The Silent Oscars: 1907

Known as the "Spanish Méliès," Segundo de Chomón specialized in surreal optical effects films. Working in France for Pathé, Chomón successfully combined miniatures and live-action, pioneered hand-tinted film and invented the "film dolly" which allowed complex tracking shots. As a director, he was known for his trick photography—for example, building one short (The Electric Hotel) around a suitcase that unpacked itself, and another (Les Kiriki) around a troupe of Japanese acrobats who perform impossible stunts. Later he provided the special effects work in important feature-length films such as Cabiria (1914) and Abel Gance's Napoleon.

PICTURE
winner: Le spectre rouge (prod. Pathé Frères)
nominees: Ben Hur (prod. Kalem Company); Le tunnel sous la manche ou Le cauchemar franco-anglais a.k.a. Tunneling the English Channel (prod. Georges Méliès)

DIRECTOR
winner: Segundo de Chomón and Ferdinand Zecca (Le spectre rouge)
nominees: Alice Guy (L'enfant de la barricade); Georges Méliès (Le tunnel sous la manche ou Le cauchemar franco-anglais a.k.a. Tunneling the English Channel)