Often cited as the creator of cinema, Louis Lumière, along with his close brother Auguste, occupies a unique and pivotal position in the history of film.  It was the Lumière brothers who invented and patented (on 13 February 1895) the Cinematograph, the first device to photograph and project moving images onto a screen.  This was an invention which would revolutionise communication and entertainment across the world within an incredibly short time, making it a significant milestone in the development of modern civilisation. 

Yet, ironically, the Lumières regarded their invention as no more than a curiosity, something which would be forgotten once its novelty value had worn off.  Auguste was particularly sceptical and very quickly lost interest in his new discovery.  It was left largely to Louis to explore the new medium and to exploit its commercial potential.

Louis was the more artistically minded of the two brothers – it was he who photographed and directed the Lumières’ first films.  Auguste was more a scientist, in the traditional sense of the word, but also a very competent technician.  Both were looking for new products to sell in their Lyon-based photographic business which they had inherited from their father, Antoine, and were constantly engaged in research to refine techniques and invent new devices. 

It was this research which led to the creation of the Cinematograph, a sophisicated development of Thomas Edison’s Kinetoscope.  The new device, which Auguste regarded as a mere toy, was first demonstrated on 22 March 1895.  This was followed by the first public showing of a number of Louis’ short films in Paris on 28 December 1895, a date which is often cited as marking the birth of cinema.

To promote their new invention, Louis Lumière made a number of films, using a documentary approach to record actual scenes from everyday life rather than fictional dramas.  These include images of a train arriving at a station (L’Arrivée d’un train en gare de La Ciotat) and of workers leave the Lumieres’ factories (La Sortie des usines Lumière).

The Lumières hired cinematographers who were sent all over the world to record news events and obtain a visual record of life in many different countries.  Within two years, the Lumières had built up a catalogue of around a thousand films (mostly involving a single shot and running to under a minute).

Within a short time, the Lumières gave up film-making to concentrate on developing further cinematic products and techniques (including wide-screen, colour and 3D).  Although they remained sceptical about the future of cinema, their work was to provide both the means and the inspiration for a whole new generation of artists to develop and exploit the potential of the exciting new medium of cinema.

Watch some of the Lumière brothers’ first films on this DVD:

Louis Lumière
Born: Besançon, France, 5 October 1864.
Died: Bandol, Var, France, 6 June 1948.

Auguste Lumière
Born: Besançon, France, 19 October 1862.
Died: Lyons, France, 10 April 1954.

The Lumière home is now a museum
at 1 rue du Premier Film, Lyon.