We normally think of early film as being black and white, but the first color cinematography appeared as early as the first decade of the twentieth century. In this visually stunning book, the editors present a treasure trove of early color film images from the archives of EYE Film Institute Netherlands, bringing to life their rich hues and forgotten splendor.

Carefully selecting and reproducing frames from movies made before World War I, Fossati, Gunning, Rosen, and Yumibe share the images here in a full range of tones and colors. Accompanying essays discuss the history of early film and the technical processes that filmmakers employed to capture these fascinating images, while other contributions explore preservation techniques and describe the visual delights that early film has offered audiences, then and now. Featuring more than 300 color illustrations for readers to examine and enjoy, Fantasia of Color in Early Cinema will engage scholars and other readers of all ages and backgrounds


Track down a copy and prepare to have your mind blown."
- Thomas Gladysz in the Huffington Post's Best Film Books of 2015

"I could gaze at the images in this book for hours. They are as fascinating as illuminated manuscripts or magic lantern slides."
- Martin Scorsese

"The most gorgeous collection of photos I've ever seen. These images, somehow still fresh with the power of their novelty, startle the eye every time I behold them. Mysterious and wondrous effect! And such a fascinating history!"
- Guy Maddin, director of My Winnipeg and The Heart of the World

"Fantasia of Color in Early Cinema is a brilliant, revelatory book, one that provides an instant cure for the color blindness that afflicts most viewers of early cinema, and a gateway into a little-known world of imagination and technical virtuosity. Illuminated by dazzling reproductions and authoritative essays by leading film scholars, this is the first book to do visual justice to the magical world of early cinema. It is also a masterpiece of book art in its own right."
- W.J.T. Mitchell, author of What Do Pictures Want?

"In the endless rewrite of art history the moving image seems indefinably futuristic. Fantasia of Color in Early Cinema makes the case for the importance of these mind-blowing masterpieces. These stunningly chromatic film stills link technology and the human touch while revealing one of film's best kept secrets. Traditional painting and sculpture relies on reflected light while projected light opens a wildly new path of experimentation. Here we see, for the very first time, images made at the speed of light."
- Tony Oursler

"Het boek Fantasia of Color in Early Cinema is een must voor elke filmliefhebber. ... De magie van vroege cinema wordt hiermee terecht in de spotlights gezet. In full color."
- Nico van den Berg, MovieScene.nl

"A beautiful, indulgent, interesting celebration and examination of colour in early film, reproducing individual high-resolution frame stills, thoughtprovokingly grouped in loose themes: ‘the dream’, ‘fairyland’, ‘voyage’, ‘metamorphosis’ and ‘fancy’. Let’s hope that Fantasia of Color in Early Film will inspire another generation [of film lovers].'
- Bryony Dixon, Sight & Sound

"This book will both inspire and educate."
- Stephen Bottomore, Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television
Nota de la solapa
We normally think of early film as being black and white, but the first color cinematography appeared as early as the first decade of the twentieth century. In this visually stunning book, the editors present a treasure trove of early color film images from the archives of EYE Film Institute Netherlands, bringing to life their rich hues and forgotten splendor. Carefully selecting and reproducingframes from movies made before World War I, Fossati, Gunning, Rosen, and Yumibe share the images here in a full range of tones and colors. Accompanying essays discuss the history of early film and the technical processes that filmmakers employed to capture these fascinating images, while other contributions explore preservation techniques and describe the visual delights that early film has offered audiences, then and now. Featuring more than 300 color illustrations for readers to examine and enjoy, Fantasia of Color in Early Cinema will engage scholars and other readers of all ages and backgrounds.