History of animation
Encyclopedia
Animation is a graphic representation of drawings to show movement within those drawings. A series of drawings are linked together and usually photographed by a camera, or scanned into, or generated by a computer
. The drawings have been slightly changed between individual frames, so that when they are played back in rapid succession (24 frames per second) there appears to be seamless movement within the drawings.
cave paintings, where animals are depicted with multiple sets of legs in superimposed positions, clearly attempting to convey the perception of motion.
Other examples include a 5,200-year old earthen bowl found in Iran
in Shahr-e Sukhteh and an ancient Egyptian mural. The Persian bowl has five images painted along the sides, showing phases of a goat leaping up to nip at a tree.
The Egypt
ian mural
, found in the thomb of Khnumhotep and Niankhkhnum, at the Beni Hassan
cemetery. The paintings are approximately 4000 years old and show scenes of young soldiers being trained in wrestling and combat.
Seven drawings by Leonardo da Vinci
(ca. 1510) extending over two folios in the Windsor Collection, Anatomical Studies of the Muscles of the Neck, Shoulder, Chest, and Arm, show detailed drawings of the upper body (with a less-detailed facial image), illustrating the changes as the torso turns from profile to frontal position and the forearm extends.
Even though all these early examples may appear similar to a series of animation drawings, the lack of equipment to show the images in motion means that these image series are precursors to animation and cannot be called animation in the modern sense. They do, however, indicate the artists' intentions and interests in depicting motion.
is a device which creates the image of a moving picture. The earliest elementary zoetrope
was created in China around 180 AD by the prolific inventor Ting Huan (丁緩). Made from translucent paper or mica
panels, Huan hung the device over a lamp. The rising air turned vanes at the top from which hung the pictures painted on the panels would appear to move if the device is spun at the right speed.
The modern zoetrope was produced in 1834 by William George Horner
. The device is essentially a cylinder with vertical slits around the sides. Around the inside edge of the cylinder there are a series of pictures on the opposite side to the slits. As the cylinder is spun, the user then looks through the slits to view the illusion of motion. The zoetrope is still being used in animation courses to illustrate early concepts of animation.
is the predecessor of the modern day projector. It consisted of a translucent oil painting and a simple lamp. When put together in a darkened room, the image would appear larger on a flat surface. Athanasius Kircher
spoke about this originating from China in the 16th century. Some slides for the lanterns contained parts that could be mechanically actuated to present limited movement on the screen.
was a simple toy used in the Victorian era. A thaumatrope is a small circular disk or card with two different pictures on each side that was attached to a piece of string or a pair of strings running through the centre. When the string is twirled quickly between the fingers, the two pictures appear to combine into a single image. The thaumatrope demonstrates the Phi phenomenon
, the brain's ability to persistently perceive an image. Its invention is variously credited to Charles Babbage
, Peter Roget
, or John Ayrton Paris
, but Paris is known to have used one to illustrate the Phi phenomenon
in 1824 to the Royal College of Physicians.
The phenakistoscope
was an early animation device, the predecessor of the zoetrope
. It was invented in 1831 simultaneously by the Belgian
Joseph Plateau and the Austria
n Simon von Stampfer.
was patented in 1868 by John Barnes Linnet. Flip books were yet another development that brought us closer to modern animation. Like the Zoetrope, the Flip Book creates the illusion of motion. A set of sequential pictures flipped at a high speed creates this effect. The Mutoscope
(1894) is basically a flip book in a box with a crank handle to flip the pages.
, invented by French scientist Charles-Émile Reynaud
, was a more sophisticated version of the zoetrope. It used the same basic mechanism of a strip of images placed on the inside of a spinning cylinder, but instead of viewing it through slits, it was viewed in a series of small, stationary mirrors around the inside of the cylinder, so that the animation would stay in place, and provide a clearer image and better quality. Reynaud also developed a larger version of the praxinoscope that could be projected onto a screen, called the Théâtre Optique
.
, inventor of the praxinoscope, an animation system using loops of 12 pictures. On October 28, 1892 at Musée Grévin
in Paris, France he exhibited animations consisting of loops of about 500 frames, using his Théâtre Optique
system - similar in principle to a modern film projector.
The first animated work on standard picture film was Humorous Phases of Funny Faces
(1906) by J. Stuart Blackton
. It features what appears to be a cartoonist drawing faces on a chalkboard, and the faces apparently coming to life; whereas it was actually black line art drawn on white paper and then printed as a film-negative to look like white chalk.
Fantasmagorie
, by the French director Émile Cohl
(also called Émile Courtet), is also noteworthy. It was screened for the first time on August 17, 1908 at Théâtre du Gymnase in Paris. Émile Courtet later went to Fort Lee, New Jersey
near New York City in 1912, where he worked for French studio Éclair
and spread its technique in the US.
Influenced by Cohl, Russian scientist Ladislas Starevitch started to create animated films using dead insects with wire limbs. In 1911 he created "The Cameraman's Revenge", a complex tale of treason, suicide and violence between several different insects. It is a pioneer work of puppet animation, and the oldest known example of an animated film of such dramatic complexity, with characters filled with motivation, desire and feelings.
