1901-1905
1906-1910
1911-1915

Films marked † are known to exist; this indication is not complete.
Films marked * are included in The Movies Begin: A treasury of early cinema 1896-1906, Volume 2 (The European Pioneers).

• 1896

¶ Robert W Paul

On Brighton Beach †
     
      —The first film shot in Brighton (July)
      View online

¶ Birt Acres

Brighton on a Bank Holiday
      —King's Road and the West Pier (August)
Landing at Low Tide
      —(August)
Scrambling Urchins
      —(August)

¶ Esmé Collings

Bathers on the Beach at Brighton
      —Summer, 40ft
Boys Under Pier †
     
[Picture source: BFI]
     —Alt title Boys scrambling for pennies under the West Pier Brighton (August).
Bicycle Riders*
     —(40ft.)
The Broken Melody*
     —A simple story film based on a stage melodrama by James Tanenr and Herbert Keene, featuring Auguste van Biene, who was appearing at the Eden Theatre, North Road, in the week 28 September-3 October 1896.(October).
Children on the Beach*
Children Paddling*†
     Alt title Children Playing in the Sea)*
      —(August)
Crowds At Brighton*
Donkey Riding
     
     —(summer).
Dyke Station †
     Alt title Train arriving at Dyke Station)
      —Re-creation of the famous Lumière film, demonstrating Collings’ awareness of the films made for the Cinématographe. This film can be seen at Hove Museum.
Hose Scene
     Alt title Comic Scene
      —Re-creation of another famous Lumière film, L’arroseur arrosé
King's Road Brighton*
     Alt titles Brighton Front on a Bank Holiday and The Promenade at Brighton
      —(August).
Musical Party, Van Biene
     —(October) see also The Broken Melody above.
Policeman and Cook*
     Alt title Love Scene
      —Comedy.
Rough Sea*
     —Alt titles The Hove Sea Wall in a Gale and Ocean Waves in a Storm.
Street Scene*
West Street Brighton
     —Alt title A Street in Brighton*.

¶ Esmé Collings away from Brighton:
Crowd at Law Court.
Crowded Streets in London.*
Czar in Paris.
     —Two films, 6-8 November.
English Cavalry in Aldershot.
     —Two films.
The Lord Mayor's Show*
     —(9 November).
Military Scene.*
Portsmouth: The Ferry.*
Runners at Gatwick.*
Sailors of an English Warship.
Soldiers in Portsmouth *
     —Alt title Soldiers Landing.
A Street in Portsmouth *
Street Traffic in London *
Westminster Bridge*
Workmen Leaving Portsmouth Dockyard *
*These films were offered for sale in Germany in January 1897 by Romain Talbot. a Berlin distributor.

• 1897

¶ Laura Bayley

Hanging Out the Clothes; or, Master, Mistress and Maid †
     
      — A man is caught canoodling with the maid and thrashed by his wife, featuring Tom Green, Nellie Green and Laura Bayley. Possibly 1898 (1 min.).
      View online.

¶ Esmé Collings

A Victorian Lady in Her Boudoir*
     
      Alt title Woman Undressing
      —Widely acknowledged to be the first ever 'blue movie', designated in the catalogue as suitable only for gentlemen's smoking parties. The lady removes her dress, some petticoats and nether garments and one stocking
      View online
Simon the Cellarer
      —Three films commissioned by Lewis Sealy for showing during live stage shows with singers performing the well-known song. Distributed by Philipp Wolff.
Tomorrow will be Friday
      —Commissioned by Lewis Sealy.

¶ Robert W Paul.

Rottingdean Electric Railway
      —Volk's Daddy-Long-Legs railway (see also in G A Smith listing below).

¶ G A Smith for GAS Films

Arrival and Departure of a Train at Hove †
     
      —A copy of the famous Lumière film, 1 min (75ft).
Brighton Sea-going Car †
     
      —Magnus Volk's Daddy-Longlegs railway, which ran through the sea between Madeira Drive (Banjo Groyne) and Rottingdean. It was new when filmed, having opened on 28 November 1896. It closed in the summer of 1900. A copy of this film was discovered in 2008 by the Filmoteca de Catalunya. View online
      —A modern CGI animation by Conor Gorman of the tramcar itself can be seen on YouTube (opens in new window).
Brighton Sea-going Car no 2.
      —Volks Daddy-Longlegs Railway.
Children Paddling at the Seaside
      —Comedy featuring a fat old lady and lovers. (September, 50ft.)
Comic Face
     
      —Alt titles Man Drinking, Old Man Drinking a Glass of Beer
      —A very early close-up. Features Brighton comedian Tom Green. (September, 50ft)
      View online
Comic Shaving
     
      View online
      —Alt title Comic Barber
Features Tom Green and W Carlile. (September, 50ft) View online
Football and Cricket
      —(75ft.)
Football Game and Scrimmage
      —(75ft.)
Gymnastics series
      —Indian Club Performer (50ft or 75ft), Squad with Horizontal Bar (75ft), Squad with Vaulting Horse (September, 75ft).
The Haunted Castle
      —Trick film. Also attributed by John Barnes to Georges Méliès (Le château hanté). (December, 50ft.)
The Maid in the Garden
      —Comedy featuring Tom Green and Nellie Gordon (Mrs Green). Similar to Hanging Out the Clothes [above]. (August, 50ft)
Making Sausages
     
