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Early film camera invented by William Dickinson and Thomas Edison, in collaboration with Eadweard Muybridge. First movie to be filmed in the U.S. called Monkeyshines No.1 was shot on the Kinetoscope.
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Early film camera and projector kit invented and used by the Lumiere brothers.
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This 1912 silent documentary is the first known film to be shot in color, predating Wizard of Oz.
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D.W. Griffith's monumental (and monumentally racist) early film epic releases in theaters, becoming a goal post for filmmaking technique. Large battle sequences, fade-ins, close-ups, become pioneered here.
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The film The Power of Love releases as the first known 3-D film.
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The 1925 release of the Soviet film "Battleship Potemkin" featured revolutionary the new technique in film editing called montage, which would become the most vital aspect of Russian cinema.
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The Jazz Singer released as the first feature-length sound film, or "talkie" in the U.S.
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The release of The Wizard of Oz further popularizes color movies with a new, more detailed coloring process called "Technicolor." Though considered too expensive for most films, Technicolor would become a staple of big Hollywood blockbusters.
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Orson Wells' "Citizen Kane" becomes a landmark film, demonstrating a plethora of film techniques in a single movie. Became the gold standard for fiction filmmaking, even up to today.
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The Kodak Super-8mm Camera is the first consumer grade, portable film camera to reach 24fps.
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The Sony Portapak was the first "portable" video recorder, though it still required being plugged into a wall or power source.
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Futureworld featured the first sequence of computer-generated imagery in film. This technology becomes gradually more prevalent in movies and eventually turns into a mainstay of most Hollywood films.
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The Betamovie BMC-100p is released. Allows anyone to shoot their own Betamax tapes.
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Julia and Julia is the first all digitally recorded HD film (making it technically a video).
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Toy Story releases as the first full-length CGI film, forever opening new avenues for animated film.
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The Iphone becomes the first mainstream smartphone to incorporate a built-in camera. Legions of amateur filmmakers have followed since.