Film Pioneers

Do you know Georges Melies? No? Donna got a huge novel for Luke for Christmas,"The Invention of Hugo Cabret". It is the story of an inventive boy who works/lives in a Paris train station ~1930. Hugo helps a broken-down toy-shop owner "Papa Georges" reconnect with the fame of his youth as a magician, inventor, and pioneer filmmaker. While the book is a novel, the main character is based on Georges Melies who made over 500 films between 1899-1912 and is credited to be the first to use film to capture the immagination with illusions and special effects; works of fiction. He is recognized as one of the great pioneers of film. This book was SO much about Luke: trains, inventions, movie-making, robotic inventions. We read all 500+ pages of this "graphic novel" over two nights.. .staying up til 2am to finish it. Oh well, it IS his Christmas break! For more info on George Melies, go to http://www.filmsdefrance.com/FDF_gmelies.html

about the book, go to: http://theinventionofhugocabret.com/intro_flash.htm

By the way, the photo above is from Melies' most famous film, the first Science-fiction film, "A Voyage to the Moon".