The History of Film

Jacob Aschieris
  • 4.7 (36)
  • FILM HISTORY
  • WEEKLY SERIES

A (mostly) chronological exploration of international film history. Each episode is a deep dive into the history of the people, events, technologies, cultural forces, and most all the movies that have molded cinema into what it is today! Join host Jacob Aschieris and other listeners for an in depth, thoughtful listening experience, and learn why no story ever written for the screen is as dramatic as the story of the screen itself!

  1. 06/19/2020

    1- Cinema's Earliest Prehistory

    The foundations of cinema from cave paintings to the invention of the chronophotographic gun. Visit the show's website at historyoffilmpodcast.com. If you want to get in touch, I would love to hear from you! My email is, predictably, historyoffilmpodcast@gmail.com. Audio from movies are used here as transitions, to spice up the show and to remind us where the show is going; clips are from Casablanca (1942), The Maltese Falcon (1941),  and Rushmore (1999).  Jake from the future here! Edgar Degas is not a filmmaker he is a painter. I misread the book I was using when I referenced this. If we do, for some reason, talk about Degas, it will not be in the context of filmmaking, because he... wasn't a filmmaker. Yours, -Jake 12 April 2021 Support the show

    26 min

  2. 07/07/2020

    2- Cinema's Artistic Antecedents

    Cinema was not born of void. Earlier inventions, including, but not limited to, the magic lantern, diorama theater, the photograph, and vaudeville contributed to what went on in front of the camera in the earliest days of film history. Visit the show's website, historyoffilmpodcast.com for show notes, and contact me at historyoffilmpodcast@gmail.com. Enjoy the show! I am using soundbites for movies as transitions, reminders of what this is all leading up to, and for my enjoyment (I hope yours too). Once we reach sound film, these clips will be relevant to the topic at hand, I promise. In this episode, these clips are: The Maltese Falcon (1941) The Wizard of Oz (1939) They Live (1988) Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (2001) Support the show

    19 min

  3. 07/18/2020

    3- The Birth of Cinema

    Kodak, Edison, and Dixon are introduced, as are their first roles in the story of film history. Next week we cover movies they made. I use movie clips as transitions in this show. Once we reach sound film, all the clips will be very pertinent, but for now, it is just for the joy of movies and as a reminder of where we are eventually headed. This week the movies were: Iron Man (2008) Sabrina (1954) Jaws (1975) Brining up Baby (1938) If you want to contact me, please email me at historyoffilmpodcast@gmail.com, and visit the show's website: historyoffilmpodcast.com. Happy listening and I will see you next week! Support the show

    19 min

  4. 08/10/2020

    4- Edison, Dixon and The Black Maria

    Let's all go to the movies! Sorry, I am two days late. Today we discuss the kinetograph, and the movies made on it, including Fred Ott's Sneeze, Comic Boxing, Serpentine Dance, and more. If you want to contact me, my email is historyoffilmpodcast@gmail.com. The website for the show is historyoffilmpodcast.com. I am using soundbites from movies as transitions, reminders of what this is all leading up to, and for my enjoyment (I hope yours too). Once we reach sound film, these clips will be relevant to the topic at hand, I promise. In this episode, these clips are: The 39 Steps (1935) 3:10 to Yuma (1957) Harakiri (1962) (One of my favorite movies of all time, if not my favorite) Amadeus (1984) Support the show

    22 min

  5. 08/29/2020

    5- The Lumiere Brothers and Projected Cinema

    This episode we cover an exciting, but ultimately unfruitful, film made in the Black Maria, and voyage to Europe to meet the Lumiere family, and their incredible contributions to cinema. I told you the clips would start becoming useful just as soon as I could make them do it! This week we have sound clips from The Edison-Dixon Experimental Sound Film (1895?) Singing in the Rain (1954) Amelie (2001) (the only one that isn't applicable to the episode) Hugo (2011) Support the show

    20 min

  6. 09/23/2020

    6- Lumiere "Firsts" and Advancements in Film Before Georges Méliès

    This week we look at some of the "firsts" in film history as they occurred in the Lumiere's early projections. We also describe a few advancements in film technology, including the Latham Loop, and the Geneva Drive. I have had to take the website down for a little while. There were just too many tech issues. But you can still listen at historyoffilm.buzzsprout.com. But I will return with a website soon. You can email me still at historyoffilmpodcast@gmail.com Movie Recommendation: Have you ever heard of Seconds? It's a 1966 film directed by John Frankenheimer, and starring Rock Hudson. The best way I can describe it is like an episode of The Twilight Zone that has blossomed into a gorgeous, existentially terrifying movie that is unlike anything else I have ever seen. I first heard about it from this video here, and the good people at Criterion have made an amazing print.  Support the show

    16 min

  7. 10/22/2020

    7- Georges Méliès and the Magic of Editing

    In the most dramatic and magical episode of the show so far, we cover the life and achievements of cinemas first great magician, Georges Méliès. The only movie clip is from the 2011 film Hugo, which touches on subjects of film history and Méliès specifically.  I cover the origins of edition, and the first special effects, called "in camera effects." As of 21 October, 2020, the website still isn't up yet, but I am working on it, I promise! you need to see Georges Méliès' movies to understand just how special they are, and I hope within a few weeks to make that possible through the shows website again. Movie Recommendation: Its October, so it obligatory that a recommend a scary movie to you. This time, its the Val Lewton produced 1942 masterpiece Cat People,  a classic horror film thats easy to miss under the ocean of classic Universal Studio's monster pictures (though I love all of those too). Cat people is more eerie than frightening, but includes some of the best moments of tension in classic Hollywood fright films. The titular cat person, whose tale is just as tragic as it is fascinating, haunts a man and woman who become less sympathetic the more you think about them. I hope you enjoy, and like always, try and see the move in the context it was made in, and you may find it frightening too! Support the show

    27 min

  8. 11/17/2020

    8- George Albert Smith and the Brighton School

    It was a big episode this time, and it took me a long time to write. But here it is! As I said at the end of the episode, a huge thanks to Stephen Herbert and Luke McKernan, whose work has proved to be the single most referenced resource I have used in making the show so far. You can their website here: https://www.victorian-cinema.net The definition I used for "tracking Shot" came from the third edition of Film: A Critical  Introduction by Maria Pramaggiore and Tom Wallis, which has a very helpful glossary.  Another thanks to my dear friend Jerry, who in ten minutes of teaching me how to use the free and open source program Audacity made this the best-sounding episode so far. If you want to contact me, you can email me at historyoffilmpodcast@gmail.com. I would love to hear from you.  To see visual aids for this episode, visit https://www.historyoffilmpodcast.com/ which will have resources listed under episode 8. Movie clips used in this episode are Hercules, directed by  Ron Clements and John Musker (1997) The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, directed by Wes Anderson (2004) Monty Python and the Holy Grail,  directed by Terry Gilliam, Terry Jones (1975) Support the show

    30 min
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About

A (mostly) chronological exploration of international film history. Each episode is a deep dive into the history of the people, events, technologies, cultural forces, and most all the movies that have molded cinema into what it is today! Join host Jacob Aschieris and other listeners for an in depth, thoughtful listening experience, and learn why no story ever written for the screen is as dramatic as the story of the screen itself!

Information

  • Creator
    Jacob Aschieris
  • Episodes
    42
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2025 The History of Film
  • Show Website
    The History of Film