Decades before widescreen movies, he filmed on three screens at once.

Abel Gance was born in Paris on October 25, 1889. The French director spent four years making his 1927 epic Napoléon, using hand-colored film, rapid editing and battle scenes shot with multiple cameras.

For key scenes he invented Polyvision, using three projectors to show a single panorama across three connected screens, a forerunner of the widescreen Cinerama of the 1950s. He also experimented early with stereophonic sound.

Why it still matters: many techniques filmmakers use today were tested in Gance's daring experiments.

Which movie do you think changed cinema the most?

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