''Annabelle Serpentine Dance'' is a

short Short may refer to: Places * Short (crater), a lunar impact crater on the near side of the Moon * Short, Mississippi, an unincorporated community * Short, Oklahoma, a census-designated place People * Short (surname) * List of people known as ...

silent American film produced and distributed by

Edison Manufacturing Company The Edison Manufacturing Company, originally registered as the United Edison Manufacturing Company and often known as simply the Edison Company, was organized by inventor and entrepreneur Thomas Edison and incorporated in New York City in May 188 ...

in 1895. It is one of several released by the studio the late 19th century. Each short film depicts the popular

serpentine dance The serpentine dance is a form of dance that was popular throughout the United States and Europe in the 1890s, becoming a staple of stage shows and early film. Background The Serpentine is an evolution of the skirt dance, a form of burlesque danc ...

performed by Annabelle Moore. Many of the prints were distributed in color, which was hand-tinted.Yumibe, Joshua (2012). ''Moving Color: Early Film, Mass Culture, Modernism.''

Rutgers University Press Rutgers University Press (RUP) is a nonprofit academic publishing house, operating in New Brunswick, New Jersey under the auspices of Rutgers University. History Rutgers University Press, a nonprofit academic publishing house operating in New B ...

Action in the film

The dance is performed in succession in a lockoff shot. The first is in a flowing skirt, held out by her hands with arms extended. She smiles, wearing butterfly wings on her back and the wings of

Mercury Mercury commonly refers to: * Mercury (planet), the nearest planet to the Sun * Mercury (element), a metallic chemical element with the symbol Hg * Mercury (mythology), a Roman god Mercury or The Mercury may also refer to: Companies * Merc ...

in her hair. Her dance emphasizes the movement of her visible, bare legs. She kicks high, bows, and moves to her right and left. The second dancer has a voluminous, long skirt, and holds sticks in each hand attached to the skirt's outer edges. The flowing patterns of the skirt from her arm movements give the second scene a different feeling from the first.

Production and distribution

Different versions of the film were released on four different dates: August 10, 1894; February 1895; April–August 1895; and May 8, 1897.Perry, Ted (2006). ''Masterpieces of Modernist Cinema.'' Indiana University Press, The film was directed by William K.L. Dickson and

William Heise William Heise (1847–1910) was a German-born American film cinematographer and director, active in the 1890s and credited for more than 175 short silent films. Heise filmed a "We All Smoke" skit promoting Admiral Cigarettes in 1897. Heise is be ...

. Heise was also producer and

camera operator A camera operator, or depending on the context cameraman or camerawoman, is a professional operator of a film camera or video camera as part of a film crew. The term "cameraman" does not imply that a male is performing the task. In filmmaking ...

. Film historians have commented on the possibilities for viewers to slow down the hand cranking of the footage; it was not technically possible in other art forms.Barker, Jennifer M. (2009). ''The Tactile Eye: Touch and the Cinematic Experience.'' University of California Press,

References

External links

* * 1895 films American dance films American silent short films American black-and-white films Films shot in New Jersey Articles containing video clips Edison Manufacturing Company films 1890s dance films Early color films 1895 short films 1890s American films {{short-silent-film-stub

Action in the film

Production and distribution

See also

References

External links