Screening

About Merci Mr. Robertson

Year Released:

1986

Genres:

Drama

Metadata:

Directed by Pierre Levie

The film presents a visual history of film and moving images in an engaging look at Etienne Gaspard Robert, a pre-cinema pioneer. "Mr. Robertson" as he was known, ignored the French Revolution that was taking place around him and created a whole new form of entertainment that combined moving images with live actors and stage props. Objects were projected and manipulated with mirrors and screens, enhanced with music, voice and sound effects, and complemented by the use of a projecting device known as a "magic lantern" that could call up images against any surface or even smoke.  Robert's experimentation with images influenced other pioneers like Thomas Edison and the Lumiere brothers who followed. University of Chicago Professor Tom Gunning will introduce the film.

At 5:00pm, there will be a lecture by Professor Gunning. You can find more information on the lecture here.

The events are sponsored by Indiana University’s Master Classes in the Humanities: The Art of Interpretation.

(HD Cam presentation)