Essential Films

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Sallie Gardner at a Gallop (1878)

Director: Eadweard Muybridge
United States (currently United States of America)
1878

Eadweard Muybridge's "Sallie Gardner at a Gallop" (1878) seems to invite repeated viewing, just as the zoopraxiscope intended. A seminal work in the history of cinema, this early example of chronophotography proved that motion images were not just a technical achievement, but most importantly a desirable product that enhances the appreciation of our world. Galloping ad infinitum, Sallie Gardner is the mare to which an art form owns its original excitement and glory in entertainment. WIth Gilbert Domm in the saddle, the pair have not only helped contribute significantly to the study of locomotion, they made history as the first beings moving through photography.