Silent Shorts
by LaurenceBranagh | created - 19 Feb 2021 | updated - 06 Dec 2021 | PublicA list of silent shorts I have seen.
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1. Roundhay Garden Scene (1888)
Not Rated | 1 min | Documentary, Short
In the garden, a man asks his friends to do something silly for him to record on film.
Director: Louis Aimé Augustin Le Prince | Stars: Annie Hartley, Adolphe Le Prince, Joseph Whitley, Sarah Whitley
Votes: 6,803
2. Traffic Crossing Leeds Bridge (1888)
1 min | Documentary, Short
A shot of people walking on The Leeds Bridge.
Director: Louis Aimé Augustin Le Prince
Votes: 3,299
3. Newark Athlete (1891)
Not Rated | 1 min | Documentary, Short, Sport
An athlete swings Indian clubs.
Director: William K.L. Dickson
Votes: 1,816
4. Dickson Greeting (1891)
Not Rated | 1 min | Short
The very first American film shown to public audiences and the press. It depicts William K.L. Dickson taking off his hat and greeting the audience.
Director: William K.L. Dickson | Star: William K.L. Dickson
Votes: 1,569
5. Edison Kinetoscopic Record of a Sneeze (1894)
1 min | Documentary, Short
A man (Thomas Edison's assistant) takes a pinch of snuff and sneezes. This is one of the earliest Thomas Edison films and was the first motion picture to be copyrighted in the United States.
Director: William K.L. Dickson | Star: Fred Ott
Votes: 2,194
6. Leonard-Cushing Fight (1894)
1 min | Documentary, Short, Sport
In the background, five fans lean on the ropes looking into the ring. The referee is to the left; like the fans, he hardly moves as two fighters swing roundhouse blows at each other. Mike ... See full summary »
Director: William K.L. Dickson | Stars: Jack Cushing, Mike Leonard
Votes: 509
7. Buffalo Dance (1894)
Not Rated | 1 min | Documentary, Short, Western
Three Sioux Indians perform a 'buffalo dance', while two others use drums to supply a rhythm. The three dancers move around in a circle as they perform the various actions that are part of the dance.
Director: William K.L. Dickson | Stars: Hair Coat, Parts His Hair, Last Horse
Votes: 1,035
8. Sioux Ghost Dance (1894)
Not Rated | 1 min | Short, Western
A group of Sioux Indians from Buffalo Bill's Wild West exhibition demonstrates a dance called a "ghost dance".
Directors: William K.L. Dickson, William Heise
Votes: 818
9. Hadj Cheriff (1894)
Not Rated | 1 min | Short
Hadj Cheriff, a performer known for a variety of unusual abilities, demonstrates part of his act in the Edison studio.
Directors: William K.L. Dickson, William Heise | Star: Hadj Cheriff
Votes: 552
10. Luis Martinetti, Contortionist (1894)
Unrated | 1 min | Short
Luis Martinetti, a contortionist suspended from acrobatic flying rings, contorts himself for about thirty seconds. This is one of the first films made for Edison's kinetoscopes.
Director: William K.L. Dickson | Star: Luis Martinetti
Votes: 713
11. Bucking Broncho (1894)
Not Rated | 1 min | Documentary, Short, Western
A fine exhibition of horsemanship by Lee Martin, a genuine cowboy. This particular broncho is an unusually wicked one. (from Edison Films)
Directors: William K.L. Dickson, William Heise | Stars: Frank Hammitt, Lee Martin, Sunfish
Votes: 753
12. The Arrival of a Train (1896)
Not Rated | 1 min | Documentary, Short
A train arrives at La Ciotat station.
Directors: Auguste Lumière, Louis Lumière | Stars: Madeleine Koehler, Marcel Koehler, Mrs. Auguste Lumiere, Jeanne-Joséphine Lumière
Votes: 12,875
13. The Kiss (1896)
Not Rated | 1 min | Short, Romance
In a medium close-up shot of the first kiss ever recorded on screen, two fervent lovers cuddle and talk passionately at hair's breadth, just before the love-smitten gentleman decides to give his chosen one an innocent peck.
