1869-1941
Director. Film Pioneer

Innovator.

Edwin Porter's curiosity about the mechanics of movies made him one of the most prominent technical innovators in the early years of the American cinema. His interest in the techniques of making images move across the screen led him to push the limits of existing technology to improve the quality of the new medium. His work with Thomas Edison on the mechanics of film, and with several early screen companies as producer and director of films, trained Porter in the full range of skills necessary in the new industry. Throughout the 1900s Porter's expertise made him a pioneer in the history of American cinema.

Early Life.

A merchant's son, Porter quit school at the age of fourteen and worked successively in several menial jobs, such as a railway newsboy, sign painter, plumber, telegrapher, theater cashier, tailor, stagehand, and machinist. Looking...