Alexandre Michon

Alexander Mishon (Russian: Александр Михайлович Мишон; 5 July 1858 in Kharkiv – 5 July 1921 near Samara) was a Russian Empire photographer and cinematographer. Born to a French family in Kharkiv, he started his career as a photographer and owned a photo studio in his hometown. He later settled in Baku (nowadays capital of Azerbaijan) and lived there for 25 years. Here, in 1898, he shot his first films using a Lumière cinematograph. Michon is widely regarded as the pioneer of Azerbaijani cinema.