TECHNES Encyclopedia Database

Ever since Georges Méliès, cinema decors have always been developed in close connection with trick effects, but with a degree of unobtrusiveness. Generally speaking, production designers in cinema often say that a successful decor is one that goes unnoticed. The same is true of trick effects related to the decor, which are often imperceptible to the viewer. Georges Méliès, in “Kinematographic Views,” explained that “as far as illusions... are concerned, inventing, combining and outlining the tricks and the preliminary study of their composition require special care.”^[1] This “special care” given to conceiving trick effects in cinema underscores their ability to create images which cannot be captured by a recording device the way they appear. We can already see with Méliès this “special” quality of trick effects, compared to merely shooting a scene with a camera, as these effects have an impact on the very conception of film decors and the performances of the actors in the midst of these decors.