Santa Claus (1898) - G.A. Smith | BFI National Archive

Santa Claus (1898) - George Albert Smith | BFI Subscribe: Watch more on the BFI Player: Made in 1898, G.A. Smith’s ’Santa Claus’ is a film of considerable technical ambition and accomplishment for its period. It uses pioneering visual effects in its depiction of a visit from St. Nicholas. A former magic lanternist and hypnotist, Smith was one of the first British film-makers to make extensive use of special effects to create fantastical scenes. It comes as little surprise that Smith corresponded with the French pioneer Georges Méliès at about this time, as the two men shared a common goal in terms of creating an authentic cinema of illusion. (Michael Brooke) All titles on the BFI Films channel are preserved in the vast collections of the BFI National Archive. To find out more about the Archive visit Follow us on Twitter: Like us on Facebook: Follow us on Google : britishfilminstitute/