Georges Méliès (December 8, 1861 - January 21, 1938), full name Marie-Georges-Jean Méliès, was a French illusionist and filmmaker famous for leading many technical and narrative developments in the earliest days of cinema. One of the first filmmakers to use multiple exposures, time-lapse photography, tracking shots, dissolves, and hand-painted color in his work, Méliès pioneered effects that would define cinematic special effects for decades to come. A prolific innovator in the use of special effects, Méliès accidentally discovered the substitution stop trick in 1896, a method of creating seamless disappearing and/or appearing effects used throughout both films and television for decades to come. Because of his ability to seemingly manipulate and transform reality through cinematography, Méliès is sometimes referred to as the first "Cinemagician".
Georges Méliès (December 8, 1861 - January 21, 1938), full name Marie-Georges-Jean Méliès, was a French illusionist and filmmaker famous for leading many technical and narrative developments in the earliest days of cinema. One of the first filmmakers to use multiple exposures, time-lapse photography, tracking shots, dissolves, and hand-painted color in his work, Méliès pioneered effects that would define cinematic special effects for decades to come. A prolific innovator in the use of special effects, Méliès accidentally discovered the substitution stop trick in 1896, a method of creating seamless disappearing and/or appearing effects used throughout both films and television for decades to come. Because of his ability to seemingly manipulate and transform reality through cinematography, Méliès is sometimes referred to as the first "Cinemagician".
Two of his best-known films are A Trip to the Moon (1902) and The Impossible Voyage (1904). Both stories involve strange, surreal voyages, somewhat in the style of Jules Verne, and are considered among the most important early science fiction films, though their approach is closer to fantasy. Méliès was also an early pioneer of horror cinema, which can be traced back to his Le Manoir du diable (1896).
In early 1909 Méliès stopped making films to protest Thomas Edison's Motion Pictures Parents Company monopoly, and presided over the first meeting of the International Filmmakers Congress in Paris. Further financial hardships created by his opposition to Edison and diminishing influence, Méliès disappeared from public life. By the mid-1920s he made a meager living as a candy and toy salesma in Paris, with the assistance of funds collected by other filmmakers. Although he was recognized for his contributions in cinema, Méliès spent most of his later years in poverty before being accepted into La Maison du Retraite du Cinéma, the film industry's retirement home in Orly.
External links
IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/nm0617588
Wikipedia: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q152272
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Filmography (Movies)
Satans Sacrilegious Saga
Character:Devil
Release Date:16/04/2025
Alcoléa & cie Documentary
Character:
Release Date:21/02/2024
A Trip to the Melisverse
Character:Archivo de imagen
Release Date:03/03/2023
Méliès: Tales of Terror
Character:The Melomaniac
Release Date:08/10/2021
The Méliès Mystery
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:02/01/2021
El hombre que quiso ser Segundo
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:30/11/2014
The Cinemagician, Georges Méliès
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:28/02/2012
The Extraordinary Voyage
Character:Self - Filmmaker (archive footage)
Release Date:08/12/2011
The Magic of Méliès
Character:Self / Various Roles (archive footage)
Release Date:01/01/1997
Cinematógrafo 1900
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:25/11/1979
Violons d'Ingres
Character:Himself (archive footage)
Release Date:01/01/1939
Gala Méliès
Character:Himself
Release Date:16/12/1929
The Knight of the Snow
Character:Devil
Release Date:20/12/1912
The Conquest of the Pole
Character:Le professeur Mabouloff
Release Date:03/05/1912
The Diabolical Church Window
Character:
Release Date:01/10/1911
Whimsical Illusions
Character:The Magician
Release Date:01/12/1909
The Diabolic Tenant
Character:Le locataire diabolique
Release Date:29/05/1909
The Doctor's Secret
Character:
Release Date:10/01/1909
