Children in the Surf at Coney Island
About Children in the Surf at Coney Island
G. W. Bitzer set the camera low on the sand at Coney Island and pointed it out to sea. Several small children, most of them under six, hold hands and wade in the surf, with a few adults beyond them. By the end of the shot one child in a white bathing suit is left holding a toy sailboat, and a sailing craft sits farther out.
Cast & crew
More about Children in the Surf at Coney Island
Bitzer filmed it on 3 August 1904 at Sea Gate. American Mutoscope and Biograph copyrighted it on 12 August 1904 as H49062, production no. 2954, and the AFI Catalog gives the length as 194 feet.
Themes
Look
G. W. Bitzer shot from a low angle on the beach, with the lens aimed at the water rather than at the boardwalk.
Preservation
The Library of Congress holds the Biograph paper print. A digital copy is on the Internet Archive.
Notes
- The Biograph bulletin called it a crowd of youngsters paddling in the surf.
- The Library of Congress summary names seven children at the start of the view and one child with a sailboat at the end.
- The paper print is in the Library of Congress Paper Print Collection.
- Silent Era also lists the title as Children in the Surf, Coney Island.
Scenes
- Children hold hands in a line as the wash comes in.
- A single child in white remains, holding a toy boat.
Also available
- Internet Archive (ChildrenInTheSurf)