Director: William Heise | Stars: May Irwin, John C. Rice
Votes: 3,676
14. The Conjuring of a Woman at the House of Robert Houdin (1896)
1 min | Short, Horror
As an elegant maestro of mirage and delusion drapes his beautiful female assistant with a gauzy textile, much to our amazement, the lady vanishes into thin air.
Director: Georges Méliès | Stars: Jehanne d'Alcy, Georges Méliès
Votes: 2,057
15. The House of the Devil (1896)
Not Rated | 3 min | Short, Horror
With the help of a magic cauldron, Mephistopheles conjures up a variety of supernatural characters.
Director: Georges Méliès | Stars: Jehanne d'Alcy, Jules-Eugène Legris, Georges Méliès
Votes: 3,988
16. Post No Bills (1896)
Not Rated | 1 min | Short, Comedy
A soldier stands guard at a sentry box and leaves it unprotected for a moment, a moment that two men take advantage of to put up posters where it is prohibited.
Director: Georges Méliès
Votes: 507
17. Une nuit terrible (1896)
Not Rated | 1 min | Short, Comedy, Horror
A man tries to get a good night's sleep, but is disturbed by a giant spider that leaps onto his bed, and a battle ensues in hilarious comic fashion.
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 1,527
18. Card Party (1896)
Not Rated | 1 min | Short, Biography
In what is considered to be the first remake in the history of cinema, the grand French director, Georges Méliès, directs his very first short film, influenced by the Lumière Brothers' original story in "Partie d'écarté (1896)".
Director: Georges Méliès | Stars: Octavie Huvier, Gaston Méliès, Georges Méliès, Georgette Méliès
Votes: 1,132
19. A Nightmare (1896)
Not Rated | 1 min | Short, Horror
In this fantastic scene, a man who is eager to retire has a difficult time finding peace, as his nocturnal illusions come to life out of thin air.
Director: Georges Méliès | Stars: Jehanne d'Alcy, Georges Méliès
Votes: 1,991
20. The Bewitched Inn (1897)
Not Rated | 2 min | Short, Comedy, Horror
At a solitary cheap inn, a distant traveller overcome with fatigue has a close encounter with the supernatural.
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 1,219
21. The Devil's Castle (1897)
3 min | Short, Horror
A man dressed in red is ushered into an antechamber in a Castle and offered a seat. When he tried to sit down the chair moves to the other side of the room causing the man to fall on the ... See full summary »
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 1,431
22. After the Ball, the Bath (1897)
1 min | Short
The first film to ever show a nudity scene on screen is a simple presentation of a servant preparing a bath for another woman.
Director: Georges Méliès | Stars: Jeanne Brady, Jehanne d'Alcy
Votes: 1,490
23. Naval Combat in Greece (1897)
1 min | Short
Under bombardment, five sailors load and fire a cannon on a naval ship, as their captain supervises.
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 414
24. The Last Cartridges (1897)
1 min | Short, War
An incident of the Franco-Prussian War. It shows the bombardment of a house at Bazeille. It is the animated reproduction of de Neuville's celebrated painting.
Director: Georges Méliès
Votes: 451
25. Entre Calais et Douvres (1897)
Not Rated | 1 min | Short, Comedy
Using the same rocking effect previously employed in "Combat naval en Grèce (1897)", the director Georges Méliès recreates the illusion of a small ship in a tempest.
Director: Georges Méliès | Stars: Joseph Grapinet, Georges Méliès, Georgette Méliès
Votes: 609
26. The Surrender of Tournavos (1897)
Not Rated | 1 min | Short, War
In one of his numerous reconstructed newsreels, the indefatigable French director, Georges Méliès, reenacts a fictional scene taking place in a fort at Tyrnavos during the Greco-Turkish War of 1897.
