Alice Guy-Blache

Alice Guy-Blaché

Alice Guy-Blaché — French film director (1873–1968)

Alice Ida Antoinette Guy-Blaché was a French pioneer film director. She was the first filmmaker to make a narrative fiction film, as well as the first woman to direct a film. From 1896 to 1906, she was probably the only female filmmaker in the world. Her first film was La Fée aux Choux, and her last was Tarnished Reputations (1920). She experimented with Gaumont's Chronophone sync-sound system, and with color-tinting, interracial casting, and special effects. She was artistic director and a co-founder of Solax Studios in Flushing, New York. In 1912, Solax invested $100,000 for a new studio in Fort Lee, New Jersey, the center of American filmmaking prior to the establishment of Hollywood. That year, she made the film A Fool and His Money, probably the first to have an all-African-American cast.

Filmography in the catalog

Credited on 18 films (1903–1920) — matched by name in the Creator or Credits field.

Year ▲ Title CreatorLengthFormatColorSound
1903 Comment Monsieur prend son bain ▶ Alice Guy-Blaché 1 min B&W
1905 La charité du prestidigitateur ▶ Alice Guy-Blaché 3 min B&W
1907 La Glu ▶ Alice Guy-Blaché 3 min B&W
1907 LA GLU [1907] ▶ Alice Guy-Blache 4:32 B&W silent
1907 Le bonnet poil ▶ Louis Feuillade 5 min B&W
1907 Le frotteur ▶ Louis Feuillade 3 min B&W
1907 Le lit roulettes ▶ Louis Feuillade 4 min B&W
1912 Canned harmony. ▶ Alice Guy-Blaché 3:03 16mm B&W sound
1912 The Girl in the arm-chair Alice Guy-Blaché 13 16mm Color
1913 Matrimony's speed limit / Solax Co. 14 16mm B&W silent
1913 Matrimony's speed limit. Alice Guy-Blaché 380 16mm B&W
1914 BENEATH THE CZAR. Solax Co. 4 reels B&W
1914 SHADOWS OF THE MOULIN ROUGE. Solax Co. 4 reels B&W
1914 THE WOMAN OF MYSTERY Independent Sales Corp. 4 reels B&W silent
1915 MY MADONNA. Metro Pictures Corp. 5 reels B&W silent
1915 THE WOMAN OF MYSTERY. Biograph Co 3 reels B&W silent
1916 THE SPELL OF THE YUKON. Popular Plays and Players Inc. 5 reels B&W silent
1920 TARNISHED REPUTATIONS. Pathe Exchange Inc. 50 min B&W