Emile Reynaud

Biographical elements

Emile Reynaud learns in the workshop from his father, engraver of medals and clock and watch maker, the precision mechanics. Near his/her mother painter in watercolours, raises Pierre-Joseph Redouté, it learns the techniques from the drawing which will be useful to him later. At thirteen years, it carries out a Shadow theater, then a miniature Steam engine.

In 1858, it enters like apprentice to the establishments Adolphe Gaiffe to Paris, where it works with repair, the assembly and the development of physics and optical instruments. Then he works as operator in the portraitist Adam-Solomon, where he makes photographic final improvement, and settles then as photographer in Paris. In 1864, it follows the public courses of scientific popularization by luminous projections of the Abbé Moigno, becomes his assistant and learns the trade from teacher-lecturer. Its course is very required. In the same time, it takes part in the illustration of the general Dictionnaire of sciences theoretical and applied , appeared in 1870, of the French professor and naturalist Adolphe Focillon.

After the death of his/her father in 1865, Emile Reynaud turns over with his mother to the Puy-en-Velay, cradle family, where it gives his own scientific conferences. These conferences are a success near the population of Puy, which can admire there on big screen, inter alia experiments, the magic of the Cristallisation (chemistry) of salts in water.

In December 1877, it regains Paris to settle to the 58 of the street Rodier, in the IXe district where it is devoted to the assembly, the marketing and the development of its Praxinoscope S.

He marries Marguerite Rémiatte on October 21st 1879 in Paris. They will have two wire, Paul (1880) and Andre (1882).

In 1889, Emile Reynaud develops his optical Théâtre with which he proposes with the public Musée Grévin true small Cartoons, then called luminous mimes , as of on October 28th 1892. Until March 1900, more: 500000 people witness these projections. The cartoon had been born. It will become cinematographic only with Emile Cohl in 1908.

With the arrival of the Cinematograph of the Brothers Light in 1895, the end of projections to the Grévin museum and the decline of its company of manufacture of praxinoscopes, Emile Reynaud resells part of its material to the weight of copper and wood. Between 1910 and 1913, he undertakes the destruction of his bands, auquels only escape Pauvre Pierrot , Around a Cabin and some fragments of his other films. These last bands were restored and presented at the time of the commemoration of the centenary of the optical theater in 1992.

Victim of a congestion of the lungs, it enters to the old people's home of incurable of Ivry on March 29th, 1917. It remains there until its death on January 9th, 1918.

Its inventions

the Praxinoscope, in 1876, makes it possible to visualize a cyclic animation through a cylinder with facet of revolving mirrors around an axis. Then, it makes it evolve/move.
the praxinoscope-toy, in 1877, is a small praxinoscope whose animation, intended for the children, comprises only eight drawings.
the Praxinoscope-theater, in 1879, makes it possible a spectator to visualize a cyclic animation inside a fixed decoration.
the Praxinoscope with projection, in 1880, makes it possible to project on a screen a cyclic animation inside a fixed decoration, via a Magic lantern.
the cartoon with central Perforation, unrolled of a reel to another.
the optical Theater, in 1889, makes it possible to project on a screen an animation length and variables duration inside a fixed decoration, via two magic lanterns. It with the optical theater that Emile Reynaud projects in public the first cartoons, then is called luminous mimes , starting from October 28th 1892 and until in 1900, with the Musée Grévin. It is accompanied with the piano by Gaston Paulin which composes the musics.
the Stéréocinéma, in 1907, makes it possible to animate photographs in relief.

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