The cinema is indisputably the art form of the modern age. Ever since the Lumiere brothers' first moving pictures were greeted by astonished gasps in 1895 the movies have exerted an extraordinary and wide-reaching influence over us. The history of the cinema is a record of our rapidly changing world and the lively newspaper-style approach of Cinema Year by Year brings unprecedented immediacy to this irresistable story. Ready-reference pages list the key events and Oscar winners for each year and over 3 000 illustrations bring new life to the stars and scenes of over a century of film history. This unique reference work is the most entertaining and detailed history of cinema ever published.