      Alt title The End of All Things.
      —Four men making sausages stuff all sorts of things—a cat, a rabbit, boots, etc—into the hopper of their machine. (December, 50ft.)
      View online
The Miller and the Sweep
     
      —A miller leaving his mill with a sack of flour encounters a sweep with a sack of soot. They attack each other with their sacks until both are chased by a motley group (one man, two women, six boys and four girls), who appear from off-screen for no apparent reason but it adds to the excitement. The miller is played by music hall comedian Fred Hutchins, who later became the first mentor of Gracie Fields. The windmill looks like Jill, one of the two Clayton mills. According to an entry in his cashbook for 24 July, Smith tipped 2s 6d to start the mill. He also paid the two men 10s each and spent 4s on flour, props and refreshments. R W Paul also made a version of the story around this time. (July, 50ft)
The Miller and the Sweep no 2 †
      US title The Miller and Chimney Sweep
      —It is presumed the previous shoot was unsatisfactory as this is the second version. This time starting the mill cost 3s, refreshments 2s, flour and sweep’s tools 2s 6d. The two men again received 10s each (cashbook, 24 September). Released in the US by S Lubin and Edison, January 1903. (September, 52ft)
      View online (BFI) View online (YouTube)
Mohawk Minstrels
      —‘Showing an audience leaving the West Pier Pavilion, following Messrs Danvers and Schofield of the Mohawk Minstrels, who, in full costume, amuse the surrounding crowds by cutting many funny capers’ (Warwick catalogue). Johnny Danvers and Johnny Schofield were two of the most popular music hall performers of the day, appearing on the West Pier 12-24 July 1897. The film is sometimes dated February 1900. (75ft)
Nursing the Baby
      —(September, 50ft)
Passenger Train
      —75ft.
Portsmouth Express.
      —Filmed at Southwick. (75ft)
Sailing and Car
      —75ft.
Sailing Boat
      —(by end of May).
The Sign Writer
      Alt title The Awkward Sign Writer
      —Trick film. Shows a sign writer painting a sign and then uses reversed motion to show him erasing the sign. (November, 50ft.)
Tipsy-Topsy-Turvy
      —Trick film. ‘A reveller comes home from his club, and throws down his hat, stick and other garments. The articles all return to him, and he goes out of the room backwards.’ (Warwick catalogue). Reverse motion is achieved by turning the camera upside down and then projecting the film with the correct image orientation; this was possible because silent film geometry was laterally symmetrical. (November, 50ft)
Walking the Greasy Pole
      —75ft.
Weary Willie
     
      —Features Tom Green as the tramp, who annoys people sitting on a park bench to leave, so he can lie down but picks up a discarded cigar and newspaper. Filmed in St Ann's Well Gardens. (September, 50ft).
      View online.
Workers Leaving Brighton Railway Station
     
      —The local equivalent of the Lumière film, La sortie de l'usine Lumière à Lyon. A bustling scene of people, horses and carts. The railway works were just to the north-east of the station. This was probably shot in Station Street, looking towards the top of Cheapside.
The X-ray Fiend
     
      —Alt title The X-Rays)
      —Comedy featuring Brighton comedian Tom Green and Smith's wife Laura Bayley. This may have been inspired by James Williamson's acquision of an X-ray machine in connection with his pharmacy practice. A man points a camera labelled ‘X rays’ at a couple. By employing a jump cut after the two characters are established, Smith transforms them into skeletal figures. The 'spoiled' frames at the cut are removed by splicing. Filmed October 1897. ‘The Professor turns his apparatus upon the lovers and makes a startling revelation. Very surprising and amusing.’ (Prestwich catalogue, 1898). A copy was rediscovered by the National Film and Television Archive in 1999. Tom Green was paid 13s for his performance. (October, 54ft).
      View online.

¶ G A Smith away from Brighton:

Love on the Pier
      Alt title Lively Scene on Hastings Pier
      —‘A lady is seen flirting with a young man both seated on the pier bench, when the husband puts in an unexpected appearance with a resulting climax.’ (Warwick catalogue). Although Smith might be expected to film one of the two piers in Brighton, the alternative title suggests otherwise. He was a regular optical lantern performer on Hastings pier.
Miss Ellen Terry series
      —The great actress was filmed at home in Winchelsea. Afternoon Tea (75ft), At Her Window (75ft), Gathering Flowers (75ft).
Pierrot Troupe
      Alt title Minstrels at the Sea-side
      —Filmed at Margate. (75ft.)
Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee Procession: Colonials
      —(22 June, 75ft.)
Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee Procession: Queen's Carriage
      —(22 June, 75ft.)
Trafalgar Day
      Alt titles Nelson's Monument and Trafalgar Square on Nelson Day
      —(21 October, 75ft.
Waves and Spray
      Alt title Study in Waves and Spray
      —As with Love on the Pier and Yachting, possibly made during a visit to Hastings with his magic lantern show. (75ft.)
Westminster
      —(May, 75ft.)
Yachting
      Alt title Sailing Yachts at Hastings
      —(150ft).

