Gérard Bourgeois (born August 18, 1874, in

Geneva, Switzerland Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the capital of the Republic and Ca ...

(from French parents), and died December 15, 1944, in

Paris, France Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

) was a leading French film director during the silent era. After ten years in the theater, Gérard Bourgeois became artistic director of Lux-films. In 1911, he joined the company

Pathé Pathé SAS (; styled as PATHÉ!) is a French major film production and distribution company, owning a number of cinema chains through its subsidiary Pathé Cinémas and television networks across Europe. It is the name of a network of Fren ...

. He first filmed historical films (Cadoudal), then realistic films including the landmark 1911 film "Victimes de l'alcoolisme" (US: In The Grip of Alcohol), proclaimed by

Moving Picture World The ''Moving Picture World'' was an influential early trade journal for the American film industry, from 1907 to 1927. An industry powerhouse at its height, ''Moving Picture World'' frequently reiterated its independence from the film studios. ...

as "The greatest moral dilemma ever made by any film manufacturer
In the Grip of Alcohol
), before founding his own production company with René Mathey, Les Films MB (Bourgeois-Mathey). Bourgeois made 142 films between 1908 and 1925. He directed many of the popular Nick Winter comedy mysteries starring Georges Vinter in the early 1910s including 1911's "Nick Winter et le vol de la Joconde" about an attempt theft of the Mona Lisa
Nick Winter and the Theft of the Mona Lisa (1911) A Silent Film Review
His 1916 feature "Christophe Colomb" a biography of Christopher Columbus is available for viewing online at YouTube. His other notable films include "Hamlet" (1910), "L'Aventurier" (1915), 1921 : "Un drame sous Napoléon (1921), "Faust" (1922) and "L'Homme sans nerfs" (1924). He moved to Neuilly before 1914. At the beginning of

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, he joined as a foreign volunteer with his son in the French army. He evacuated eight days after arriving at the front because of illness. He is credited with several publishings on filmmaking he made with Pathé Freres in 1911.

Selected filmography

*''La Fille du Braconnier'' (1908) *''Hamlet'' (1910) *''Nick Winter et le vol de la Joconde'' (1911) *''L'Aventurier'' (1915) *''Christophe Colomb'' (1916) *''Un drame sous Napoléon'' (1921) *''Faust'' (1922) * ''L'Homme sans nerfs'' (1924) * '' Terror'' (1924) * ''

Swifter Than Death ''Swifter Than Death'' (German: ''Schneller als der Tod'', French: ''Face à la mort'') is a 1925 French-Germany silent film, silent action film directed by Gérard Bourgeois and Harry Piel and starring Piel, Dary Holm, Denise Legeay and José Dav ...

'' (1925) *''In the Face of Death'' (1925)

References

External links

* 1874 births 1944 deaths Film people from Geneva French film directors French silent film directors French male silent film actors French male screenwriters 20th-century French screenwriters 20th-century French male actors 20th-century French male writers Swiss emigrants to France {{france-film-director-stub