History of film

The history of film chronicles the development of a <a href="/facts/Visual_art/95RgxP8e">visual art form</a> created using <a href="/facts/History_of_film_technology/TIzbnNfy">film technologies</a> that began in the late 19th century.
The advent of film as an artistic medium is not clearly defined. There were earlier <a href="/facts/Cinematography/Umcgh4GC">cinematographic</a> screenings by others like the first showing of life sized pictures in motion 1894 in Berlin by <a href="/facts/Ottomar_Ansch%25C3%25BCtz/58cxgpoz">Ottomar Anschütz</a>; however, the commercial, public screening of ten <a href="/facts/Auguste_and_Louis_Lumi%25C3%25A8re/fYfN5pEa">Lumière brothers</a>' short films in Paris on 28 December 1895, can be regarded as the breakthrough of projected cinematographic motion pictures. The earliest films were in black and white, under a minute long, without recorded sound, and consisted of a single shot from a steady camera. The first decade saw film move from a novelty, to an established mass entertainment industry, with <a href="/facts/Film_production_companies/wjn4VvCb">film production companies</a> and studios established throughout the world. Conventions toward a general cinematic language developed, with film editing, camera movements and other <a href="/facts/Cinematic_techniques/zu7naJQJ">cinematic techniques</a> contributing specific roles in the <a href="/facts/Narrativity/zE3mllKw">narrative</a> of films.
Popular new media, including television (mainstream since the 1950s), <a href="/facts/Home_video/0Uw329Kj">home video</a> (1980s), and the internet (1990s), influenced the distribution and consumption of films. Film production usually responded with content to fit the new media, and technical innovations (including <a href="/facts/Widescreen/SpJ8gcnV">widescreen</a> (1950s), 3D, and <a href="/facts/4D_film/aX8AtLug">4D film</a>) and more spectacular films to keep theatrical screenings attractive. Systems that were cheaper and more easily handled (including <a href="/facts/8mm_film/Av8bjxp4">8mm film</a>, video, and <a href="/facts/Smartphone_camera/EzCfpkdl">smartphone cameras</a>) allowed for an increasing number of people to create films of varying qualities, for any purpose including <a href="/facts/Home_movies/vr28xbQK">home movies</a> and <a href="/facts/Video_art/qcLEEWj7">video art</a>. The technical quality was usually lower than professional movies, but improved with <a href="/facts/Digital_video/xsn9omqG">digital video</a> and affordable, high-quality <a href="/facts/Digital_camera/LSGTserm">digital cameras</a>. Improving over time, digital production methods became more popular during the 1990s, resulting in increasingly realistic <a href="/facts/Visual_effects/AdoEkAWU">visual effects</a> and popular feature-length <a href="/facts/Computer_animation/rPW63nm0">computer animations</a>.
Various <a href="/facts/Film_genre/T2aF9Qrm">film genres</a> have emerged during the history of film, and enjoyed variable degrees of success.

History of film open-in-new

History of film