Gugusse and the Automaton
| Gugusse et l'Automate | |
|---|---|
The film | |
| Directed by | Georges Méliès |
| Produced by | Georges Méliès |
| Distributed by | Star Film |
Release date |
|
Running time | 20 meters/65 feet[1] approx. 45 seconds[2] |
| Country | France |
| Language | Silent |
Gugusse and the Automaton (French: Gugusse et l'Automate),[1] also known as The Clown and the Automaton,[3][4] is an 1897 French short silent film directed by Georges Méliès.[1] The film features a human amazed by the mechanical movements of an automaton (robot).[3] In the film, a robot clown moves when a crank is turned and hits a human with a stick. After that, the human destroys the robot with a mallet.[5]
The film marked the first known cinematic appearance of a robot (a word that would not replace "automaton" until its use in Karel Čapek's play R.U.R.),[6] and was one of the earliest films to feature themes of "scientific experimentation, creation and transformation."[3] In their Things to Come: An Illustrated History of the Science Fiction Film, Douglas Menville and R. Reginald judged Gugusse to be the most significant scientifically themed film of 1897, and suggested that it “may be the first true SF film.”[4]
Méliès's Star Film Company released the film, numbered 111 in its catalogues.[1] Long presumed a lost film,[7] the Library of Congress acquired a 35 mm nitrate print in 2025, restored for public release in February 2026.[2] The film was in a collection of 10 reels that also includes Fat and Lean Wrestling Match and parts of The Burning Stable.[5]
Georges Méliès himself had a significant collection of automata, which began as theatrical properties that were part of the Théâtre Robert-Houdin in Paris, which the future filmmaker acquired in 1888. Brian Selznick's 2007 children's book The Invention of Hugo Cabret is a historical fiction that features a Méliès automaton. Martin Scorsese's 2011 film adaptation, Hugo, also makes the restoration of such a mechanical man part of the story.[8]
References
- 1 2 3 4 Hammond, Paul (1974). Marvellous Méliès. London: Gordon Fraser. p. 137. ISBN 0900406380.
- 1 2 Tucker, Neely (February 26, 2026). "Lost 19th century film by Méliès discovered at the Library". The Library of Congress. Retrieved February 26, 2026.
- 1 2 3 Johnston, Keith M. (2011), Science Fiction Film: A Critical Introduction, Oxford: Berg Publishers, p. 55, ISBN 9781847884763
- 1 2 Menville, Douglas; Reginald, R. (1977), Things to Come: An Illustrated History of the Science Fiction Film, New York: Times Books, p. 3
- 1 2 Veltman, Chloe (February 28, 2026). "Found: The 19th century silent film that first captured a robot attack". NPR.
- ↑ Benson, Michael (2002), Fighting Robots: A Guide to Radio-Controlled Combatants, New York: Citadel Press, p. 15
- ↑ Frazer, John (1979), Artificially Arranged Scenes: The Films of Georges Méliès, Boston: G. K. Hall & Co., p. 244, ISBN 0816183686
- ↑ Weiss, Dennis M. (Spring 2021). "Hugo and the Automaton". Literature/Film Quarterly.
Library of Congress Melies in Michigan
External links
- Gugusse and the Automaton at IMDb
- Gugusse et l'Automate video from the Library of Congress