Director: Georges Méliès
Votes: 573
27. Sur les toits (1897)
1 min | Short, Comedy
A woman's home is forcibly invaded by robbers, and a clumsy law enforcement officer tries to detain the thieves.
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 418
28. The Astronomer's Dream; or, the Man in the Moon (1898)
Not Rated | 3 min | Short, Comedy, Fantasy
An astronomer falls asleep and has a strange dream involving a fairy queen and the Moon.
Director: Georges Méliès | Stars: Jehanne d'Alcy, Georges Méliès
Votes: 4,730
29. Four Heads Are Better Than One (1898)
TV-PG | 1 min | Short, Comedy
Much to our amazement, an elegant and masterful illusionist detaches his own head effortlessly from his shoulders for a once-in-a-lifetime performance.
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 4,020
30. The Magician (1898)
1 min | Short, Fantasy, Horror
In a traditional "magician" attire, the wizard of illusion and jump cuts, Georges Méliès, says the magic words and conjures up wonders from a plain wooden box.
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 987
31. Adventures of William Tell (1898)
Not Rated | 1 min | Short, Comedy
Atop a wonderful central pedestal, a happy clown puts the finishing touches on a William Tell's incomplete model, assembling the mannequin limb by limb with the intention of shooting a target off of its head with a potent crossbow.
Director: Georges Méliès
Votes: 604
32. The Famous Box Trick (1898)
Not Rated | 1 min | Short, Fantasy
From the depths of a plain wooden box, a skilful conjurer materializes a lively boy in a clown suit. Next, he takes a heavy battle-axe. What are his intentions?
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 660
33. Panorama from Top of a Moving Train (1898)
Not Rated | 1 min | Documentary, Short
With the cameraman atop a moving train car the viewer is given a one minute glimpse of a French urban area.
Director: Georges Méliès
Votes: 622
34. Pygmalion and Galatea (1898)
2 min | Short, Fantasy
Showing Pygmalion at work in his studio on the statue of Galatea, who, on being completed, comes to life. He attempts to clasp her to his arms, when the bust leaves the body and crossing ... See full summary »
Director: Georges Méliès | Stars: Jehanne d'Alcy, Georges Méliès
Votes: 212
35. The Temptation of St. Anthony (1898)
1 min | Short, Drama, Fantasy
The pious St. Anthony is tormented by visions of seductive women.
Director: Georges Méliès | Stars: Jehanne d'Alcy, Georges Méliès
Votes: 997
36. Divers at Work on the Wreck of the 'Maine' (1898)
Not Rated | 1 min | Short, Drama, News
The battleship Maine is blown up in Havana harbor during the Spanish-American War.
Director: Georges Méliès
Votes: 678
37. King John (1899)
5 min | Short, Drama
King John does whatever it takes to keep himself on the throne of England, making enemies of the pope, France, and his nephew along the way.
Directors: Walter Pfeffer Dando, William K.L. Dickson, Herbert Beerbohm Tree | Stars: Herbert Beerbohm Tree, Dora Tulloch, Charles Sefton, J. Fisher White
Votes: 522
38. Cinderella (1899)
Not Rated | 6 min | Short, Drama, Family
A fairy godmother magically turns Cinderella's rags to a beautiful dress, and a pumpkin into a coach. Cinderella goes to the ball, where she meets the Prince - but will she remember to leave before the magic runs out?
Director: Georges Méliès | Stars: Mlle Barral, Bleuette Bernon, Carmelli, Jehanne d'Alcy
Votes: 1,808
39. L'affaire Dreyfus (1899)
13 min | Short, Biography, Drama
Dramatized re-enactments of the events of the Dreyfus-affair from 1894 to 1899.
