A fascinating look back at Brighton’s role in the development of film is part of this year’s Cine-City festival.
George Albert Smith and his wife, Laura Bayleym, leased the St Ann’s Wells Gardens between 1892 and 1904, where they converted the old Pump House into a film processing laboratory and later built the Glasshouse film studio in the gardens.
From playful one-shot scenes to ground-breaking experiments in combining shots, they were self-taught innovators whose work led to one of the most important milestones in early film history, the invention of film editing.
Guided by Frank Gray, this screening will present Bertie and Laura’s years at St Ann’s Well and showcase their most iconic works, from comic sketches to ground-breaking experiments in editing that transformed the very language of cinema. He will also share his insights into the lives and work of these two extraordinary film pioneers.
The St. Ann’s Wells Garden Cafe is hosting an event on November 26th showing the silent films of George Albert Smith and Laura Bayley, filmed in and around their studio and home in the heart of the Gardens.
An exhibition of stills and images from the films will be on display in the Cafe from mid-November until the end of November.
Frank will also be leading free walks around the gardens, pointing out locations and the original site of the studio. These are on Saturday, November 21st at 1.30 and then again at 3 pm.
The Film Factory is presented by the Friends of St Ann’s Well Gardens, in association with Screen Archive South East and Cinecity.
Event Details:
Thursday 26th November, 6.30 – 8.30. Tickets are £7.00, available on the door or by contacting pippa@fosawg.org
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