We divide film history into five large periods- early cinema(to about 1919), the late silent era(1919-1929), the development of sound cinema(1926-1945), the period after Word War II(1946-1960s), and the contemporary cinema (1960s to the present). These divisions reflect developments in a)film form and style b)major changes in film production, distribution, and exhibition. c)significant international trends.
Although the cinema is a relatively young medium invented only a little over a century ago, many films have already been lost or destroyed. For decades, movies were seen as products with temporary commercial value, and companies did little to ensure their preservation. Even when film archives were founded, beginning in the 1930s, they faced a daunting task of collecting and sheltering the thousands of films that had already been made. Moreover, the nitrate film stock, upon which most films up to the early 1950s were shot and printed, was highly flammable and deteriorated over time.
Deliberate destruction of films, archive and warehouse fires and the gradual decomposition of nitrate stored in bad conditions have led to the loss of many titles. According to rough estimates, only about 20 percent of silent films are known to survive. Many of these are still sitting in vaults, unidentified or unpreserved due to lack of funds. Even more recent films may be inaccessible to the researcher.
Films made in some small countries, particularly in Third World nations, do not circulate widely. Small archives may not have the facilities to preserve films or show them to the researchers. In some cases, political regimes may choose to suppress certain films and promote others.
Blogger-Akash Shinde😍 (Assistant director)
Student of Journalism and mass communication.
Migrant Worker 