City of Cinema: Paris 1850–1907

City of Cinema: Paris 1850–1907


  • Feb 20–Jul 10, 2022
  • Resnick Pavilion

Exhibition Soundtrack Available
The City of Cinema: Paris 1850–1907 exhibition soundtrack traces the evolution of film as an art form inextricably linked to its birthplace. The music transports listeners to the streets of Paris; toy pianos and mechanical musical instruments echo the live scores that accompanied the earliest movie screenings; and a selection of experimental music mirrors the space where experimentation and imagination meets filmmaking as a craft and commercial enterprise. 


Extracts from The Cinematograph: Birth of an Art (2021), a film by Stefan Cornic

Three clips—discussing the Expositions Universelles, the Pantomimes Lumineuses, and the Salle de Cinéma—from a 53-minute documentary, written and directed by Stefan Cornic, produced by Jean-Marie Nizan, and featuring interviews with Thierry Frémaux, Bertrand Lemoine, Dominique Païni, and Vanessa Schwartz, and the voice of Hester Wilcox. (c) ARTE France, Beall Productions, Musées d'Orsay et de l'Orangerie.