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Do you have 11 and a half minutes for one of the most famous, influential films of all time? How about one with a collection of old astronomers who decide it would be a marvelous idea to shoot a rocket into the eye of the moon to visit? (Yes, that scene – really that scene). Georges Melies, groundbreaking french film-maker and ex-illusionist made over 500 films, was the first person to use stop motion as a frequent source of special effects – and most importantly for us, pioneered film as a medium for entertainment and escapism, instead of the documentary-like life snapshots it had been used for previously.

So here – a video of a film now more than 100 years old – a rip roaring yarn of scientists exploring strange lands, marvelous travelling mechanisms and very Steampunk trappings. Adventure! Danger! And pretty ladies. chuckles