¶ James Williamson

Early Fashions on Brighton Pier †
     
      Alt title Scene on the West Pier
      —This was at one time attributed to Smith and the BFI still attributes the film to both Smith and Williamson and gives the date as 1898, but the boys in the foreground are unmistakably Williamson's sons. However, as Frank Gray has noted, the lampost in the background does not correspond with those found on a pier in Brighton at that time—nor any south coast pier.
      View online (BFI). View online (YouTube).
Fox-and-geese
      —75ft.
Hove Coastguards at Cutlass Drill
      —75ft.
Hove Coastguards at Flag Drill
      —75ft.
Ring-a-ring of Roses
      —75ft.

• 1898

¶ Laura Bayley

Maypole Dance
      —Williamson shot a similar film around the same time. (July, 75ft)
The Runaway Knock
      —‘Several urchins knock on an old lady’s front door and run away. A tiny child anxious to “have a go” at the knocker, is too short to reach it. A kindly old gentleman who happens to pass lifts the little one up and is rewarded for his pains by the irate householder, who suddenly emerges and deluges him with a pail of water.’ (Warwick catalogue). (March, 50ft)

¶ G A Smith for GAS Films:

Ally Sloper
      —Possibly the first ever film based on a cartoon character, which originated in 1867 and was immensely popular in comic form. James Williamson also made an Ally Sloper film. (October, 75ft.)
Animated Clown Portrait
      —‘A portrait of a clown, just finished by the artist, gradually becomes animated, and the extraordinary grimaces produced scare the artist almost out of his wits.’ (Warwick Trading Company catalogue). (October, 75ft.)
Animated portrait—Miss Marie Lloyd
      —The famous music hall artiste meeting a friend who arrives in a dog cart outside the Alhambra theatre (later the Palladium cinema) on King's Road, where she appeared on 25-30 July. (50ft)
The Baker and the Sweep
      —Tom Green plays the baker, G Andrews plays the sweep. ‘Another soot and flour fight outside the house where the baker is delivering his goods. The servant of the establishment puts a damper on the fury of the combatants by means of a pail of water. ’(Warwick catalogue). (August, 75ft.)
Brighton: Children on the Sands
      —`Sands! (50ft.)
Brighton: The Esplanade
      —A man buys a button-hole from a girl illegally selling flowers, who is then moved on by a policeman. (50ft)
Brighton: The Lower Esplanade
      —(50ft.)
Brighton: The Launch of the Skylark
      —(50ft.)
Cinderella and the Fairy Godmother
      Alt title Cinderella
      —Possibly the first use of double exposure and stop-action (in-camera jump cut) transformation. Laura Bayley plays Cinderella. ‘Cinderella, sitting dejected by the fireplace, is visited by the Fairy Godmother, who shows her on the wall a beautiful vision of the Prince dancing a minuet with her at the Palace. The dance is most gracefully executed, and is in itself a most pleasing moving picture. When the vision disappears, Cinderella shows that she cannot go to the ball in such old rags, whereupon Fairy Godmother miraculously changes her dress. She despatches Cinderella, then mounts her walking stick and takes flight up the chimney.’ (Prestwich catalogue). The French film-maker Georges Méliès made a version (Cendrillon) the following year. (July, 75ft.)
Clown
      —Advertising film for Messrs Rae Bros, 134 St Vincent Street, Glasgow. (18 October)
The Corsican Brothers
      —Innovative use of a vignette within the frame to show a flashback, achieved by winding the film back in the camera and making a double exposure. ‘One of the twin brothers returns home from shooting in the Corsican mountains and is visited by the ghost of the other twin. By extremely careful photography the ghost appears quite transparent. After indicating that he has been killed by a sword-thrust and appealing for vengeance, he disappears. A “vision” then appears showing the fatal duel in the snow. To the Corsican’s amazement, the duel and death of his brother are vividly depicted in the vision and finally, overcome by his feelings, he falls to the floor just as his mother enters the room.’ (Warwick catalogue, 1900). This could be the first ever literary adaptation on film, inspired by Alexandre Dumas’ story (which was filmed in 1941 with Douglas Fairbanks Jr). (July, 75ft.) [0067]
Cycle Boat
      Alt title The Water Cycle at Sea
      —‘A novel method of propulsion over the water. The water cycle is ridden over the waves breaking on the shore, goes out to sea, and returns, passing the camera very closely, thereby disclosing the details of construction of this unique craft.’ (Warwick catalogue). Surely the first ever record of a pedalo.
The Dog Show
      —(50ft.)
Faust and Mephistopheles
      —‘Faust discovered in his study. Mephistopheles appears in a cloud of smoke (fine effect), offers Faust renewal of youth if he will sign bond. As inducement shows him charming moving vision of Marguerite at spinning-wheel in the garden. Faust hesitates no longer; signs bond! Mephistopheles triumphantly waves drinking cup, causing it to emit a cloud of smoke, which falls around Faust as he changes to a handsome young man.’ (Prestwich catalogue). (September, 75ft.)
Fight
      —(November).
Girls Bathing
      —(November).
Gymnastics
     
