Encyclopedia of French Film Directors

sixteen. Hired as a secretary by Léon Gaumont in
1896, she shyly proposed to her boss writing a few
playets to be performed by her friends. Gaumont
agreed, and she became the world’s fi rst female director.
Two years later, she was nominated chief of the
Service des Théâtres de Prises de Vue. Until 1907, she
was the queen of Gaumont Productions as a production
director (more than 400 shorts), artistic director,
and fi lmmaker. She allowed such important fi lmmakers
as Etienne Arnaud, Victorin Jasset, and Louis Feuillade
to make their directorial debuts. In 1907, she married
the Englishman Herbert Blaché-Bolton, who ran
Gaumont’s British and German offi ces. The couple
was sent to the USA to promote the Chronophone,
a relative of talking pictures. It was a failure, and Herbert
Blaché took over as the head of Gaumont’s fi lm
development and print factory. The Blachés created
their own production company, Solax, which fi nanced
almost 300 movies from 1910 to 1916, directed by
Alice Guy herself and a few other fi lmmakers (1912
The Equine Spy, short, Edward Warren, USA; The Sewer,
short, Edward Warren, USA; Dublin Dan, short, Edward
Warren, Herbert Blaché, USA; 1913 Beasts of the
Jungle, short, also screenwriter, Edward Warren, USA;
1915 The Shooting of Dan McGrew, short, Herbert
Blaché, USA; Barbara Frietchie, short, Herbert Blaché,
USA). Alice Guy founded her studios in Fort Lee and
hired young beginners who soon became movie stars
(notably Bessie Love, Wallace Reid, Alla Nazimova, and
Ethel Barrymore and the future director Allan Dwan).
Unfortunately, the Blachés lost control of Solax and
divorced. In 1922, Alice Guy returned to France and
settled in Nice with her children. After vainly trying
to resume her fi lm career, she had to earn her living
writing short stories and tales for children. In 1964,
she came back to the USA to live with one of her
daughters in Mahwah, New Jersey. Other credits (as
screenwriter): 1913 Kelly from the Emerald Isle (short,
Edward Warren, USA); (as assistant director): 1920
Stronger Than Death (Herbert Blaché, Charles Bryant,
Robert Z. Leonard, USA). Autobiography: 1976
Autobiographie d’une Pionnière du Cinéma, 1873–1968
(Collection Femme) (co-authors Nicole-Lise Bernheim,
Claire Clouzot, Francis Lacassin; Editions Gonthier,
Paris). In 1983, Caroline Huppert directed a TV biopic
on her in which she was portrayed by Christine
Pascal (Elle voulait faire du Cinéma). A documentary
was also dedicated to her (1995 Jardin oublié: La Vie et
l’oeuvre d’Alice Guy-Blaché / The Lost Garden: The Life and
GUY, ALICE • 483
Cinema of Alice Guy-Blaché, Marquise Lepage, Canada /
UK / France / Belgium / USA).
Filmography
1896 La Fée aux Choux (short)
1897 L’Arroseur arrosé (short)
Au Réfectoire (short)
L’Aveugle (short)
Baignade dans le Torrent (short)
Ballet libella (short)
Les Cambrioleurs (short)
Chez le Magnétiseur (short)
Le Cocher de Fiacre endormi (short)
Coucher d’Yvette (short)
Danse Fleur de Lotus (short)
En Classe (short)
France et Russie (short)
Idylle (short)
Idylle interrompue (short)
Leçon de Danse (short)
Le Pêcheur dans le Torrent (short)
Le Planton du Colonel (short)
Une Nuit agitée (short)
1898 La Cène (short)
Le Chemin de Croix (short)
La Crèche de Bethléem (short)
Déménagement à la Cloche de Bois (short)
L’Entrée à Jérusalem (short)
Les Farces de Jocko (short)
La Flagellation (short)
La Fuite en Egypte (short)
Le Jardin des Oliviers (short)
Jésus devant Pilate (short)
Je vous y prrrrends! (short)
Leçons de Boxe (short)
Scène d’Escamotage (short)
L’Utilité des Rayons X (short)
1899 Au Cabaret (short)
L’Aveugle (short)
La Bonne Absinthe (short)
Le Chiffonnier (short)
Courte Echelle (short)
Le Crucifi ment (short)
Les Dangers de l’Alcoolisme (short)
Le Déjeuner des Enfants (short)
La Descente de Croix (short)
Erreur judiciaire (short)
La Mauvaise Soupe (short)
Mésaventure d’un Charbonnier (short)