In 1914, American cartoonist Winsor McCay
released Gertie the Dinosaur
, an early example of character animation
.
, made in 1917 by Quirino Cristiani
from Argentina
. He also directed two other animated feature films, including 1931's Peludopolis, the first to use synchronized sound. None of these, however, survive to the present day. The earliest-surviving animated feature, which used colour-tinted scenes, is the silhouette-animated Adventures of Prince Achmed
(1926) directed by German Lotte Reiniger
and French/Hungarian
Berthold Bartosch
. Walt Disney
's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
(1937) is often considered to be the first animated feature when in fact at least eight were previously released. However, Snow White was the first to become successful and well-known within the English-speaking world and the first to use cel animation
.
The first animation to use the full, three-color Technicolor
method was Flowers and Trees
(1932) made by Disney Studios which won an Academy Award for this work.
The first Japanese-made feature length
anime film was the propaganda film Momotaro's Divine Sea Warriors
(桃太郎 海の神兵) by the Japanese director Mitsuyo Seo
. The film, shown in 1945, was ordered to be made to support the war by the Japanese Naval Ministry. The film's song AIUEO no Uta (アイウエオの歌) was later used in Osamu Tezuka
's anime series Kimba the White Lion
. Originally thought to have been destroyed during the American occupation, a negative copy survived and the film is now available in Japan on VHS.
is used for many animation productions using physical objects rather than images of people, as with traditional animation. An object will be photographed, moved slightly, and then photographed again. When the pictures are played back in normal speed the object will appear to move by itself.
The first example of object manipulation and stop-motion animation was the 1899 short film by Albert E. Smith and J. Stuart Blackton
called The Humpty Dumpty Circus. A European stop motion pioneer was Wladyslaw Starewicz (1892–1965), who animated The Beautiful Lukanida (1910), The Battle of the Stag Beetles (1910), The Ant and the Grasshopper (1911).
This process is used for many productions, for example, the most common types of puppets are clay puppets, as used in The California Raisins
and Wallace and Gromit
, and figures made of various rubbers, cloths and plastic resins, such as The Nightmare Before Christmas
and James and the Giant Peach
. Sometimes even objects are used, such as with the films of Jan Švankmajer
.
Stop motion animation was also commonly used for special effects work in many live-action films, such as the 1933 version of King Kong
and The 7th Voyage of Sinbad.
(CGI) revolutionized animation. The first feature film done completely in CGI was Toy Story
, produced by Pixar
. The process of CGI animation is still very tedious and similar in that sense to traditional animation, and it still adheres to many of the same principles.
A principal difference of CGI Animation compared to traditional animation is that drawing is replaced by 3D modeling, almost like a virtual version of stop-motion, though a form of animation that combines the two worlds can be considered to be computer aided animation but on 2D computer drawing (which can be considered close to traditional drawing and sometimes based on it).
in 2001, Final Fantasy: Advent Children in 2005, The Polar Express
in 2004, Beowulf
in 2007 and Resident Evil: Degeneration
in 2009. However, due to the complexity of human body functions, emotions and interactions, this method of animation is rarely used. The more realistic a CG character becomes, the more difficult it is to create the nuances and details of a living person. The creation of hair and clothing that move convincingly with the animated human character is another area of difficulty. The Incredibles
and Up
both have humans as protagonists, while films like Avatar combine animation with live action to create humanoid creatures.
designed to make computer graphics
appear to be hand-drawn. Cel-shading
is often used to mimic the style of a comic book
or cartoon
. It is a somewhat recent addition to computer graphics, most commonly turning up in console
video games. Though the end result of cel-shading has a very simplistic feel like that of hand-drawn animation
, the process is complex. The name comes from the clear sheets of acetate (originally, celluloid), called cel
s, that are painted on for use in traditional 2D animation. It may be considered a "2.5D
" form of animation. True real-time cel-shading was first introduced in 2000 by Sega
's Jet Set Radio
for their Dreamcast console. Besides video games, a number of anime have also used this style of animation, such as Freedom Project
in 2006.
. Zarrinkelk was instrumental in founding the Institute for Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults (IIDCYA) in Tehran in collaboration with the late father of Iranian graphics Morteza Momayez
and other fellow artists like Farshid Mesghali
, Ali Akbar Sadeghi
, and Arapik Baghdasarian.
founded the Poetic animation school, Bratří v Triku. Since that time animation has expanded and flourished.
animated films and the first film with sound were developed in Argentina by Quirino Cristiani
;
The history of Hollywood animation as an art form has undergone many changes in its hundred-year history, the following lists four separate chapters in the development of its animation:
Computer
A computer is a programmable machine designed to sequentially and automatically carry out a sequence of arithmetic or logical operations. The particular sequence of operations can be changed readily, allowing the computer to solve more than one kind of problem...