      —Three parts: horizontal bar, parallel bars, vaulting horse.
      View online (BFI Player).
The Lady Barber
      Alt title The Woman Barber
      —A suffragette takes over a barber's. ‘Her want of skill is atoned for by her dexterity as a surgeon. Her customer’s face is finally covered with sticking plaster, yet he seems to thoroughly enjoy the innovation’ (Warwick catalogue). (August, 75ft.)
The Mesmerist, or Body and Soul
      —‘ “Professor Fluence” in his study is visited by old lady who wishes to see some “Mesmerism”. Professor mesmerises little girl and proceeds to draw her “spirit” from her body. Little girl’s spirit leaves body and walks over the furniture. “Spirit”, which is quite transparent, is finally conducted back to the body, and the mesmerist awakens hissubject, much to the relief of the old lady.’ (Prestwich catalogue). Earlier, Smith had a mesmerism stage act. (September/October, 75ft.)
Phantom Ride
      —Possibly not issued. (May, 75ft.)
Photographing a Ghost
      —‘Shows what can be done by an enthusiastic amateur with a 4x5 Kodak. The picture reveals the artist with his camera in position. Two men come in with a trunk, labelled GHOST. The photographer carefully opens the trunk, and up rises a tall, white Thing. It glides around, and just as the artist is ready, it disappears. He is greatly mystified; and more so than ever, when the ghost reappears, apparently from nowhere, and after floating around, steps back into the trunk. The photographer promptly sits on the lid and locks it with an air of relief. He gets up, turns around, and there stands Mr. Ghost, behind him. The ghost becomes active, and chairs are thrown around in a very lively fashion. The photographer finally sinks down in despair and gives up the job.’ (Edison catalogue) Smith would have been familiar with the stage illusion called ‘Pepper’s Ghost’, apotential inspiration. (September, 75ft.) Released in the US by SLubin and Edison, May 1900.
The Policeman, the Cook and the Copper
      Alt titles The Policeman and the Cook, The 'Copper' in the Copper
      —Features Tom Green; from the one-act farce Area Belle, or Fun in the Kitchen (1864) by William Brough and Andrew Halliday. ‘Servant, unfortunately, conceals her Bobby in the copper a few minutes before “Missus” decides tocommence washing.’ (Warwick catalogue). (July, 75ft)
A Practical Joke
      Alt titles A Joke on the Gardener, Gardener with Hose
      —A remake of Lumières' L'Arroseur Arrosé/ (March, 50ft)
Santa Claus †
     
     
      Alt title The Visit of Santa Claus
      —The maid helps the children to hang up their Christmas stockings as they go to bed. Smith uses a jump cut to ‘turn out the light’: a black drape replaces the wall and double exposure is used to superimpose a vignette of Santa arriving on the roof as the children sleep. He comes down the chimney, emerging in the room to put presents in the stockings, then waves before disappearing. One of the most important films yet made, it uses double exposure (cf The Corsican Brothers, above) to show the scene on the roof as the children sleep. The children are Smith and Bayley's own son and daughter, Harold and Dorothy. Included in the print is a lettered title and a handwritten frame inscribed 'Protected under the patent laws GAS'. (September, 75ft.) R W Paul made a version in November 1898.
      View online (YouTube).
The Ungallant Lover
      —Comic romance filmed at a boat on the beach. (August, 50ft.)
Waves and Spray

• Seven of the above titles were directed by G A Smith for the Warwick Trading Company (manager: Charles Urban) and included in its October 1898 catalogue. Warwick was a sales agent for G A Smith but it also handled the work of others and commissioned some films on its own account.

¶ G A Smith for GAS Films, shot away from Brighton.

Comic Costume Race
      Alt titleMusic Hall Sports
      —Filmed at Herne Hill, London. (75ft.)
Gladstone's Funeral
      —Filmed in London on 28 May. (75ft.)
The Grand National.
      —The race was run on 25 March.
Portsmouth Ferry
      —Actuality (November).

¶ James Williamson

Ally Sloper Batting
      —(October/November).
Another of the Same
      Alt title Lady Cyclists
      —Sequel to Military Ride by a Lady Cyclist. (July, 75ft.)
Bank Holiday at the Dyke
     
      —Scenes of the fairground at Devil’s Dyke: swings, roundabouts, a tracked cycle race and a wooden roller-coaster ride over an undulating course. (August, 115ft.)
      View online.
Barnum's Procession series
      —Filmed on Hove seafront: Elephants; Elizabethan Cavalcade; Forty Horses and Band Car; Landing of Columbus; Volunteers (September, 75ft each).
Children Bathing on Hove Beach
      —(July/August, 75ft.)
The Clown Barber
      —‘Gentleman enters barber’s shop, knocks and takes a seat. Clown enters, to evident consternation of customer, dances round, and proceeds with the shaving, using a large bowl and brush; lathers him, and then producing a huge razor, commences to shave, but the gentleman becoming alarmed, and rather restive, cuts his head off, and finishes the operation at the sideboard; puts the head on again; customer gets up, expresses his entire satisfaction at the success of the operation, pays and departs’ (Williamson catalogue). (July/August, 70ft.)
Clown Cricketers
      Alt title Clever Cricket
      —(July, 72ft.)
Cricket †
      —Alt title Sussex County Cricketers, ‘At practice in Hove Cricket Ground’, features W G Grace and Prince Ranjitsinhji in the nets, the Sussex XI taking the field and Lord Hawke coming in to bat. Ranji played for Sussex, Dr Grace played for Gloucestershire and Lord Hawke for Yorkshire. How they came to be together is unclear. (July, 100ft.)
Cycle Parade
      —(70ft.)
Fire Brigade Sports series
      —Dressing Competition (72ft), Life Saving Demonstration (65ft), Tilting the Bucket (50ft). Made with the co-operation of Hove Fire Brigade.
Fishing Smack Race
     
