As I’ve mentioned various times, my dad made sure we saw many of the classic and not so classic films from bygone ages. I mean, I’ve seen pre-Russian Revolution films using stop-action animation of insects for crying out loud!
Now, besides such curiosities and rattling good stories, these films provided de facto period pieces: they were recording the here and now of an era long past –in human terms– with details quite unknown to me.
So this article, by Fritzi Kramer, for Smithsonian magazine, was a good reminder that nowadays, early cinema represents some useful historical documents. Something to consider the next time you find yourself in an ancient attic. Just be careful with nitrate film.