GRADE: N/A
This 18-second-long film was produced by Thomas Edison and directed by Alfred Clark and may have been the first film in history to use trained actors, as well as the first to use editing for the purposes of special effects. The film shows a blindfolded Mary (played by Mrs. Robert L. Thomas) being led to the execution block. The executioner raises his axe and an edit occurs during which the actress is replaced by a mannequin. The mannequin’s head is chopped off and the executioner holds it in the air as the film ends.
Director: Alfred Clark
Date: 1895
Country of Origin: USA