      —(August/September, 70ft.)
The Forbidden Lover
     
      —Williamson appears as the father. (July, 65ft)
The Fraudulent Beggar
      —‘An interval in business—blind man reads a comic paper and deaf mute enjoys a joke; discovered by policeman’ (Prestwich catalogue). (August/September, 65ft.
Highland Fling
      —(75ft.)
The Jealous Painter
      —‘Whitewashing a rival’ (Prestwick catalogue). (August/September, 60ft.)
Lawn Tennis
      —(60ft.)
Maypole Dance
      Alt titles Children Plaiting the Maypole, Children Dancing Round Maypole
      —Laura Bayley/G A Smith shot a similar film around the same time. (May, 60ft.)
Military Ride by a Lady Cyclist
      Alt titles Ladies Cycling, Military Ride by a Woman Cyclist
      —(July, 75ft). See also Anaother of the Same above.
Military Sports series
      —Bayonet Exercise (75ft), Dumb-bell Exercise (75ft), Horizontal Bars Display (70ft), Hurdle Jumping (75ft), Musical Ride (66ft), Parallel Bars Display (70ft), Plaiting the Maypole (75ft), Tent Pegging (102ft).
Minuet
      —'By 12 girls.' (May?, 75ft.)
Miss Norah Mayer, the Quick-Change Dancer
      —Three parts: Eccentric dances; NAtional dances; Spanish and Japanese dances.(August/September, 225ft.)
Procession of Sunday School Children
      —Probably filmed at Whitsuntide (29 May, 75ft.).
Sailing Boats
      —(September, 75ft.)
Sir Roger de Coverley
      —Children dancing. (July, 50ft.)
Sloper's Visit to Brighton
      —Three parts: Donkey riding, Bathing, Chucked out. (July, 210ft.)
Switchback Railway 40ft.
      —Part of the Bank Holiday at the Dyke sequence [qv above] but also offered separately.
Sword Dance
      &mash;(75ft.)
Trip in 'Brighton Queen' series
      A 'Leaving the pier'
      —Filmed in Brighton. (July, 75ft.)
      B 'Passing the Cruiser Crescent'
      C 'Arrival at Cowes Regatta'
      —Filmed at sea at Cowes Regatta. (July, each 75ft.)
Two Naughty Boys Sprinkling the 'Spoons'
      —'A new version of the garden-hose scene.' The two boys are Williamson's sons, Alan (12) and Colin (10). Their two younger brothers appear in a later version by Dave Aylott in 1909 [qv]. For unexplained but intriguing reasons, the victims are called Spoon. (July, 75ft.)
Two Naughty Boys Teasing the Cobbler
     
      —Features Williamson's sons Alan and Colin, firing a peashooter at the cobbler. When a lady customer arrives he thinks it must be the boys again he shouts at her and she hits him with her umbrella (July, 68ft.)
      View online (BFI Player).
Two Naughty Boys Upsetting the 'Spoons'
      —Features Williamson's sons Alan and Colin. (July, 66ft.)
     
      —features Williamson's sons Alan and Colin. The 'two naughty boys' theme was copied by Edwin S Porter for Edison in 1906.
Volunteers
      —Three parts: Position battery drill; Field gun firing and limbering up; Big gun firing; old muzzle-loading gun in redoubt at Shoreham Harbour. (Each 75ft.)
Washing the Sweep †
     
      —Features Marie Mayhew as one of two women whose washing is messed up by a sweep. They catch the sweep and one of the women scrubs his face. He escapes and chases the other woman. Probably inspired by G A Smith’s Hanging out the Clothes (1897). (July, 75ft.)
      View online (BFI Player).
Winning the Gloves
      US title Winning a Pair of Gloves
      —A man, played by Williamson, pretends to be asleep so that a girl will kiss him. However, she brings along a donkey to ‘kiss’ himinstead. The title comes from a popular story by William Henry Harrison and a later comic ballad. (July, 75ft.) Released in the US by Kleine, November 1905.

¶ James Williamson away from Brighton, elsewhere in Sussex
Country Life Series
    Blacksmiths at Work (75ft.)
    Harvesting
      —.‘Shows three men at work in the harvest field. Cutting with hook, binding and stacking sheaves, and a pause for refreshments’ (Prestwich catalogue). (September, 67ft.)
    Horses Ploughing (70ft.
    Oxen Ploughing (65ft.)
    Sheep Washing (75ft.)
    A Sussex Ox Wagon (54ft.)
Diving 119ft.
      —Filmed at Rye Regatta.
Express Train and Level Crossing (75ft).
      —Filmed at Lancing railway station.
Henley Regatta series
      —Crowd Inside the Booms (75ft), Crowded Course (75ft), Enclosure, Clubs and Towing Path (75ft), Four Oar Races (70ft), Greasy Pole (70ft), Houseboats (75ft), Left Bank (75ft), Panorama of the Course (75ft), Water Polo (75ft).
Threshing Turnip Seed at Rye, Sussex
      Alt title Seed Threshing
      —(75ft.)

