''Walking Troubles of Organic Hemiplegy'' (1898) is the first
documentary film
A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a historical record". Bill Nichols has characterized the documentary in te ...
in the world, created by Romanian
neurologist
Neurology (from el, νεῦρον (neûron), "string, nerve" and the suffix -logia, "study of") is the branch of medicine dealing with the diagnosis and treatment of all categories of conditions and disease involving the brain, the spinal c ...
Gheorghe Marinescu
Gheorghe Marinescu (; 28 February 1863 – 15 May 1938) was a Romanian neurologist, founder of the Romanian School of Neurology.
History
After attending the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Bucharest, Marinescu received most of his medi ...
. The film depicts several patients walking in four directions against a black background before and after treatment.
Marinescu came to the idea of making the film after having used
chronophotography under the influence of
Étienne-Jules Marey
Étienne-Jules Marey (; 5 March 1830, Beaune, Côte-d'Or – 15 May 1904, Paris) was a French scientist, physiologist and chronophotographer.
His work was significant in the development of cardiology, physical instrumentation, aviation, cinema ...
. Marinescu praised the use of the cinematographic techniques in the scientific investigation.
Other documentary films
* ''A Case of Hysterical Hemiplegia Cured Through Hypnotic Suggestion'' (1899)
* ''Walking Difficulties Due to Progressive Locomotary Ataxia'' (1900)
* ''Pseudo-Hypertrophic or Myosclerotic Paralysis Among Myopathies'' (1901)
References
External links
*
''Walking Troubles of Organic Hemiplegy'' on Dailymotion
1898 films
Documentary films about health care
Documentary films about science
Romanian documentary films
Romanian silent films
Romanian black-and-white films
1890s documentary films
{{Romania-film-stub