history of film before 1920
Pre-1910 American film-making essentially began in the year 1891 when Willian K. ... Before the turn of the century, short films with an average length of around 30 seconds became popular at carnivals and other such events where a single viewer could pay money to view a “moving picture. ... Porter released his film entitled The Great Train Robbery, which was an astounding twelve minutes in length. This film, one of the most popular of the decade, provided inspiration for the further production of longer films with growing plot lines, and also contributed to the rise of the Nickelodeon, in 1905.