The year 1914 in film involved some significant events, including the debut of Cecil B. DeMille as a director.Birchard, Robert S. (2004). Cecil B. DeMille's Hollywood. Lexington, Kentucky: The University Press of Kentucky, p. 1-13,
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Events February 2 – Charlie Chaplin's first film, Making a Living, is released. February 7 – Release of Charlie Chaplin's second film, the Keystone comedy Kid Auto Races at Venice, in which his character of The Tramp is introduced to audiences (although first filmed in Mabel's Strange Predicament, released two days later). February 8 – Winsor McCay's Gertie the Dinosaur greatly advances filmed animation movement techniques. February 10 – Release of the film Hearts Adrift; the name of Mary Pickford, the star, is displayed above the title on movie marquees. February – Lewis J. Selznick and Arthur Spiegel organize the World Film Corporation, a distributor of independently produced films located in Fort Lee, New Jersey, March 8 – D. W. Griffith's first feature film, Judith of Bethulia, is released. It is his last production for the Biograph Company. March 20 – Tess of the Storm Country makes Mary Pickford an icon in the US and a celebrity around the world. March 31 – The serial The Perils of Pauline, starring Pearl White, is an early example of the damsel in distress in film. April 12 – The 3,300-seat Mark Strand Theatre opens in New York City. April 18 – Cabiria, directed by Giovanni Pastrone, is released in Italy, the first epic film,According to Martin Scorsese. featuring the first extensive use of a moving camera dolly in a feature film, and introducing the long-running character Maciste. May 8 – Paramount Pictures is formed as a film distributor by William Wadsworth Hodkinson. June 13 – 1914 Lubin vault fire: a major fire destroys the main nitrate film vault of the Lubin Manufacturing Company in Philadelphia (U.S.). September – The Neptune Film Company opens the Neptune Studios (the first "dark stage" in England) at Borehamwood, north of London. November 14 – The Kalem Company of California releases the first in the adventure film series The Hazards of Helen, initially starring actress/stuntwoman Helen Holmes, releasing a new episode every Saturday until February 1917. November 19 – William Fox's Box Office Attractions Company releases its first production, Life's Shop Window. December 3 – William S. Hart appears in his first feature film, The Bargain, which makes him a star. December 21 – Release of the first American made feature-length comedy film, Tillie's Punctured Romance, which also contains Marie Dressler and Charlie Chaplin's feature film debuts. December – Chaplin joins Essanay Studios for $1,250 per week. Filoteo Alberini introduces a new 70 mm format, Panoramico, with the film Il sacco di Roma.
Highest-grossing films (U.S.) The top eight 1914 released films by box office gross in North America are as follows: +Highest-grossing films of 1914 Rank Title Studio Gross 1The SpoilersGeneral $1,000,000 2Dough and DynamiteParamount $130,000 3The Virginian $111,518 4Rose of the Rancho $87,028 5The Man from Home $62,091 6What's His Name $61,560 7The Call of the North $52,284 8The Ghost Breaker $50,136
Notable films Films produced in the United States unless stated otherwise
A An American Citizen (lost), directed by J. Searle Dawley, starring John Barrymore The Avenging Conscience, directed by D. W. Griffith, starring Blanche Sweet and Henry B. Walthall, based on the works of Edgar Allan PoeKinnard, Roy (1995). "Horror in Silent Films". McFarland and Company Inc. Page 60. .
B Back to the Farm, directed by Joseph Levering, starring Oliver Hardy The Bargain, directed by Reginald Barker, starring William S. Hart The Battle of the Sexes (incomplete), directed by D. W. Griffith, starring Donald Crisp and Lillian Gish Between Showers, directed by Henry Lehrman, starring Charlie Chaplin and Ford Sterling Brewster's Millions (lost), directed by Oscar Apfel and Cecil B. DeMille, based on the 1902 novel by George Barr McCutcheon Brute Force, directed by D. W. Griffith, starring Robert Harron and Mae Marsh A Busy Day, directed by and starring Charlie Chaplin By the Sun's Rays, directed by Charles Giblyn, starring Lon ChaneyBlake, Michael F. (1998). "The Films of Lon Chaney". Vestal Press Inc. Page 21. .
