A movie is a story told through moving pictures and sound, shown on a screen. When you watch a movie, you're seeing thousands of photographs displayed so quickly (usually 24 per second) that they create the illusion of continuous motion. Add dialogue, music, and sound effects, and you have one of the most powerful storytelling mediums ever invented.

Movies can transport you anywhere: to distant planets, ancient civilizations, or imaginary worlds that exist only in someone's imagination. They can make you laugh until your stomach hurts, keep you on the edge of your seat with suspense, or move you to tears. A great movie can change how you see the world or help you understand experiences very different from your own.

Before movies, people could only see stories performed live on stage. The invention of movies meant a performance could be captured once and watched by millions of people across the world for generations to come.

People also call them films or use the British term cinema. Making a movie involves hundreds of people: actors, directors, camera operators, set designers, costume makers, and many more, all working together to create something that might entertain audiences for just 90 minutes but took months or years to complete.