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 707
40. Haggard's She: The Pillar of Fire (1899)
Not Rated | 1 min | Short, Adventure, Fantasy
A devil conjures up a dancing woman from a mystical flame.
Director: Georges Méliès | Stars: Jehanne d'Alcy, Georges Méliès
Votes: 968
41. The Sign of the Cross (1899)
Not Rated | 3 min | Short, Fantasy, Horror
Satan appears in a convent and takes the guise of a priest. Before long he is causing all manner of perturbation and despair.
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 1,351
42. A Turn of the Century Illusionist (1899)
1 min | Short, Fantasy
A magician and his assistant perform numerous magic acts.
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 1,095
43. Summoning the Spirits (1899)
1 min | Short, Fantasy, Horror
A magician presents a wreath which in turn transforms into other things.
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 484
44. A Mysterious Portrait (1899)
Not Rated | 1 min | Short
A magician has a picture frame set up. He then proceeds to make a second version of himself appear inside it.
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 598
45. Le chevalier mystère (1899)
Not Rated | 2 min | Short, Fantasy
The conjurer appears at a blackboard and shows the head of a knight on it. He seizes the picture of the head, removes it from the blackboard, and it turns into life and bows and smiles ... See full summary »
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 579
46. La pyramide de Triboulet (1899)
1 min | Short
Men are magically created and transformed in order to create a human pyramid.
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 285
47. Joan of Arc (1900)
Not Rated | 10 min | Short, Drama, History
A divinely inspired peasant woman becomes an army captain for France and then is martyred after she is captured.
Director: Georges Méliès | Stars: Bleuette Bernon, Jeanne Calvière, Jehanne d'Alcy, Georges Méliès
Votes: 1,439
48. Le duel d'Hamlet (1900)
2 min | Short, Drama
The final duel in 'Hamlet', in the first film of the play.
Director: Clément Maurice | Stars: Sarah Bernhardt, Pierre Magnier, Suzanne Seylor
Votes: 256
49. The One-Man Band (1900)
Not Rated | 2 min | Short, Comedy, Music
A band-leader assembles an orchestra by mystifying means.
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 2,504
50. Les infortunes d'un explorateur (1900)
1 min | Short
A movie fragment depicting an archaeological explorer entering a standing sarcophagus.
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 283
51. Addition and Subtraction (1900)
Not Rated | 1 min | Short
A man attempts to sit on a stool, only to find a woman has magically appear to steal his place. This happens again and again. Soon, more amazing transformations occur.
Director: Georges Méliès | Stars: Georges Méliès, Jeanne Mareyla
Votes: 432
52. The Cook's Revenge (1900)
Not Rated | 1 min | Short, Comedy
To escape the manager's wrath, a naughty cook who caused a small disaster with his amorous advances to a delicious waitress, hides in a wooden cupboard and suffers an immediate and unforeseen punishment. But, is this truly the end?
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 450
53. A Photographic Contortion (1901)
1 min | Comedy, Short
A man, objecting to being filmed, comes closer and closer to the camera lens until his mouth is all we see. Then he opens wide and swallows camera and cinematographer. He steps back, chews, and grins.
Director: James Williamson | Star: Sam Dalton
Votes: 2,093
54. L'homme à la tête en caoutchouc (1901)
TV-14 | 3 min | Short, Comedy, Fantasy
A chemist carries out a bizarre experiment with his own head.
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 3,179
55. Bluebeard (1901)
TV-MA | 12 min | Short, Horror
A young woman becomes the eighth wife of the wealthy Bluebeard, whose first seven wives have died under mysterious circumstances.
Director: Georges Méliès | Stars: Georges Méliès, Jehanne d'Alcy, Bleuette Bernon, Thomas White
Votes: 1,884
56. The Gigantic Devil (1901)
Not Rated | 2 min | Short, Fantasy, Horror
A magnificent Venetian oratory. On the left a large bay window through which may be seen the Grand Canal of the city of Venice. In the centre a colonnade and a hemicycle; to the right is a ... See full summary »
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 728
57. A Trip to the Moon (1902)
TV-G | 13 min | Short, Action, Adventure
A group of astronomers go on an expedition to the Moon.
