Alice Guy Blache (July 1, 1873 – March 24, 1968) was the first woman film director and the first to make fiction films before women had the right to vote and developed narrative film stories at a time when it really didn’t exist.

In 1912, she was a successful film director and business woman who wholly-owned and operated the Solax Studio, built in Fort Lee, New Jersey.

Producing two “one-reelers” (10-15 minute films aka short films) a week and developing a stable of movie stars, Alice Guy wrote and directed at least half of these films and oversaw all production.

Her rate of film production equaled that of D.W. Griffith, yet she was almost forgotten as a one of the pioneers in filmmaking. As a director for twenty-eight years, she accomplished things that no one was doing at the time (between 1902 and 1906) such as special effects, super imposition, colorization and synchronized sound films. Up until 1912, she was the only woman film director who had a consistent body of film work.