The Miller and the Sweep
| The Miller and the Sweep | |
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Screenshot from the film
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| Directed by | George Albert Smith |
| Produced by | George Albert Smith |
| Cinematography | George Albert Smith |
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Production
company |
G.A. Smith
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| Distributed by | Warwick Trading Company |
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Release date
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Running time
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49 secs |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | Silent |
The Miller and the Sweep is a 1898 British short black-and-white silent comedy film, directed by George Albert Smith, featuring a miller carrying a bag of flour fighting with a chimney sweep carrying a bag of soot in front of a windmill, before a crowd comes and chases them away. The film, according to Michael Brooke of BFI Screenonline, "was one of the first films made by G.A. Smith, shortly after he first acquired a camera," and is also, "one of the earliest films to show a clear awareness of its visual impact when projected."
A miller is carrying a sack of flour from his windmill, when he accidentally bumps into a chimney sweep who is carrying a sack of soot. The two start fighting, during the course of which the miller is covered with soot and the chimney sweep is covered with flour. The chimney sweep chases the miller off screen, and a small crowd of adults and children appears unexpectedly from the right of the screen to chase after them both. The film finishes when the last of the crowd exits the shot.
The Miller and the Sweep was one of George Albert Smith's earliest productions, having built his first film camera the previous year. It was filmed in a single shot on 24 July 1897 in front of Race Hill Mill on the South Downs, north of Brighton Racecourse, and then re-filmed on 24 September - it is probably this latter version that has survived. These two versions are mentioned in Smith's cash book. There is no mention of the first print from July being sold. It is likely that the film was rehearsed before filming, as this was Smith's usual way of working with fiction films. The names of the actors are unknown, as with many films from the period, and it is not clear whether they are professional actors, music hall performers, comedians, or simply amateurs.
The September version of the film was available for commercial sale within a fortnight of its filming, and two prints were sold in the first week of October.
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Wikipedia