In 1915 the American film industry changed forever when it took its first step towards modern cinema. It was the year D.W. Griffith's A The Birth of a Nation was released, a racially insensitive film that depicted life during the Civil War and Reconstruction in America. It is undoubtedly the first major success of American cinema as it was the highest-grossing film of its time. It is no coincidence that the film destined to redefine the film industry in the United States would inevitably be a national historical epic, as the film was a response to the growing offerings of foreign films that dominated American cinema. Although ultimately The Birth of a Nation and DW Griffith were products of circumstances created by corporate attempts to industrialize cinema. DW Griffith is widely recognized as a pioneer and father of early cinema, although in reality he was just a creature of circumstance. In 1907, Griffith abandoned his stage career as a failed playwright and somewhat accomplished stage actor to work for the Biograph Company with his first role as the Father in Saved by the Eyrie. Griffith entered the American film industry at a pivotal moment that would shape and define his career. During this period the Edison Company was waging a war to monopolize the American film industry through lawsuits against other American companies that used versions of Edison's patented kinescope without paying royalties. These lawsuits devastated and prevented the growth of the industry as the film's popularity was increasing in the United States. In 1907, to accommodate the growing popularity of nickelodeons (the first movie theaters that charged a penny for admission and showed 3-4 short films), 1,200 films were released in the United States, of which only... on paper. .....he chose The Clansman as the novel on which to base his next film. These facts do not capture the underlying motivation for creating the film. Remember that Griffith was a fairly experienced stage actor before turning to film. During this period of Griffith's life the majority of plays produced were Shakespearean adaptations and other European productions. There was very little progress in American theater at the time, with David Belasco being the only notable theater producer of the period. The same could be said of the years between his departure from Biograph and the development of The Birth of a Nation. All the critically acclaimed films before the release of The Birth of a Nation were international films. Stokes agrees that Griffith thought about creating an “American spectacle” to rival the European imports.