C Cabiria, directed by Giovanni Pastrone – (Italy) The Call of the North, directed by Oscar Apfel and Cecil B. DeMilleBirchard, Robert S. (2004). Cecil B. DeMille's Hollywood. Lexington, Kentucky: The University Press of Kentucky, p. 19-21, Caught in a Cabaret, directed by and starring Mabel Normand, with Charlie Chaplin Caught in the Rain, directed by and starring Charlie Chaplin A Christmas Carol, directed by Harold M. Shaw, based on the 1843 novella by Charles DickensKinnard, Roy (1995). "Horror in Silent Films". McFarland and Company Inc. Page 62. . – (GB) Cinderella, directed by James Kirkwood Sr., starring Mary Pickford, based on the classic fairy tale Cruel, Cruel Love, directed by George Nichols and Mack Sennett, starring Charlie Chaplin
D Demolition of the Monument at San Stefano (Ayastefanos'taki Rus Abidesinin Yıkılışı), directed by Fuat Uzkınay – (Ottoman Empire) Dough and Dynamite, directed by and starring Charlie Chaplin
E Evangeline (lost), directed by Edward P. Sullivan and William Cavanaugh – (Canada) The Exploits of Elaine, film serial directed by Louis J. Gasnier and George B. Seitz, starring Pearl White
F The Face on the Bar Room Floor, directed by and starring Charlie Chaplin Fantômas (parts 4 & 5), film serial directed by Louis Feuillade, based on the true crime novels by Pierre Souvestre and Marcel Allain – (France) The Fatal Mallet, directed by Mack Sennett, starring Charlie Chaplin and Mabel Normand Figures de cire (The Man with Wax Faces), directed by Maurice TourneurKinnard, Roy (1995). "Horror in Silent Films". McFarland and Company Inc. Page 57. . – (France) A Film Johnnie, directed by George Nichols, starring Charlie Chaplin, Fatty Arbuckle and Mabel Normand A Florida Enchantment, directed by Sidney Drew, starring Edith Storey
G Gentlemen of Nerve, directed by and starring Charlie Chaplin, with Mabel Normand Gertie the Dinosaur, animated film directed by Winsor McCay Getting Acquainted, directed by and starring Charlie Chaplin, with Mabel Normand The Ghost Breaker (lost), directed by Cecil B. DeMille and Oscar C. Apfel, starring H. B. WarnerKinnard, Roy (1995). "Horror in Silent Films". McFarland and Company Inc. Page 63. . A Good Little Devil (incomplete), directed by Edwin S. Porter, starring Mary Pickford
H The Hazards of Helen, film serial directed by J. P. McGowan and J. Gunnis Davis, starring Helen Holmes His Favorite Pastime, directed by George Nichols, starring Charlie Chaplin and Fatty Arbuckle His Majesty, the Scarecrow of Oz, directed by J. Farrell MacDonald, based on the 1900 novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum His Musical Career, directed by and starring Charlie Chaplin His New Profession, directed by and starring Charlie Chaplin, with Fatty Arbuckle His Prehistoric Past, directed by and starring Charlie Chaplin His Trysting Place, directed by and starring Charlie Chaplin, with Mabel Normand Home, Sweet Home, directed by D. W. Griffith, starring Henry B. Walthall, Lillian Gish and Dorothy Gish Der Hund von Baskerville (The Hound of the Baskervilles), directed by Rudolf Meinert, based on the 1902 novel by Arthur Conan DoyleKinnard, Roy (1995). "Horror in Silent Films". McFarland and Company Inc. Page 65. . – (Germany)
I In the Land of the Head Hunters, directed by Edward S. Curtis
J Judith of Bethulia, directed by D. W. Griffith, starring Blanche Sweet and Henry B. Walthall
K Kid Auto Races at Venice, directed by Henry Lehrman, starring Charlie Chaplin The Knockout, directed by Charles Avery, starring Fatty Arbuckle and Charlie Chaplin
L Laughing Gas, directed by and starring Charlie Chaplin The Life of General Villa (lost), starring Pancho Villa as himself, with Raoul Walsh, co-produced by D. W. Griffith Life's Shop Window (lost), directed by J. Gordon Edwards, first film produced by William Fox
