Welcome to December 28th on the National Day Calendar.

We all love the world of movies, and the feature length films that capture our imagination are celebrated in various award ceremonies. But how often have you paid attention to the category of short films?

When you watch the Academy Awards, are you tempted to go grab some popcorn as they announce the winners in this category. Then perhaps you’ll be interested to know that we owe a huge thanks to a short film called Workers Leaving the Lumiere Factory, which made its debut in 1895 at the Grand Café in Paris. The movie was only a few minutes long and showed workers going home at the end of their shift. The 10 people in the audience that day became the first ever to view a motion picture in a theater and the rest, as they say, is history.

On National Short Film Day, we celebrate this one small clip and the giant leap forward for the movie making industry.