The Fortune Favors the Brave
Character:Gnome
Release Date:31/10/1908
French Cops Learning English
Character:The Police Inspector
Release Date:26/07/1908
Tribulations; or, The Misfortunes of a Cobbler
Character:The Roman
Release Date:02/07/1908
The Indian Sorcerer
Character:The Fakir
Release Date:25/06/1908
Les infortunes des patineurs
Character:Passerby
Release Date:05/06/1908
Not Guilty
Character:The Old Farmer
Release Date:23/05/1908
The New Lord of the Village
Character:Le fantôme de César
Release Date:22/03/1908
In the Barber Shop
Character:
Release Date:16/02/1908
Long Distance Wireless Photography
Character:
Release Date:07/02/1908
The Good Luck of a 'Souse'
Character:Le commissaire de police
Release Date:30/12/1907
The King and the Jester
Character:Tribolet
Release Date:13/12/1907
Satan in Prison
Character:Satan
Release Date:30/09/1907
Good Glue Sticks
Character:
Release Date:20/09/1907
The Eclipse: Courtship of the Sun and Moon
Character:Professor of Astronomy
Release Date:07/06/1907
Delirium in a Studio
Character:Ali Barbouyou
Release Date:23/05/1907
Tunneling the English Channel
Character:
Release Date:22/04/1907
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
Character:
Release Date:17/02/1907
The Witch
Character:The Fairy Carabosse
Release Date:06/11/1906
The Mysterious Retort
Character:
Release Date:28/09/1906
The Merry Frolics of Satan
Character:Satan
Release Date:07/09/1906
A Roadside Inn
Character:Drunk Traveler
Release Date:25/06/1906
A Desperate Crime
Character:
Release Date:01/06/1906
The Hilarious Posters
Character:The Bill Poster
Release Date:20/04/1906
The Inventor Crazybrains and His Wonderful Airship
Character:
Release Date:27/12/1905
Rip's Dream
Character:Rip Van Winkle
Release Date:14/11/1905
Ulysses and the Giant Polyphemus
Character:Ulysses (uncredited)
Release Date:01/09/1905
The Palace of the Arabian Nights
Character:The Sorcerer Khalafar (uncredited)
Release Date:10/06/1905
A Mesmerian Experiment
Character:
Release Date:03/03/1905
The Lilliputian Minuet
Character:
Release Date:18/02/1905
The Black Imp
Character:
Release Date:27/01/1905
The Living Playing Cards
Character:The Magician
Release Date:06/01/1905
The Christmas Angel
Character:The Rag-and-Bone Man / Beggar on Crutches / Coal Seller
Release Date:23/12/1904
The Firefall
Character:Satan
Release Date:01/12/1904
The Wandering Jew
Character:
Release Date:25/11/1904
The Impossible Voyage
Character:Mabouloff
Release Date:29/10/1904
The Mermaid
Character:
Release Date:26/05/1904
The Devilish Plank
Character:
Release Date:13/05/1904
The Cook in Trouble
Character:
Release Date:06/05/1904
The Wonderful Living Fan
Character:
Release Date:29/04/1904
Tchin-Chao, the Chinese Conjurer
Character:
Release Date:16/04/1904
The Clockmaker's Dream
Character:
Release Date:11/02/1904
The Untamable Whiskers
Character:Man with whiskers
Release Date:05/02/1904
The Fugitive Apparitions
Character:
Release Date:03/02/1904
Every Man His Own Cigar Lighter
Character:
Release Date:15/01/1904
A Wager Between Two Magicians, or, Jealous of Myself
Character:The Magician / The Double
Release Date:13/01/1904
Tit for Tat
Character:
Release Date:05/01/1904
A Moonlight Serenade
Character:
Release Date:26/12/1903
The Terrible Turkish Executioner
Character:The Executioner
Release Date:11/12/1903
Faust in the Underworld
Character:Mephistopholes
Release Date:05/12/1903
The Ballet Master's Dream
Character:
Release Date:10/11/1903
The Magic Lantern
Character:
Release Date:30/10/1903
Alcofribas, The Master Magician
Character:
Release Date:03/10/1903
Extraordinary Illusions
Character:
Release Date:22/09/1903
Bob Kick, the Mischievous Kid
Character:
Release Date:14/09/1903
Jupiter's Thunderballs
Character:
Release Date:20/08/1903
Apparitions
Character:
Release Date:09/08/1903
The Infernal Cauldron
Character:Devil
Release Date:01/08/1903
The Kingdom of the Fairies
Character:Prince Bel-Azor
Release Date:25/07/1903
The Monster
Character:The priest
Release Date:26/05/1903
The Melomaniac
Character:
Release Date:18/05/1903
The Oracle of Delphi
Character:
Release Date:03/05/1903
The Mystical Flame
Character:
Release Date:19/04/1903
The Mysterious Box
Character:
Release Date:27/02/1903
The Infernal Cake-Walk
Character:Devil
Release Date:21/02/1903
Misfortune Never Comes Alone
Character:Lamplighter
Release Date:02/02/1903
Beelzebub's Daughters
Character:
