Georges MeliesBorn Marie Georges Jean Méliès, Georges grew up wanting to be an artist. His talents were initially used in art and magic, which in later years led him to explore the combination of magic, art, and (and a new medium) film. As a boy he showed much interest in puppets and painting. When he became young, his dream was to pursue a career as an artist, but his father owned a successful shoe manufacturing business and was forced to take over the company, although he had no intention of following in his father's footsteps. father. After Georges' father died, he sold the shoe business and with the new funds used the money to purchase the Robert Houdin Theater located in Paris, France. He was performing magic shows and looking into a longed-for career as an illusionist, but he had yet to discover the films that would be a catalyst for changing entertainment as we know it. Georges Melies was a talented magician and one of the first great pioneers of cinema who profoundly influenced modern American films. On December 28, 1895, Georges was an audience member at the first motion picture or "moving picture" seen in the world. It was a very short, single-reel, single-shot film documenting a train pulling into the station. When the image of the train started approaching the audience, the audience screamed thinking that they would actually get hit by the train. This revolutionary new type of “magic” was discovered by the Lumiere Brothers, who used their invention, the Cinematographe, to capture the first motion picture ever made. Melies soon after asked to buy a camera from the Lumiere Brothers, but they refused. Desperate to use this new entertainment tool, he decided to build his own camera. First... middle of paper... austere film: Martin Scorsese's Hugo showed and resurfaced Melies' life and rekindled the public's interest in his films. Melies was portrayed at the beginning of the film as a sour, struggling old man who owned a toy shop in a train station, but was enlightened when his talent and films were finally noticed by the French community again. Georges Melies was a talented magician, and one of the first great cinema pioneers who profoundly influenced modern American films. His work is very significant to modern American cinema today, as we use the same techniques and elements that Georges pioneered more than 100 years ago. His moment in the spotlight during his lifetime was brief, but little did he know that his legacy and work would be carried on so prominently and throughout the world. We have much to learn from this extraordinary man.