¶ R W Paul

had a film of Brighton in a set of seven shorts called Street Scenes, which may have been shot in the first half of this year.

• 1899

¶ John Benett-Stanford

'Mad Jack' Benett-Stanford took a camera to South Africa during the Second Boer War and returned them to Hove for processing by G A Smith. He made two more films the following year at the family home in Madeira, details fo which are not available.

Churned Waters 30 secs.
      —View of ship's wake, probably en route to South Africa.
      View online.
First Northumberland Fusiliers Digging Entrenchments.
      —Filmed in South Africa. (12 November)
      View online.
Lancers Under the Earl of Airlie Fording the Modder River
      —Filmed in South Africa. (8 December).
      View online.
Panorama of Calcutta, India, from the River Ganges
      —Despite the title, filmed at Varanasi. (162ft.)
      View online.
Troops Passing Over the Modder by Train
      —Filmed in South Africa. (8 December, 190ft.)
      View online.

¶ Laura Bayley for GAS Films/Warwick Trading Company

Around the Swings on a Bank Holiday
      —(50ft.)
Fire and Police Obstacle Race series
      —Over the Tower (50ft), Through Tubs (50ft), Under Blankets (50ft).
A Game of Chess and Kisses
      —A chess player puts on a bonnet and is kissed by his opponent. (October, 75ft.)
The Haunted Picture Gallery
      —A Gainsborough picture comes to life and dances. (October, 75ft.)
The Inexhaustible Cab †
     
      —‘A cab is hailed in front of a palatial mansion by a gentleman who wishes a score of people driven to another part of the city. A clown [Tom Green] jumps out and a satisfactory agreement is made between the clown and the gentleman, and a score or so of persons are hustled in one at a time until the clown succeeds in piling in the whole lot except Bridget, who is carrying a child. The persistent clown, in order to assist the nurse, who tips the scale at 400 pounds, takes the child from her. After caressing it he tosses it on top of the cab. He then picks up a board and uses it with good effect on the extremities of the fat woman, until she is forced into the cab, which drives away with its load of humanity’ (Edison catalogue).
      In fact, the cab mysteriously vanishes, leaving the passengers in a heap in front of painted backdrop of a shop front. (October, length variously given as 75, 90, 95 or 130 ft.) Shot in a Biokam. Released in the US by Lubin and Edison, 29 June 1901.
      —The Biokam film begns with the clown promoting the name Biokam.
     
      View online.
The Legacy
      —Facial. Expression on his face as a benficiary reads a will. (June, 75ft.)

¶ G A Smith

Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp
      —Trick film. A genie gives a boy a place and fine clothes. (November, 75ft.)
All the Fun of the Fair
      —(75ft.)
Brighton
      —(75ft.)
Dick Whittington
      —Trick film. A fairy shows a sleeper three visions of the future. (November, 75ft.)
The Gambler's Wife
      —His wife's spirit prevents gambler from shooting himself. (October, 75ft.)
A Good Joke
      —Features Tom Green and J D Hunter laughing at a joke. The latter was the manager of the Pier Pavilion at Hastings, where Green and Laura Bayley were regular performers. He also had a theatre company that performed shows annually at Brighton Aquarium in which Bayley and her sisters took part. (July, 75ft.)
Good Stories
      —Features Tom Green and J D Hunter, laughing over a naughty story in a magazine. (October, 100ft)
The Kiss in the Tunnel †
     
      —One of the earliest examples of creative editing: Smith takes an existing film by Hepworth of a train entering a tunnel (a popular genre known as the phantom ride), cuts to the interior of the train as a man (a rare—unique?—appearance by Smith himself) kisses a woman (Laura Bayley, Mrs Smith) and then cuts back as the train leaves the tunnel. The kissing scene, of course, is well lit to make it visible. The backcloth was painted by Tonm Green. (November, 1 min 14 secs (inserted section: 40ft). Released in the US by American Mutoscope and Biograph Company April 1903.
      View online.
Launch of the Shamrock
      —(75ft.)
The Sandwiches
     Alt title The Hungry Countryman.
      —Trick film. A man eats sandwiches, refuses to pay and the film reverses. (August, 75ft.)

¶ G A Smith for the Warwick Trading Company

Brighton Fire series
     
      —A Brighton Fire Call (50ft), The arrival of the fire brigade (75ft), The department at work (100ft). [right]
Fire Drill series
      —Arrival of Hose Cart (50ft), Life Saving by Rope and Sling (75ft), Rescue from Tower By Escapes (50ft).
A Hilarious Bank Holiday Crowd
      —(50ft.)

¶ G A Smith for Warwick Trading Company, shot away from Brighton.
Kaffirs and Zulus on the Warpath
Police Officers Full Uniform Dress Race
      —(50ft.)
Savage South Africa at Earl's Court
      —(50ft.)
The Swings at Crystal Palace
      —(50ft.)