Release Date:26/01/1903
The Marvellous Wreath
Character:Musketeer
Release Date:18/01/1903
The Enchanted Basket
Character:
Release Date:03/01/1903
Robinson Crusoe
Character:Robinson Crusoé
Release Date:20/12/1902
Gulliver's Travels Among the Lilliputians and the Giants
Character:Gulliver
Release Date:22/11/1902
Sure Cure for Indigestion
Character:Doctor
Release Date:25/10/1902
An Impossible Balancing Feat
Character:The Magician
Release Date:13/09/1902
The Human Fly
Character:The Hindoo Magician
Release Date:09/08/1902
The Treasures of Satan
Character:
Release Date:26/07/1902
A Trip to the Moon
Character:Professeur Barbenfouillis / La Lune
Release Date:15/06/1902
The Prolific Magical Egg
Character:
Release Date:15/03/1902
The Dwarf and the Giant
Character:
Release Date:14/12/1901
The Man with the Rubber Head
Character:The Chemist / The India Rubber Head
Release Date:01/12/1901
The Devil and the Statue
Character:
Release Date:01/12/1901
Hat of Many Surprises
Character:
Release Date:14/09/1901
Bluebeard
Character:Barbe-bleue
Release Date:25/07/1901
The Prince of Magicians
Character:Excelsior
Release Date:22/06/1901
The Temple of the Sun
Character:
Release Date:18/05/1901
A Maiden's Paradise
Character:The Wizard
Release Date:20/04/1901
The Magician's Cavern
Character:
Release Date:13/04/1901
The Triple Headed Lady
Character:
Release Date:25/01/1901
The Brahmin and the Butterfly
Character:The brahmin
Release Date:18/01/1901
The Christmas Dream
Character:Beggar
Release Date:08/08/1900
Joan of Arc
Character:Père de Jeanne
Release Date:06/08/1900
The Artist and the Dummy
Character:Artiste
Release Date:21/05/1900
The One-Man Band
Character:All the members of the orchestra
Release Date:01/01/1900
The Fat and Lean Wrestling Match
Character:Wrestler
Release Date:01/01/1900
Going to Bed Under Difficulties
Character:The Man
Release Date:01/01/1900
Up-to-Date Spiritualism
Character:Le comique excentrique
Release Date:01/01/1900
The Wizard, the Prince and the Good Fairy
Character:Prince
Release Date:01/01/1900
A Fantastical Meal
Character:The Man
Release Date:01/01/1900
The Triple Conjurer and the Living Head
Character:Conjurer
Release Date:01/01/1900
The Magic Book
Character:The Magician
Release Date:01/01/1900
The Dreyfus Affair
Character:Fernand Labori
Release Date:04/11/1899
Cinderella
Character:le gnome de la pendule / le suisse à l'entrée de l'église
Release Date:01/10/1899
Summoning the Spirits
Character:
Release Date:20/05/1899
The Human Pyramid
Character:
Release Date:20/05/1899
A Midnight Episode
Character:The Sleeping Man (uncredited)
Release Date:01/01/1899
The Devil in a Convent
Character:The Devil
Release Date:01/01/1899
An Up-to-Date Conjurer
Character:Magician
Release Date:01/01/1899
The Mysterious Knight
Character:Le chevalier mystère
Release Date:01/01/1899
The Mysterious Portrait
Character:L'illusioniste
Release Date:01/01/1899
Cleopatra's Tomb
Character:un profanateur de la tombe de Cléopâtre
Release Date:01/01/1899
The Pillar of Fire
Character:
Release Date:01/01/1899
The Four Troublesome Heads
Character:Conjurer
Release Date:30/11/1898
The Astronomer's Dream
Character:Astronomer
Release Date:01/01/1898
The Temptation of St. Anthony
Character:Saint Antoine
Release Date:01/01/1898
Pygmalion and Galatea
Character:Pygmalion
Release Date:01/01/1898
The Magician
Character:Le Sculpteur
Release Date:01/01/1898
The Famous Box Trick
Character:The Magician
Release Date:01/01/1898
The Bridegroom's Dilemma
Character:Le marié
Release Date:01/01/1898
Faust and Marguerite
Character:Méphistophélès
Release Date:01/01/1897
Le château hanté
Character:Mephisto
Release Date:01/01/1897
The Bewitched Inn
Character:The Traveler
Release Date:01/01/1897
Naval Combat in Greece
Character:The Captain
Release Date:01/01/1897
Between Calais and Dover
Character:The Man in the Checked Suit
Release Date:01/01/1897
Dancing in a Harem
Character:
Release Date:01/01/1897
A Funny Mahometan
Character:The Funny Mahometan
Release Date:01/01/1897
A Nightmare
Character:Man
Release Date:25/12/1896
Le manoir du diable
Character:Mephistopheles
Release Date:24/12/1896
Conjuring
Character:Himself
Release Date:15/06/1896
A Terrible Night
Character:L'homme qui essaie de dormir
Release Date:01/01/1896
The Vanishing Lady
Character:Le magicien
Release Date:01/01/1896
Playing Cards
Character:Un joueur de cartes
Release Date:01/01/1896
Television Appearances
Images
