Midsummer Currents

1912 • 4 min

Documentary about a group of men sailing on a rowing-boat on Vltava River.

Boston and the Telescope

1912 • 3 min • Denmark

A young man accidently gets hold of a telescope, which he quickly finds good use for. First, he studies a woman’s slender ankles up close. Later, he peeks through a window at a girl getting ready at her dressing table. Soon, however, the police are after him and the fun is over. The preserved material is supposedly incomplete. (stumfilm.dk)

Railway from Olot to Gerona

1912 • 6 min • Spain

Useful Sheep

1912 • 3 min • United States of America

Actuality set on a sheep ranch and released as a split reel along with the comedy Mabel's Adventures.

Views of Los Angeles, California

1912 • 5 min

A documentary short that shows various locations in and around Los Angeles, California