¶ James Williamson

Courtship Under Difficulties
      —Features Florence Williamson, the director's 14-year-old daughter as a girl who ties her sister's suitor to a chair. (October, 67ft.)
The Jovial Monks No 1
      —Features D Philippe as a monk who tricks his brother monk into drinking bad wine. (October, 72ft.)
The Jovial Monks No 2: Tit for Tat
      —Features D Philippe as a monk who is tricked into drinking bad wine by the monk he tricked. (October, 54ft.)
The Sleeping Lovers
      —A suitor awakens to find a man in the place of his sweetheart. (October, 60ft.)
Tearing
Tug o' War

• Will Evans, who later made films at Shoreham and was a partner in the Sunny South Film Company, made a comedy film called They Do Such Things at Brighton about reliving his courting days, which may have been shot in the town.

• 1900

¶ Laura Bayley for GAS Films/Warwick Trading Company

A Bad Cigar
      —A man has an unpleasant smoke. Re-released July 2002 in 17.5mm version. (September, 75ft.)
Grandma Threading Her Needle †
     
      —Features Tom Green in drag and the cat that appears in several of Smith's films. (September, 75ft.) Released in the US by Edison Manufacturing Company September 1902,
     View online (BFI). View online (YouTube).
Launch of Brighton Lifeboat from Pier
      —(100ft.)
Letty Limelight in Her Lair
      
     Alt titles A Lady at her Morning Toilet, Miss Bayley.
      —Features Eva Bayley as an actress in her dressing room after the show. Re-released November 1903. (200ft.)
Scandal Over the Teacups †
     
      —Features Eva Bayley and Tom Green in drag drinking tea and gossiping. (September, 75ft.)
     View online.
Topsy-Turvy Dance by Three Quaker Maidens †
      —A comic film in which the three dancers in Quaker costumes go behind an American flag held by two men. They appear to be dancing upside down until the flag is lowered to show they are waving dummy legs. (72ft or 125ft.) Also released in 1901 in a 17.5mm version retitlled The Puritan Maiden’s Upside-Down Dance (20ft.)

¶ G A Smith for GAS Films/Warwick Trading Company

As Seen Through the Telescope †
     
     US title The Professor and his Field Glass
      —Innovative use of a point-of-view cutaway in this three set-up comedy, filmed just outside the Furze Hill entrance to St Ann's Well Gardens. A gentleman in a top hat uses his telescope to spy on a man showing a woman how to place her foot on the pedal of a bicycle, revealing an ankle. In the third shot the gentleman sits on a camp stool as the couple pass behind into the gardens; the man pushes the gentleman over. (September, 75ft.) Released in the US by American Mutoscope and Biograph Company April 1903.
      View online.
The Conjuror
      —Trick film. A conjuror makes a girl vanish and pulls kittens from a handkerchief. (February, 50ft.)
The Dull Razor †
     
      Alt title Difficult Shave
      —The camera looks over the shoulder of Tom Green shaving and gesturing, the camera operator’s arm being visible in the mirror. (75ft.) See also A Quick Shave and Brush-up below. Tom Green directed a version of this for Urban Trading Company, released in March 1905. He made several films for Urban and Cricks & Sharp around that time, some being remakes of his films with Smith and Bayley.
     View online.
Grandma's Reading Glass †
     
      —Another innovation: Smith experiments with big close-ups cut into a medium shot of the boy and his grandmother. Some sources attribute this film to Arthur Melbourne Cooper and claim it was only distributed by Smith, the actors being Cooper's mother, Catherine, and her grandson Bert Massey. (September, 100ft.)
      View online.
Grandmother's Wolf
The House that Jack Built †
     
      —Trick film. Jack knocks over the house of bricks his sister has made but when the film is reversed, as instructed by a caption, he appears to re-build the house. (September, 50ft.) Released in the US by American Mutoscope and Biograph Company April 1903.
      Watch online
An Incident on Brighton Pier
      —'The masher mashed.' (February, 50ft.)
A Jolly Old Couple
      —Features Brighton comedian Laura Bayley and Tom Green as a woman sewing and a man drinking beer and smoking a pipe. (February, 75ft.)
Let Me Dream Again †
     
      —Features Tom Green and (Laura Bayley). Technically important as the transition between the two shots involves de-focusing the first and bringing the second into focus to show the change from dream to reality—a technique still used today. (August, 75ft.) Pathé copied the film in 1902 with a dissolve.
     View online.
The Old Maid's Valentine †
     
      Alt title The Valentine
      —Features Tom Green in drag receiving an insulting Valentine greeting. (September, 57ft.)
     View online.
A Quick Shave and Brush-Up
     
      —Features Tom Green. 'As most men have had a similar experience [a painful shave], this subject is bound to create much mirth among an audience' [Warwick catalogue description]. (August, 50ft.)
     View online.
Snapshotting an Audience
      —A photographer is seen facing the camera while he arranges an audience for a photograph. (September, 75ft.)
Spiders on a Web †
     
[Photo: BFI]
      —Close-up of two spiders in a circular mask. (17 secs.)
      View online.
Two Grinning Yokels
      —Features Tom Green and J D Hunter grinning for beer through horse collars. (February, 50ft.)
Two Jolly Old Fellows
      Alt title They Are Jolly Good Fellows
      —Features Tom Green and J D Hunter holding a whispered conversation. (November, 100ft.)
The Two Old Sports
     
      —Features Tom Green and J D Hunter chuckling over a picture of an actress in a copy of the theatrical magazine Pearson's Pantomime Favourites. (February, 50ft or 75ft.) Released in US by Selig Polyscope January 1903. Copied by Edison as Art Studies in 1903 [0067].
      View online.
The Two Old Sports' Game of Nap
      Alt title The Winning Hand
      —Features Tom Green and J D Hunter in two scenes of men arguing about their card game. (September, 125ft.)
The Two Old Sports' Political Discussion
      —Features Tom Green and J D Hunter arguing over newspaper stories. (September, 75ft.)
The Village Choir
      —Singers perform clearly discordantly. (December, 75ft.)
Where Did You Get It?
      —Four men exchange smutty photographs. (December, 75ft.)

