Blackton, Smith and Rock

In the chapter titled Blackton, Smith, and Rock the motion picture industry was influenced by three pioneers of vitagraph cinematography. Their names were Albert E. Smith, J. Stuart Blackton, and William T. Rock. Their imitation of the Spanish-American war was one of the earliest works of motion-picture propaganda.

"In the larger centers of Chicago and New York the motion picture was undergoing evolutionary growth with the birth of a topical or news bearing function in connection with the war."

Since the movie makers could not film actual war footage they staged their own re-enactments and proclaimed it as real footage. They used miniature models, camera tricks, and props to influence the audience. The vitagraph, which gives the illusion of continuous motion by moving a series of pictures very rapidly was the machine used for motion picture propaganda. Their film Tearing Down the Spanish Flag was a great success and paved the way for other movie makers.

http://www.victorian-cinema.net/rock.htm