Throughout the 19th century, imaginative and visionary artists and inventors brought about the advent of a new look, absolutely modern and truly cinematographic, long before the revolutionary invention of the Lumière brothers and the arrival of December 28, 1895, the historic day on which the first cinema performance took place.
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
 Vimala PonsSelf - Narrator (voice) | Self - Narrator (voice) |
 Bertrand LemoineSelf - Architecture Historian | Self - Architecture Historian |
| VVanessa SchwartzSelf - Art Historian | Self - Art Historian |
 Tacita DeanSelf - Artist | Self - Artist |
| PPaul PerrinSelf - Painting Curator | Self - Painting Curator |
| MMark LewisSelf - Artist | Self - Artist |
| DDominique PaïniSelf - Film Curator | Self - Film Curator |
| MMarie RobertSelf - Photo Curator | Self - Photo Curator |
 Thierry FrémauxSelf - Institut Lumière Director | Self - Institut Lumière Director |
 Christian PetzoldSelf - Filmmaker | Self - Filmmaker |
 Olivier AssayasSelf - Filmmaker | Self - Filmmaker |