¶ G A Smith for Warwick Trading Company away from Brighton

Eugene Sandow series
      —Beauty and the Sandow Exerciser (50ft), A Convenient Cigar Lighter (50ft), Physical Culture by Sandow's Pupils (75ft), Sandow's Herculean Feat (50ft), Sandow's Record Lift (75ft), Sandow's Roman Horse Lift (75ft). Sandow was a famous American strong man.
Exhibition of Quick Harnessing with Trained Horses
      —This may have been filmed with the following, as the Kansas City Fire Department set a record for harnessing horses in 1.5 seconds. (75ft.)
Kansas City Fire Department Drill
      —The KCFD team won the world championship at the International Fire Congress in Paris in 1900. The Kansas City fire chief, George Hale later became famous for Hale’s Tours: audiences seated in a stationary railroad car saw scenic films through the windows. (100ft.)
Panorama of the Lake and Its Surroundings
      —Alt title Panorama of Crystal Palace Lake). (50ft.)
Panorama View of Crystal Palace Terraces
      —(100ft.)
The Prehistoric Monsters at Crystal Palace
      —(100ft.)

¶ James Williamson for Williamson Kinematograph Company

Attack on a China Mission—Blue Jackets to the Rescue †
     
     
      —Almost certainly the most important film made to date and longer than usual at 230ft (four minutes). The dramatic re-enactment of a recent incident in the Boxer rebellion in China. For its time a major production, comprising four set-ups with cutting between each. This is almost the certainly the first film ever to use the principle of what later is known as montage: cutting between shots to heighten the drama and to show reverse angles. Historian John Barnes wrote that 'this is one of the key films in the history of the cinema and had the most fully developed narrative of any film made in England up to that time'. The film was shot at the soon-to-be-demolished Ivy Lodge (where Vallance Gardens is now) with a cast of more than two dozen, including Ernest Lepard (newly-appointed manager of the Alhambra Opera House and Music Hall) as the missionary, Mr James and Williamson's 16-year-old daughter Florence, who worked at the time as an assistant in his shop, and authentic looking troops. (November, 230ft.) The film was released in the USA on 28 November 1903.
      View online (BFI Player) and View online (YouTube). The two online copies differ significantly in their construction and the amount of material included.
The Brighton Queen †
     
      —Pleasure cruise steamer of the Brighton, Worthing and South Coast Steamboat Company, which took passengers up and down the coast from the West Pier. (200ft.)
      View online.
Circular Panorama of Brighton Front
      —Both Williamson and Smith made several such simple views this year, of which this is the only one in Brighton. (52ft.)
Clever and Comic Cycle Act
      —Features Lotto, Lilo and Otto, Champion Juvenile Bicyclists, who appeared at the Alhambra, King's Road in the week 10-15 December 1900. (November, 100ft.) These music hall artistes had appeared on London bills at Gatti's and elsewhere in the 1890s with Marie Loftus, who in this year became the first person to move to what became Bungalow Town.
The Disabled Motor
      —Comedy. A horse is towing a car with a bandaged motorist. (November, 70ft.)
Great Glove Fight
      —Two parts. (230ft.)
La Marguerite
      —(65ft.)
The Sea-going Car
      —Magnus Volk's Daddy Long-legs tram that ran through the sea from Madeira Drive to Rottingdean (previously filmed by both R W Paul and George Albert Smith in 1897, qv), This must have been filmed early in the year as the tramway closed during the summer of 1900 for repairs and was never able to re-open because of the construction of sea defences along its route. (75ft.)
Three Novel Railways
      —In Brighton, including Volk’s Railway, Daddy Long-Legs and the railway to Devil’s Dyke. (75ft.)
Volk's Electric Railway
      —Magnus Volk’s older (but still surviving) electric railway on Brighton beach from the Palace Pier to Black Rock, which opened in 1883. (44ft.)

¶ James Williamson away from Brighton for Williamson Kinematograph Company:

Circular Panorama of Windsor Castle
      —(30 secs/30ft.)
Military Tournamentseries
      —Bareback Riding (50ft), Bayonet Exercise (41ft), Gymnastic Exrcise on Chairs (70ft), Heads and Posts (30ft), Quarterstaff Display (62ft), Vaulting Horse Display (75ft), Wrestling on Horseback (45ft).
Panorama of Dover Harbour
      —(50ft.)
Panorama of Folkestone from the Pier
      —(60ft.)

Information about other productions not listed here would be welcomed.

Page updated 2 March 2023
Page revised 18-25 November 2025 © David Fisher