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The History of Cinema: 1921

Australia - France

Australia 

– The Federal Government creates the Commonwealth Cinema and Photographic branch to produce government documentaries. [ADD]

China 

– The China Film Research Society produce Yen Rei-sun, the country’s first feature film, which is directed by Pun-Yen Ren and premieres in Shanghai.   It is based on a sensational murder case. [ADD]

Denmark

– Lau Lauritzen founds the Palladium Company. [ADD]

Censors ban Daniel Bompard’s La Brute (The Beast). [ADD]

Deputies are shown a Gaumont documentary about the transformation of engines of war into tractors at the Palais-Bourbon. [ADD]

The invitation-only opening of the Madeleine cinema in Paris features J. Gordon Edwards' 1919 Wolves of the Night, and Mary Pickford’s Little Lord Fauntleroy.  [ADD]

Rene Leprince takes advantage of the Labour Day parade at Mointceau-les-Mines to film scenes for l’Empereur des pauvres. [ADD]

Cinema attendances drop dramatically during a heatwave due to the lack of air conditioning in cinemas. [ADD]

Severin Mars, the star of Abel Gance’s J’Accuse, dies of a heart attack at the age of 48 shortly after completing his directorial debut, Le Coeur Magnifique. [ADD]

French distributors refuse to pay the Fox Corporation’s asking price of 700,000 francs to screen the boxing match between Frenchman Georges Carpentier and victorious American fighter Jack Dempsey. [MORE]

Aime Simon-Gerard, D’Artagnan in Henri Diamant-Berger’s serial of Les Trois mousquetaires, buys the horse he rode in the film. [ADD]

Armand Bernard, the prefect of Alpes-Maritimes, bans all films with scenes of crime, theft or murder. [ADD]

Charlot, Louis Delluc’s analysis and criticisms of Charlie Chaplin’s films, is published. [ADD]

Jacque Feyder’s l’Atlantide is released.   The film, the most expensive French production to date, is filmed on location in the Hoggar desert, and stars Stacia Napierkowska, Jean Angelo and Louis Aubert. [ADD]

Jean Epstein’s book, Bonjour Cinema, is released shortly after he makes his cinematic debut as assistant director to Louis Delluc on Le Tonnerre. [ADD]

Drastic cutting of Musidora’s and Jacques Lasseyne’s Pour Don Carlos by one-fifth of its original length, fails to win over moviegoers. [ADD]

On the anniversary of Napoleon’s death, a gala screening of Dominique Bernard-Deschamps L’agonie des aigles is held at the Opera de Paris to help War Widows and Orphans. [ADD]

– The Heraute Colour film process is used on L’amour eternel. [ADD]

Other Key Films of 1921

El Dorado (Marcel L’Herbier) [ADD]

Fievre (Louis Delluc) [ADD]