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A tale of outsized ambition and outrageous excess, it traces the rise and fall of multiple characters during an era of unbridled decadence and depravity in early Hollywood.

40 international directors were asked to make a short film using the original Cinematographe invented by the Lumière brothers.

December 1897, Paris. Edmond Rostand is not yet thirty but already two children and a lot of anxieties. He has not written anything for two years. In desperation, he offers the great Constant Coquelin a new play, a heroic comedy, in verse, for the holidays. Only concern: it is not written yet. Ignoring the whims of actresses, the demands of his Corsican producers, the jealousy of his wife, the stories of his best friend's heart and the lack of enthusiasm of all those around him, Edmond starts writing this piece which nobody believes. For now, he has only the title: "Cyrano de Bergerac".

A collection of restored prints from the Lumière Brothers.

A rare gem of cinematic storytelling that weaves docudrama, fictional reenactment, and experimental photography into a powerful, reflective work on the early days of German cinema. The film tells the story of the Skladanowsky Brothers, the German-born duo responsible for inventing the "bioskop", an early version of the film projector.

Thierry Frémaux follows up his 2016 collection of Lumière Brother films with another set of rare, restored prints.

This film based on an idea of Bertrand Tavernier. It is a sort of "making off" (a film about a film) of the First Film, which was shot in Lyon by Louis Lumière just one century ago, on a site which still contains a few remaining vestiges of the former Lumière factories. What can we re-enact of the conditions in which the first film was shot ? Was Louis Lumière an inventor, or was he the first film-maker ? Was this the start of a new art form ? By using methods of investigation, he will make it a point of honor to demonstrate via this documentary that Louis and Auguste's invention still deeply affects and fascinates us, and show to what extent Louis Lumière the film-maker has things to teach the directors of the present-day and tomorrow.

The first two decades of cinema, 1895-1918; its invention in New Jersey and Lyon and its development from a gimmick to a language through the innovation of many technicians and artists.

David discovers how the house came to be built as a merchant's residence by a canny property developer at a time when Liverpool was one of the world's great trading ports.

David Olusoga follows the residents of the house from the 1850s to 1890s, a period of rapid change. He uncovers the story of why the house changed from a single dwelling to a boarding house, a Jewish immigrant and a sad family drama.

This edition charts the fortunes of the various residents of the house during the turbulent period from 1891 to 1945 - encompassing two World Wars and the Great Depression.

The show concludes by charting the history of the house from 1945 to the present day. A period of post-war austerity, decline, creativity and regeneration.