Émile Cohl

An animated film by French auteur Émile Cohl, one of the earliest examples of hand-drawn film animation. Drawing inspiration from J. Stuart Blackton and the Incoherents of club Hydropathes, the film, with all its wild transformations, sees our protagonist ...  (more)

A nightmare, sketched out upon a living blackboard.  (more)

Four customers are having a peaceful game of cards in a quiet café. The atmosphere being heavy, the waiter falls asleep and has an unsettling dream about the ills of alcohol, among other things.  (more)

Several unique specimens of highly ornamented porcelain are shown in series. In each case the various pieces of ware are in reality formed of living people. After a short time has been allowed for admiration of each article, it disintegrates into the individual ...  (more)

In "Rêves enfantins", players in the flesh are mixed with animated objects and cut-out paper actors.  (more)

A splendid blend of live-action photography and Cohl's famous animation, Nothing... displays the realms man has conquered: Air, sea, the domains of music and machinery. The one thing man cannot conquer, Cohl posits, is gossip.  (more)

This subject portrays in a vivid manner the operations of a puppet in his efforts to see the sights.  (more)

Mother in law gets a new set of dentures. Despite being initially happy, the family soon discovers the teeth have a life of their own and jump from their owner's mouth and bite everyone who comes near--from ladies to gentlemen to policemen.  (more)

For a short comedy of rare merit this subject is unexcelled. A chalk line series of grotesque caricatures enacted in the land of puppets. A fickle maiden gets herself into numerous embarrassing complications with her host of admirers, but the artist with lightning ...  (more)

A man who no longer can afford his rent is forced to sell his beloved furniture. The furniture can not bear to be parted from their owner and decides to return home. Often confused with Bosetti's film Le Garde meuble automatique (1912).  (more)

It's Lucien Cazalis's day for calling on the ladies. Being a true gentleman, he brings some flowers as a gift. Unfortunately, his rival pinches them to present as his own, and Cazalis is left sitting on his hat.  (more)

Lucien Cazalis first his maid and hires a new one. When she puts on an apron, he realizes how pretty she is. What's a Frenchman to do? However, when various men in uniform troop into his apartment when he is leaving, he grows suspicious.  (more)

In Le cheveu délateur, a magician discovers the real identity of another character by the movement of a single hair, that, once animated, gives life to a story.  (more)

A British clown invents a device which shows all people in grotesque sizes.  (more)

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Two lovers perform a fandango dance. A jealous quarrel follows and the heart-broken swain decides to end it all. He throws himself from the window of his room, but instead of falling to his death, the anchor of a passing balloon intercepts his flight and he is ...  (more)

Baron de Crac is marooned on a desert island and chased by a strange bird.  (more)

A scientist has acquired a microscope and is showing it off to his friend. He takes various body samples - hair, phlegm, etc. - and puts them under the microscope. The "microbes" coalesce and form different shapes, creating caricatures of various people, such as ...  (more)

Jobard receives a note from a secret admirer and goes to a cafe to meet her. However, not knowing what she looks like, he mistakes other woman for what he hopes will be the woman of his dreams.  (more)

Gaston finds a letter to a marquise from his father. He wants her daughter to charm the unsuspecting Gaston out of his fear of marriage. Gaston plays a trick on them by switching places with Joabard, his ill-mannered chauffeur.  (more)