Gaston Velle
French film director (1868–1953)
Gaston Velle (1868–1953) was a French silent film director and pioneer of special effects, who was prominent in early French and Italian cinema during the first two decades of the 20th century. Like his father, the Hungarian entertainer Joseph "Professor" Velle, Gaston began his career as a travelling magician, before putting his illusionist skills to work in cinema and ultimately creating more than fifty films between 1903 and 1911. He worked under Auguste and Louis Lumière, before serving as the head of production for the Italian film studio Cines. But he is best remembered for his work at Pathé, where he was hired to produce trick films that might rival those of his contemporary, Georges Méliès, including classic shorts like Burglars at Work (1904). Some films pioneered lasting techniques, such as his Les Invisibles (1906) – the first known invisible man film.
Filmography in the catalog
Credited on 8 films (1904–1906) — matched by name in the Creator or Credits field. Also mentioned in 1 other record (descriptions, transcriptions, copyright notes).
| Year ▲ | Title | Creator | Length | Format | Color | Sound |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1904 | Japonaiseries AKA Japanese Varieties ▶ | Gaston Velle | ||||
| 1904 | La mtamorphose du papillon AKA A Butterfly's Metamorphosis ▶ | Gaston Velle | ||||
| 1904 | La valise de Barnum AKA Barnum's Trunk ▶ | Gaston Velle | ||||
| 1904 | Tit for Tat ▶ | Gaston Velle | 5 min | |||
| 1906 | L'crin du rajah AKA The Rajah's Casket ▶ | Gaston Velle | ||||
| 1906 | La peine du talion AKA Tit-for-Tat ▶ | Gaston Velle | ||||
| 1906 | Les fleurs animes AKA Living Flowers ▶ | Gaston Velle | ||||
| 1906 | Les invisibles AKA Invisible Thief ▶ | Gaston Velle |