: The .mp4 file format was developed in the late 1990s. Any "1877" file found today is a modern digital upload, even if it claims to be a restoration.
: In 1877, photographer Eadweard Muybridge was busy proving that all four of a horse's hooves leave the ground at once using a series of 12 cameras. These were individual still photos, not a continuous film strip. Sexy Girl (1877) mp4
What were early films like? At first, films were very short, sometimes only a few minutes or less. They were shown at fairgrounds, National Science and Media Museum History of film - Britannica These were individual still photos, not a continuous
: Sequential photos of a galloping horse. They were shown at fairgrounds, National Science and
: Serpentine Dance , one of the first films to feature a female performer and hand-tinted color.
: Inventor Charles-Émile Reynaud patented the Praxinoscope in 1877. This was a spinning cylinder with mirrors that created a brief loop of movement from a strip of drawings—essentially a high-tech toy rather than a movie. Why "Sexy Girl (1877)" Is Likely a Hoax