Director: Georges Méliès | Stars: Georges Méliès, Victor André, Bleuette Bernon, Brunnet
Votes: 55,816
58. The Music Lover (1903)
3 min | Short, Comedy, Music
The leader of a marching band demonstrates an unusual way of writing music.
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 1,939
59. The Monster (1903)
Not Rated | 3 min | Short, Fantasy, Horror
Against a moonlit Egyptian backdrop duly encompassing the Sphinx, a narrator explains how a prince hires a mystic to bring back his beloved late wife.
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 1,339
60. The Infernal Cauldron (1903)
2 min | Short, Horror
Two demons throw helpless captives into a boiling cauldron, and then try to summon forth their spirits.
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 2,317
61. The Great Train Robbery (1903)
TV-G | 11 min | Short, Action, Adventure
A group of bandits stage a brazen train hold-up, only to find a determined posse hot on their heels.
Director: Edwin S. Porter | Stars: Gilbert M. 'Broncho Billy' Anderson, A.C. Abadie, George Barnes, Justus D. Barnes
Votes: 21,000
62. The Sick Kitten (1903)
1 min | Short, Comedy, Family
A girl gives a spoonful of medicine to a kitten.
Director: George Albert Smith
Votes: 1,155
63. The Untamable Whiskers (1904)
Not Rated | 3 min | Short, Fantasy
Through a rapid succession of drawings, ingenious disguises and soft dissolves, the director portrays a quick-sketch artist who transforms to various characters according to the static outlines on his chalkboard.
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 1,173
64. An Impossible Voyage (1904)
Not Rated | 24 min | Short, Action, Adventure
Using every known means of transportation, several savants from the Geographic Society undertake a journey through the Alps to the Sun which finishes under the sea.
Director: Georges Méliès | Stars: Georges Méliès, Fernande Albany, Jehanne d'Alcy, May de Lavergne
Votes: 4,002
65. The Cook in Trouble (1904)
Not Rated | 4 min | Short, Comedy, Fantasy
A cook has his hands full with three mischievous devils, who pop in and out of his kitchen.
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 878
66. The Living Playing Cards (1905)
Not Rated | 3 min | Short, Comedy, Fantasy
With a brand-new deck of playing cards in his hand, an elegantly-attired thaumaturge, by fire and the pure power of illusion, transforms a plain nine of spades card into a full-size Queen of Hearts.
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 1,576
67. The Scheming Gambler's Paradise (1905)
Not Rated | 3 min | Short
Despite all methods of instantaneously masking a clandestine gambling den's shady activities, the risk of getting caught is high, especially when the police thirsts for success. But, sometimes, indulging in pure fun is just too tempting.
Director: Georges Méliès
Votes: 867
68. The Black Imp (1905)
Not Rated | 4 min | Short, Comedy, Fantasy
A traveler at an inn is harassed by a mischievous devil in his room.
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 2,286
69. The Hilarious Posters (1906)
Not Rated | 3 min | Short, Comedy, Fantasy
A wall full of advertising posters comes to life.
Director: Georges Méliès | Stars: Georges Méliès, Henri Vilbert
Votes: 1,219
70. The Mysterious Retort (1906)
Not Rated | 3 min | Short, Fantasy, Mystery
Sound asleep in his comfortable armchair next to a high-pressure retort, a mystic silver-haired alchemist can't even notice the strange manifestations emerging from the vessel's bottom. Is this a dream, or a cornucopia of secreted desires?
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 701
71. 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1907)
10 min | Short, Adventure, Fantasy
Undersea adventures in a submarine by a dreaming fisherman who encounters mystical underwater creatures at odds with him. A parody on Jules Verne's novel.
