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DO ANCIENT ROMAN ARTIFACTS REVEAL THE WORLD’S FIRST MOTION PICTURE PROJECTOR?
Presenting evidence from a “speculative archaeological find” in Zadar, Croatia, “Ancient Cinema” is a multimedia installation and transmedia project by Canadian artist Henry Jesionka scheduled to debut in Zadar in June. The piece’s premise — that ancient artifacts recently retrieved from Zadar point to the existence of the world’s first motion picture project.
Jesionka explains his Indiegogo project:
Based on this speculative evidence, “Ancient Cinema” will present a working recreation of an ancient Roman movie projector, projecting the world’s first animated “films.” Along with this groundbreaking discovery, the installation will feature a short documentary about the sourcing and analysis of the artifacts, a comprehensive Website examining the precedents for the Roman projector and other proto-cinematic innovations in the ancient world, and the evidence itself: the original artifacts “discovered” in the flea market. The installation Website will also feature replicas of the ancient Roman coin and glass “animation frames”.
Check out the video below and consider contributing to Jesionka’s campaign, which ends in five days. (The rewards are very cool.)
