Roundhay Garden Scene

Coordinates: 53°49′32.99″N 1°29′41.84″W / 53.8258306°N 1.4949556°W / 53.8258306; -1.4949556

Roundhay Garden Scene
Directed by	Louis Aimé Augustin Le Prince
Starring	Harriet Hartley Adolphe Le Prince Joseph Whitley Sarah Whitley
Cinematography	Louis Aimé Augustin Le Prince
Editing by	Louis Aimé Augustin Le Prince
Running time	2.11 seconds
Country	United Kingdom
Language	Silent film

Roundhay Garden Scene is an 1888 short film directed by inventor Louis Le Prince. It was recorded at 12 frames per second, runs for 2.11 seconds and is the oldest surviving film.^[1]

Overview

According to Le Prince's son, Adolphe, it was filmed at Oakwood Grange, the home of Joseph and Sarah Whitley, in Roundhay, Leeds, West Riding of Yorkshire, United Kingdom on October 14, 1888.^[2]

It features Adolphe Le Prince,^[3] Sarah Whitley, Joseph Whitley and Harriet Hartley in the garden, walking around and laughing. Note that Sarah is walking backwards as she turns around, and that Joseph's coat tails are flying as he also is turning.^[2]

1930 NSM copy of 20 frames from the Roundhay Garden Scene

Remastered footage

In 1930 the National Science Museum (NSM), London, produced photographic copies of remaining parts from the 1888 filmstrip. This sequence was recorded on an 1885 Eastman Kodak paper base photographic film through Le Prince's single-lens combi camera-projector. Le Prince's son, Adolphe, stated that the Roundhay Garden movie was shot at 12 frames/s (and the second movie, Traffic Crossing Leeds Bridge, at 20 frames/s), however the later digital remastered version of Roundhay Garden produced by the National Museum of Photography, Film and Television (NMPFT), Bradford, comprises 52 frames and is only 2.11 seconds long, as the film runs at 24.64 frames/s, the modern cinematographic frame-rate. The National Science Museum copy has 20 frames, giving a run time of 1.66 seconds at 12 frames/s.^{[citation needed]}

The world's earliest surviving motion-picture film

References

1. ^ Guinness Book of Records, all editions.
2. ^ ^{a b} Internet Movie Database Roundhay Garden Scene
3. ^ Adolphe Le Prince imdb listing

External links

Media related to Roundhay Garden Scene at Wikimedia Commons

• Roundhay Garden Scene at the Internet Movie Database
• Roundhay Garden Scene is available for free download at the Internet Archive [more]
• Louis Le Prince Centre for Cinema, Photography, and Television University of Leeds.
• St John's of Roundhay. Details of memorial for Sarah (died 1888-10-24) and Joseph Whitley (died 1891-01-12) at Beechwood, Leeds. (map)