Méliès' 1897 Film 'Gugusse and the Automaton,' Featuring Cinema's First Robot, Restored After Michigan Discovery
The 45-second film 'Gugusse and the Automaton,' created by Georges Méliès in 1897, has undergone digital restoration after its discovery in Michigan. This film is recognized as the first cinematic representation of a robot. Bill McFarland, a retired educator, kept the ten nitrate reels for twenty years after receiving them from his great-grandfather, who was a traveling showman. Following unsuccessful attempts to donate them, McFarland handed the reels over to the National Audio-Visual Conservation Center at the Library of Congress. George Willeman identified their importance. The film showcases Méliès as a magician alongside a mechanical figure named Pierrot Automate. Technicians dedicated over a week to scanning it into a 4K digital format, which is now accessible online. Today, around 300 of Méliès’ films remain.
Key facts
- The film 'Gugusse and the Automaton' was made in 1897 by Georges Méliès.
- It is a 45-second motion picture considered the first film to depict a robot.
- The film was discovered in an old trunk in Michigan by Bill McFarland.
- McFarland is a retired teacher from Grand Rapids, Michigan.
- The film reels were stored for two decades and inherited from McFarland's great-grandfather, an itinerant showman in western Pennsylvania.
- Nitrate film is highly flammable, making museums reluctant to accept it.
- McFarland drove about 700 miles to deliver the reels to the Library of Congress.
- George Willeman is the nitrate film vault leader at the Library of Congress.
- The film shows Méliès as a magician with a mechanical humanoid called Pierrot Automate.
- The film was restored digitally and is now available online in 4K resolution.
- The discovery was made in September, with recent public announcement.
- Méliès started as a stage magician and turned to film after seeing Lumière brothers' films in 1895.
- He pioneered techniques like double exposure and forced perspective.
- About 300 of Méliès' films still exist, with 60 held by the Library of Congress.
- The restored print is a duplicate at least three times removed from the original.
Entities
Artists
- Georges Méliès
- Bill McFarland
- George Willeman
Institutions
- Library of Congress
- National Audio-Visual Conservation Center
Locations
- Michigan
- Grand Rapids
- United States
- Pennsylvania
- western Pennsylvania
- Paris
- France