Kinoapparat

Kinoapparat is a German term that translates to cinema apparatus. In historical and technical contexts it refers to the hardware and systems used to film, edit, and project motion pictures. It is not a single device but a collective designation for the complete setup used in traditional cinema.

In German-language film history, the term appears in catalogs, manuals, and scholarly discussions of early cinema, spanning the late 19th century into the 20th century. The specifics of a kinoapparat varied over time and by region, as cameras, editing tools, and projectors were produced by different manufacturers and adapted to different film formats and sound technologies.

Typical components of a kinoapparat include a motion-picture camera for capturing images on film stock, a film editing table and splicer for cutting and joining segments, and a projector for exhibition. During the silent era, the camera, editing equipment, and projector were often separate, while later developments integrated sound and synchronized projection. Additional items such as lighting, lenses, reels, and spools supported operation and handling.

Today, the term is primarily of historical interest and is used by scholars, archivists, and collectors when describing vintage cinema equipment. In contemporary German usage, it is more common to refer to the individual devices—Kamera, Projektionseinheit or Filmprojektor—rather than to a single aggregate term.