American Cinema in 1911

In 1911. D.W. Griffith pushes to expand the length of his movies to two reels, while Essanay start the popular Alkali Ike series and New York Herald illustrator Winsor McCay releases Little Nemo.

Wilfred Lucas in D.W. Griffith's Enoch Arden (1911)

Key developments

Nestor Film Company open Hollywood's first permanent movie studio.

On-screen credits and intertitles begin to appear regularly.

Biograph release Enoch Arden, America's first two-reel picture.

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Key films

People who made their mark

D. W. Griffith

Pioneering director whose narrative techniques shaped early feature filmmaking, amid a contested legacy.

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Mary Pickford

“America’s Sweetheart,” a leading silent star, producer and co-founder of United Artists.

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Active studios

Biograph

From 1908 Biograph became the USA's prominent studio thanks to the groundbreaking work of director D. W. Griffith.

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IMP

Carl Laemmle’s Independent Moving Picture Co existed for only three years, but holds an important place in American cinema.

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Kalem

A pioneering studio that at first owned no active studio, Kalem was the first American company to send units to film in foreign lands.

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Vitagraph

Founded in 1897 by two Englishmen, Vitagraph found early success by recreating marine battles in a bathtub...

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