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24 January 2025
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Vintage: Life of an American fireman (1903) Edwin S Porter
Life of an American fireman is a film from 1903 by Edwin Stanton Porter. It is inspired by the film, Fire! (1901) by the British filmmaker James Williamson. The film is important not only for its engaging portrayal of the firefighting profession at the time but also for its influence on the development of narrative cinema.
Working at the Edison Manufacturing Company, Edwin S Porter had access to all foreign films the Edison Company was distributing, so he could study techniques used by Méliès, Smith or Williamson. Examining their films, he decided to copy its manner of telling a story in a series of shots. Life of an American Fireman is a notable attend at such storytelling. The film ends with two long shots that show the same action from two vantage points. To a modern audience, this repetition of events may seem strange but such displays of the same event from different viewpoints were not uncommon in early cinema.
Chapters
0:25 - The Fireman Vision
0:46 - Fire!
1:41 - Firemen leaving the Engine House
2:23 - The Arrival at the Fire
2:48 - In Danger
2:55 - An Heroic American Fireman
3:38 - Rescued
Synopsis
(025) At the Engine House, a firefighter is asleep and dreaming of a mother putting her bairn to bed, when suddenly the fire alarm is triggered (0:46) and all the firefighters on duty spring into action, (1:03) prepare their carts and rush to the scene of the accident amid the crowd cheering them on as heroes (2:45).
By now, the fire has spread throughout the entire house, including the room of the young lady's toddler who, because of the smoke, faints (2:49). The brave firefighter, however, manages to break through the door of the room (3:10), breaks the window panes, picks up the woman (3:27) and carries her to safety; he then re-enters (4:01) and saves the child as well. Finally, having cleared the building of civilians, firefighters enter it to put out the flames.
Source: Iconauta
Working at the Edison Manufacturing Company, Edwin S Porter had access to all foreign films the Edison Company was distributing, so he could study techniques used by Méliès, Smith or Williamson. Examining their films, he decided to copy its manner of telling a story in a series of shots. Life of an American Fireman is a notable attend at such storytelling. The film ends with two long shots that show the same action from two vantage points. To a modern audience, this repetition of events may seem strange but such displays of the same event from different viewpoints were not uncommon in early cinema.
Chapters
0:25 - The Fireman Vision
0:46 - Fire!
1:41 - Firemen leaving the Engine House
2:23 - The Arrival at the Fire
2:48 - In Danger
2:55 - An Heroic American Fireman
3:38 - Rescued
Synopsis
(025) At the Engine House, a firefighter is asleep and dreaming of a mother putting her bairn to bed, when suddenly the fire alarm is triggered (0:46) and all the firefighters on duty spring into action, (1:03) prepare their carts and rush to the scene of the accident amid the crowd cheering them on as heroes (2:45).
By now, the fire has spread throughout the entire house, including the room of the young lady's toddler who, because of the smoke, faints (2:49). The brave firefighter, however, manages to break through the door of the room (3:10), breaks the window panes, picks up the woman (3:27) and carries her to safety; he then re-enters (4:01) and saves the child as well. Finally, having cleared the building of civilians, firefighters enter it to put out the flames.
Source: Iconauta