You take your seat in a dark theater. The buttery scent of popcorn fills the air. Suddenly, the screen lights up. Dramatic music plays. The show is about to begin!

There’s something magical about watching a movie. This form of entertainment is more than a century old. Have you ever wondered how it started?

The first movies looked much different from the ones you watch today. Over time, inventors have built technology to make movies with color, sound, special effects, and more!

You sit down in a dark theater. The smell of buttered popcorn fills the air. Then the screen lights up. Exciting music plays. The show is about to begin!

It feels magical to watch a movie. This form of entertainment is more than a century old. How did it get started?

The first movies looked much different from today’s movies. Inventors built new movie technology over time. They added color, sound, special effects, and more!

Let’s take a trip back to the mid-1800s. At that time, there were no movies, TV shows, or tablets. A device called the camera had just been invented. Early photographers would coat a metal or glass plate with light-sensitive chemicals. They’d place the plate in a bulky camera box. When light entered the box, the chemicals reacted. Adding another chemical caused an image to appear.

People were amazed by the way cameras captured real life in pictures. But they soon wondered: Could cameras take pictures that moved?

The invention of film in the 1880s was an important step. Sold in rolls by a company called Eastman Kodak, film made it possible to take many pictures one after another.

Inventors set out to design cameras that could use film to make moving pictures. “The cameras had to move the film really fast, taking many photos a second,” says Vito Adriaensens. He’s an expert in film history. Showing the pictures one after the other could trick a viewer’s eyes. The still pictures would look like they were moving!

Let’s go back to the mid-1800s. Movies, TV shows, and tablets didn’t exist.  The camera was a new invention. Early photographers put chemicals on a metal or glass plate. Then they placed it in a big camera box. Light entered the box. The chemicals reacted to the light. Another chemical was added. It made an image appear.

Cameras showed real life in pictures. People were amazed. But a question came up. Could cameras take moving pictures?

Film was invented in the 1880s. That was an important step. The Eastman Kodak company sold film in rolls. People could use it to take many pictures in a row.

Inventors wanted to make moving pictures with film. So they designed new cameras. “The cameras had to move the film really fast, taking many photos a second,” says Vito Adriaensens. He’s a film history expert. The pictures were shown one after the other. That tricked a person’s eyes. The still pictures seemed to move!

One of the first moving picture cameras, invented by the Edison Manufacturing  Company, was as big and heavy as a refrigerator! You could only watch the films on a one-person viewing device.

Later, French brothers Auguste and Louis Lumière invented a camera that was much lighter and more portable. It could also be used as a projector to show the moving pictures, or “movies,” to a crowd.

In 1895, the brothers used the device to show 10 of their films at a Paris café. It was one of the first public movie showings before an audience!

One of the first moving picture cameras was huge. The Edison Manufacturing Company invented it. This camera was as big as a refrigerator! And it was just as heavy. The films played on a one-person viewing device.

Later, two French brothers invented a camera. They were Auguste and Louis Lumière. Their camera was much lighter and easier to move. It could also work as a projector. Now a crowd could watch the moving pictures, or “movies.”

In 1895, the brothers used their invention at a Paris café. An audience watched 10 of their films. It was one of the first public movie showings!

Thousands of movies were made with the Lumières’ camera. By connecting sections of film, people could tell longer stories—and create special effects, like making objects seem to vanish.

Today, these movies are called “silent films” because the cameras didn’t record sound. But in theaters, movie-watching was anything but silent! “There was live music, and people would narrate,” says Adriaensens. It was a noisy, interactive experience.

Filmmakers began making movies with sound in the 1920s. At first, they captured sounds on records and played them with the pictures. Shortly after, new technology allowed sound to be recorded on film.

Movies with sound, called talkies, were a huge hit! By about 1932, most U.S. theaters used projectors that played movies with sound.

People made thousands of movies with the Lumières’ camera. They connected pieces of film to tell longer stories. They also created special effects. For example, they made objects seem to vanish.

The cameras didn’t record sound. So we call these movies “silent films.” But movie-watching in theaters wasn’t silent! “There was live music, and people would narrate,” says Adriaensens. It was noisy and interactive.

The first movies with sound came in the 1920s. The sounds were on records at first. People played them with the pictures. New technology soon came along. Then sound was recorded on film.

Movies with sound were called talkies. They were a huge hit! So theaters got projectors that played them. Most U.S. theaters played movies with sound by about 1932.

Early talkies were filmed in black and white. In the 1930s, studios began using a new process to add color to film, called Technicolor. Cameras filmed through three colored filters. The films were combined to create bright, colorful images.

The Wizard of Oz, released in 1939, remains a famous example of Technicolor to this day. The bright green of the Emerald City and the deep red of Dorothy’s ruby slippers dazzled audiences.

But the technology was expensive. It was also uncomfortable! The lights needed to film in Technicolor heated up movie sets. The Wizard of Oz cast and crew sweltered in temperatures of 100° Fahrenheit (38° Celsius)!

In the 1950s, Kodak introduced color film. This made filming movies in color easier and less expensive.

Early talkies were filmed in black and white. Studios began to use Technicolor in the 1930s. It was a new way to add color to film. Cameras filmed through three colored filters. Then the films were combined. This created bright, colorful images.

The Wizard of Oz was released in 1939. It’s still a famous example of Technicolor. The Emerald City was bright green. Dorothy’s ruby slippers were deep red. This amazed audiences. 

But the technology was expensive. It was also uncomfortable! Bright lights were needed to film in Technicolor. They heated up movie sets. The Wizard of Oz cast and crew sweated it out. Temperatures were 100° Fahrenheit (38° Celsius)!

Kodak released color film in the 1950s. Then it was easier to film movies in color. It was also less expensive.