Director: Georges Méliès | Stars: Manuel, Georges Méliès
Votes: 558
72. Good Glue Sticks (1907)
Not Rated | 5 min | Short, Comedy
A hawker demonstrates his glue's exceptional qualities; however, a pair of policemen shut him down. Bent on revenge, he goes to extreme lengths for justice, but it's a risky action, and one could easily get a taste of his own medicine.
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 640
73. The Tempest (1908)
12 min | Short, Drama, Fantasy
Prospero and his daughter Miranda must take refuge on an enchanted island. There Prospero, who himself has magical powers, releases the spirit Ariel from a spell, and also meets the savage ... See full summary »
Director: Percy Stow
Votes: 286
74. The Devilish Tenant (1909)
6 min | Short, Comedy
A man rents an apartment and furnishes it in remarkable fashion.
Director: Georges Méliès | Stars: Charles Claudel, Octavie Huvier, François Lallement, André Méliès
Votes: 1,979
75. A Midsummer Night's Dream (1909)
12 min | Drama, Fantasy, Romance
In ancient Athens, four young lovers escape into the woods. Meanwhile, tradesmen rehearse a play. All of them suffer from the shenanigans of mischievous fairies.
Directors: Charles Kent, J. Stuart Blackton | Stars: Walter Ackerman, Charles Chapman, Dolores Costello, Helene Costello
Votes: 368
76. Twelfth Night (1910)
12 min | Short, Comedy, Drama
An early silent version of Shakespeare's classic comedy of unrequited love and gender bending.
Directors: Eugene Mullin, Charles Kent | Stars: Julia Swayne Gordon, Charles Kent, Florence Turner, Edith Storey
Votes: 283
77. Re Lear (II) (1910)
16 min | Short, Drama
King Lear decides to divide his kingdom amongst his three daughters. The oldest two daughters fawn insincerely over their father, and get most of his possessions. The youngest daughter, ... See full summary »
Director: Gerolamo Lo Savio | Stars: Ermete Novelli, Francesca Bertini, Olga Giannini Novelli, Giannina Chiantoni
Votes: 231
78. The Automatic Moving Company (1910)
Not Rated | 4 min | Animation, Short, Comedy
A film of more than unusual interest. Those who are familiar with the length of time it takes to make a picture wherein oil the furniture in the house moves out automatically, will appreciate the great labor of making this film.
Directors: Romeo Bosetti, Émile Cohl
Votes: 404
79. The Rose of Kentucky (1911)
17 min | Romance, Short
A farmer takes in a young orphan after her mother's death and sends her off to school. After she's grown, he encourages her to consider his younger brother as a husband. When the younger ... See full summary »
Director: D.W. Griffith | Stars: Wilfred Lucas, Marion Sunshine, Charles West, Kate Bruce
Votes: 87
80. Two Knights of Vaudeville (1915)
11 min | Comedy, Short
Two Actors try their hands at stage comedy.
Stars: Jimmy Marshall, Florence McClain, Frank Montgomery, Bert Murphy
Votes: 246
81. Two-Gun Gussie (1918)
Not Rated | 8 min | Comedy, Short, Western
A mild-mannered young man has left home, and is now playing the piano in a bar in the west. The dangerous criminal Dagger-Tooth Dan enters the bar where the young man is playing. Soon ... See full summary »
Director: Alfred J. Goulding | Stars: Harold Lloyd, 'Snub' Pollard, Bebe Daniels, William Blaisdell
Votes: 341
82. A Reckless Rover (1918)
14 min | Short, Comedy
Chased from his apartment by a policeman, ne'er do-well Rastus Jones finds refuge in a Chinese laundry, where he wreaks slapstick havoc and has a memorable encounter with an improperly-filled opium pipe.
Director: C.N. David | Stars: Samuel 'Sambo' Jacks, Yvonne Junior, Sam Robinson
Votes: 149
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