M Mabel at the Wheel, directed by Mack Sennett, starring Mabel Normand and Charlie Chaplin Mabel's Blunder, directed by and starring Mabel Normand Mabel's Busy Day, directed by and starring Mabel Normand, with Charlie Chaplin Mabel's Married Life, directed by and starring Charlie Chaplin, with Mabel Normand Mabel's Strange Predicament, directed by and starring Mabel Normand, with Charlie Chaplin The Magic Cloak of Oz, directed by J. Farrell MacDonald, starring Mildred Harris, based on the 1905 novel Queen Zixi of Ix by L. Frank Baum Making a Living, directed by Henry Lehrman, the first film starring Charlie Chaplin The Man from Home, directed by Cecil B. DeMille The Masquerader, directed by and starring Charlie Chaplin, with Fatty Arbuckle The Million Dollar Mystery (lost), film serial directed by Howell Hansel, starring Florence La Badie Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch, directed by Harold Entwistle
N The New Janitor, directed by and starring Charlie Chaplin
O The Oubliette, directed by Charles Giblyn, starring Lon ChaneyBlake, Michael F. (1998). "The Films of Lon Chaney". Vestal Press Inc. Page 22. .
P The Patchwork Girl of Oz, directed by J. Farrell MacDonald, based on the 1913 novel by L. Frank Baum The Perils of Pauline, film serial directed by Louis J. Gasnier, starring Pearl White The Property Man, directed by and starring Charlie Chaplin
R Recreation, directed by and starring Charlie Chaplin Rose of the Rancho, directed by Cecil B. DeMille, starring Bessie BarriscaleBirchard, Robert S. (2004). Cecil B. DeMille's Hollywood. Lexington, Kentucky: The University Press of Kentucky, p. 30-33, The Rounders, directed by and starring Charlie Chaplin, with Fatty Arbuckle
S Salomy Jane, directed by William Nigh and Lucius J. Henderson, starring Beatriz Michelena The Spoilers, directed by Colin Campbell, starring William Farnum and Kathlyn Williams The Squaw Man, directed by Oscar Apfel and Cecil B. DeMille, starring Dustin Farnum The Stain, directed by Frank Powell, starring Theda Bara The Star Boarder, directed by George Nichols, starring Charlie Chaplin A Study in Scarlet (lost), directed by George Pearson, based on the 1887 novel by Arthur Conan DoyleKinnard, Roy (1995). "Horror in Silent Films". McFarland and Company Inc. . – (GB)
T Tango Tangles, directed by Mack Sennett, starring Charlie Chaplin, Fatty Arbuckle and Ford Sterling Tess of the Storm Country, directed by Edwin S. Porter, starring Mary Pickford Those Love Pangs, directed by and starring Charlie Chaplin Tillie's Punctured Romance, directed by Mack Sennett, starring Marie Dressler, Mabel Normand, Charlie Chaplin and the Keystone Cops Twenty Minutes of Love, directed by and starring Charlie Chaplin
U Uncle Tom's Cabin, directed by William Robert Daly, starring Sam Lucas, based on the 1852 novel by Harriet Beecher Stowe
V The Virginian, directed by Cecil B. DeMille, starring Dustin Farnum, based on the 1902 novel by Owen WisterBirchard, Robert S. (2004). Cecil B. DeMille's Hollywood. Lexington, Kentucky: The University Press of Kentucky, p. 14–18,
W What's His Name, directed by Cecil B. DeMille, starring Max Figman and Lolita RobertsonBirchard, Robert S. (2004). Cecil B. DeMille's Hollywood. Lexington, Kentucky: The University Press of Kentucky, p. 23-26, The Wishing Ring: An Idyll of Old England, directed by Maurice Tourneur, starring Vivian Martin The Wrath of the Gods, directed by Reginald Barker, starring Sessue Hayakawa and Frank Borzage
1914 film release dates January – The House of Bondage, a lost 1914 silent film drama directed by Pierce Kingsley and starring Lottie Pickford. January 3 – Engelein, German silent comedy film written and directed by Urban Gad