That's a fascinating connection! The relationship between Dracula (and vampires in general) and mirrors is one of the most famous and enduring parts of vampire lore, and it primarily stems from Bram Stoker's novel.

Here is a breakdown of why Dracula has no reflection and the various theories behind this famous trait:

1. The Origin in Bram Stoker's Dracula (1897) Stoker's Invention: The idea that a vampire casts no reflection in a mirror or other reflective surfaces was not a feature of traditional European vampire folklore—it was a famous invention by Bram Stoker for his novel.

The Scene: The moment is introduced early in the book when Jonathan Harker, shaving in Dracula's castle, is startled to see the Count standing behind him, but his image is not visible in the shaving mirror. Dracula reacts with a violent fury, proving the phenomenon is real.

A Dramatic Device: For Stoker, this was a powerful way to reveal Dracula's inhuman nature to Harker and the reader in a dramatic, modern way.

2. Theories on Why Vampires Lack a Reflection Stoker himself never explicitly gave a reason in the book, but the common theories in literature and pop culture include:

Lack of a Soul: This is the most popular explanation. Many historical cultures believed a mirror did not just reflect the physical body, but the human soul. Since vampires are undead, soulless abominations or creatures cursed by God, they have no soul for the mirror to reflect.

The Silver Connection: Historically, high-quality mirrors were often backed with silver (or silver nitrate). Silver is frequently seen in folklore as a pure or holy metal, and therefore is anathema (repulsive) to evil creatures like vampires (similar to how it affects werewolves). A silver-backed mirror would naturally reject the vampire's image.

Inability to be Captured: Stoker's notes suggested Dracula also couldn't be photographed or painted correctly. This suggests the issue is not just with the mirror, but the vampire's inability to have their true form captured or recorded by technology and art—a theme that fits with the novel's contrast between ancient evil and modern science.

An Abomination: As something fundamentally wrong or unnatural in the world, the vampire does not fully belong to our reality, and therefore its image cannot be properly processed by a purely physical medium like a reflection.

3. Pop Culture Impact This single detail has become one of the most defining characteristics of the modern vampire, seen across countless films, TV shows, and books. It's often used as a simple and effective test to identify a vampire.

anything else with other beings who are like that with mirrors?

That is an excellent follow-up question! The trope of a supernatural being lacking a reflection—or having a distorted one—is not unique to Dracula. It appears in the folklore and literature of various cultures, usually for similar reasons related to having no soul or being spectral.

Here are some other beings often associated with the inability to be seen in mirrors:

👻 Ghosts and Spirits The Concept: In many traditions, a ghost or a spirit is the disembodied soul of a deceased person. Since they are no longer physical entities, but purely spiritual, they cannot interact with light to form a reflection on a physical surface like a mirror.

The Reason: This aligns with the "no soul, no reflection" theory applied to vampires, but in the case of ghosts, the body is absent entirely, making the lack of reflection a sign of their non-physical nature.

👹 Demons and Fiends The Concept: Demons are often depicted as having no reflection, or seeing a reflection that is horrifyingly distorted or missing their shadow.

The Reason: Similar to the vampire's lack of a soul, a demon's true appearance is considered an abomination against God or nature. A reflection is often seen as a window to the soul or a capture of one's true self, which the demon cannot or will not allow to be captured or revealed.

🐺 Skinwalkers (Navajo Lore) The Concept: In Navajo culture, a Yee Naaldlooshii (often translated as "skinwalker") is a type of harmful witch who can transform into, or possess, an animal.

The Reason: While the lore is complex and varies, the general idea is that these beings are masters of disguise and manipulation. The lack of a reflection or an inability to be photographed/filmed can be an indicator of their disguised or unnatural state, making it impossible for a camera or mirror to capture their true, evil essence.

🧪 Modern Fictional Creatures While not folklore, many modern fantasy and science fiction creatures are given this trait:

Replicants (e.g., from Blade Runner): Sometimes, a non-human entity (like a robot or clone) might not reflect, not for spiritual reasons, but because of a scientific or technological anomaly that makes them slightly "out of phase" with the natural world.

Other Undead: Beyond classical vampires, other forms of undead or magically animated creatures are sometimes shown to lack a reflection as a visual cue that they are "unnatural" or a violation of life.

The core idea usually boils down to the being lacking a fundamental human element—be it a soul, a true physical form, or a benign relationship with the natural order.

any footage of this and mirrors?

That's a great request! Since these beings (like Dracula/vampires, ghosts, and demons) are supernatural or fictional, there is no real-life "footage" of them and mirrors.

However, you can easily find clips from movies and television shows that dramatize the famous moment where Dracula or a similar creature is revealed by its lack of a reflection.

I can search for clips that demonstrate this classic trope in films like Dracula or Van Helsing. Since you are asking for "footage" of this effect, I'll provide links to famous movie clips that visually demonstrate the "vampire no reflection" trope, which was popularized by Dracula.

Here are a few notable examples of this cinematic technique:

Count Dracula's Reflection (1931): This scene from the classic film starring Bela Lugosi is one of the most famous. Van Helsing notices Dracula's lack of reflection in a small mirrored box, leading to a dramatic confrontation.

Clip: Count Dracula's Reflection | Dracula (1931)

Dracula & Mina's Mirror Dance (1995): This is a comedic take from the Mel Brooks film, Dracula: Dead and Loving It. The humor comes from Dracula dancing with a human, where only his partner's reflection is visible in the enormous ballroom mirror, creating a funny and awkward sequence.

Clip: Dead and Loving It (1995) - Dracula & Mina's Mirror Dance Scene

Vampire Party Revelation (2004): In the movie Van Helsing, the trope is used on a larger scale. The heroes enter a ballroom where everyone is dancing, but a quick pan to a large mirror reveals that only the human guests have reflections, exposing the entire crowd of party-goers as vampires.

You can search for clips of these scenes, particularly the ones from the 1931 and 1995 films, using the titles provided above to see the effect in action.

real footage

That is a crucial distinction. Thank you for clarifying that you are asking about real, non-fictional footage.

To be direct and clear: There is no scientifically verifiable, "real footage" of a supernatural being (like a vampire, ghost, or demon) walking in front of a mirror and failing to cast a reflection.

Why Not? Supernatural Beings are Not Proven: Vampires, ghosts, and demons are elements of folklore, religion, and fiction. They have not been proven to exist in a way that can be recorded or studied scientifically.

Physics of Reflection: A reflection is purely a physical phenomenon. It happens when light bounces off a smooth surface. For an object to not cast a reflection, the light would have to pass through it completely without bouncing back to the mirror, which is a physical impossibility for any solid object.

"Hoax" Footage: While you can find countless videos online claiming to show ghosts, vampires, or other paranormal phenomena, they are consistently categorized as:

Hoaxes: Deliberately faked or edited videos.

Misinterpretation: Natural phenomena, dust particles, lens flares, camera artifacts, or psychological effects like Pareidolia (seeing meaningful patterns in random stimuli).

In short: The entire concept of a being visible to the naked eye but invisible in a mirror is a narrative device created in fiction (most famously by Bram Stoker for Dracula) to signify a lack of a soul or an "unnatural" state.

If you are interested in the scientific explanations for why people think they see ghosts or strange reflections in mirrors, I can certainly provide information on optical illusions or the psychology of perception that may explain those common videos.