Silent FilmsBy Charlotte Reinnoldt

What are Silent Films?

• Movies with no recorded sound• Popular from 1894 to 1921• This stage in film was called ‘The Silent Era’• Dialogue was conveyed through pantomiming

and title cards• Live bands or pianists accompanied the films• Showings were changed 2-3 times a week

History• Earliest known silent movies were documentary

footage• Projected with ‘zoopraxiscopes’ (first movie

projectors)• By 1910, romance, drama, and horror became

popular• Films were first shown at fairs in 1900• “Nickelodeon” theaters then began opening up• Soon, more permanent theaters opened

Acting• Body language had to convey everything• Acting was often very exaggerated• Many actors used hyperbole in their acting• Famous actors in the Silent Era were:

o Charlie Chaplino Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckleo George Méliès

Charlie Chaplin• English actor born in London in 1889• Specialized in comedy, but acted in other genres as

well• Was famous for his work in silent films• Continued to make silent films even when ‘talkies’

were popular• Performing career lasted over 70 years• Famous movies included The Kid, A Woman Of Paris,

and The Circus.

Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle

• American actor, director, and filmmaker born in 1887

• Began acting career at age 12• Mentored Charlie Chaplin• First actor to be paid a salary of 1,000,000 dollars

per year• Career ended in a murder scandal• Died of a heart attack in 1933

George Méliès• Famous French moviemaker born in 1861• Started out as a professional magician• First to use ‘fade-in’, ‘fade-out’, and ‘dissolve’

filming techniques• First to use storyboards in film production• Most famous movie was ‘A Trip To The Moon’• Built the first movie studio in Europe

Decline of Silent Film• Popularity of silent films died down in the late

1920’s• Movies with synchronized sound became popular• Transition into ‘talkies’ was difficult for many

silent movie stars• Many old silent film reels have been damaged

with age and can not be watched• Today, there are numerous silent film theatres in

the U.S.

Acting Techniques• Actors used exaggerated expressions and miming

to portray what they were trying to say• Many audiences hated the melodramatic acting

style• In the late stages of silent film, acting became

much more natural• On-screen interties were often used to portray

dialogue

Tinting Film• To make films colorful, reels were often dipped in

dye• Blue dye represented night time, while red or

orange represented daytime• Fire was portrayed with the color red• A green hue represented a mysterious

environment• Some films were hand-tinted frame by frame

Sources CitedA Brief History of Silent Movies. Buzzle. Buzzle.com, n.d. Web21 Aug. 2012.

Charlie Chaplin. Roy Export SAS, n.d. Web 21 Aug. 2012

The History of Silent Movies. eHow. Demand Media, Inc., n.d. Web. 24 Feb. 2009.

Kim Kenney. The History of Silent Films. Suite 101, 14 Jan 2009. Web.21 Aug 2012

George Melies. IMDb. Amazon.com. n.d. Web.21 Aug 2012