. The drawings have been slightly changed between individual frames, so that when they are played back in rapid succession (24 frames per second) there appears to be seamless movement within the drawings.
Precursors to Animation
Evidence of artistic interest in depicting figures in motion can be seen as early as the still drawings of PaleolithicPaleolithic
The Paleolithic Age, Era or Period, is a prehistoric period of human history distinguished by the development of the most primitive stone tools discovered , and covers roughly 99% of human technological prehistory...
cave paintings, where animals are depicted with multiple sets of legs in superimposed positions, clearly attempting to convey the perception of motion.
Other examples include a 5,200-year old earthen bowl found in Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
in Shahr-e Sukhteh and an ancient Egyptian mural. The Persian bowl has five images painted along the sides, showing phases of a goat leaping up to nip at a tree.
The Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
ian mural
Mural
A mural is any piece of artwork painted or applied directly on a wall, ceiling or other large permanent surface. A particularly distinguishing characteristic of mural painting is that the architectural elements of the given space are harmoniously incorporated into the picture.-History:Murals of...
, found in the thomb of Khnumhotep and Niankhkhnum, at the Beni Hassan
Beni Hassan
Beni Ḥassān were a nomadic group of Arabian origin, one of the four sub-tribes of the Maqil Arabian tribes who emigrated in the 11th century to the Maghreb with the Bani Hilal and Banu Sulaym Arabs.. They originally lived with their Maqil relatives in the area between Tadla, Moulouiya River...
cemetery. The paintings are approximately 4000 years old and show scenes of young soldiers being trained in wrestling and combat.
Leonardo da Vinci
Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci was an Italian Renaissance polymath: painter, sculptor, architect, musician, scientist, mathematician, engineer, inventor, anatomist, geologist, cartographer, botanist and writer whose genius, perhaps more than that of any other figure, epitomized the Renaissance...
(ca. 1510) extending over two folios in the Windsor Collection, Anatomical Studies of the Muscles of the Neck, Shoulder, Chest, and Arm, show detailed drawings of the upper body (with a less-detailed facial image), illustrating the changes as the torso turns from profile to frontal position and the forearm extends.
Even though all these early examples may appear similar to a series of animation drawings, the lack of equipment to show the images in motion means that these image series are precursors to animation and cannot be called animation in the modern sense. They do, however, indicate the artists' intentions and interests in depicting motion.
Victorian parlor toys
Many of the early inventions designed to animate images were meant as novelties for private amusement of children or small parties. Animation devices which fall into this category include the zoetrope, magic lantern, praxinoscope, thaumatrope, phenakistoscope, and flip bookZoetrope (180 AD; 1834)
The zoetropeZoetrope
A zoetrope is a device that produces an illusion of action from a rapid succession of static pictures. The term zoetrope is from the Greek words "ζωή – zoe", "life" and τρόπος – tropos, "turn". It may be taken to mean "wheel of life"....
is a device which creates the image of a moving picture. The earliest elementary zoetrope
Zoetrope
A zoetrope is a device that produces an illusion of action from a rapid succession of static pictures. The term zoetrope is from the Greek words "ζωή – zoe", "life" and τρόπος – tropos, "turn". It may be taken to mean "wheel of life"....
was created in China around 180 AD by the prolific inventor Ting Huan (丁緩). Made from translucent paper or mica
Mica
The mica group of sheet silicate minerals includes several closely related materials having highly perfect basal cleavage. All are monoclinic, with a tendency towards pseudohexagonal crystals, and are similar in chemical composition...
panels, Huan hung the device over a lamp. The rising air turned vanes at the top from which hung the pictures painted on the panels would appear to move if the device is spun at the right speed.
The modern zoetrope was produced in 1834 by William George Horner
William George Horner
William George Horner was a British mathematician and schoolmaster. The invention of the zoetrope, in 1834 and under a different name , has been attributed to him.-Life:...
. The device is essentially a cylinder with vertical slits around the sides. Around the inside edge of the cylinder there are a series of pictures on the opposite side to the slits. As the cylinder is spun, the user then looks through the slits to view the illusion of motion. The zoetrope is still being used in animation courses to illustrate early concepts of animation.
The magic lantern
The magic lanternMagic lantern
The magic lantern or Laterna Magica is an early type of image projector developed in the 17th century.-Operation:The magic lantern has a concave mirror in front of a light source that gathers light and projects it through a slide with an image scanned onto it. The light rays cross an aperture , and...
is the predecessor of the modern day projector. It consisted of a translucent oil painting and a simple lamp. When put together in a darkened room, the image would appear larger on a flat surface. Athanasius Kircher
Athanasius Kircher
Athanasius Kircher was a 17th century German Jesuit scholar who published around 40 works, most notably in the fields of oriental studies, geology, and medicine...
spoke about this originating from China in the 16th century. Some slides for the lanterns contained parts that could be mechanically actuated to present limited movement on the screen.
Thaumatrope (1824)
A thaumatropeThaumatrope
A thaumatrope is a toy that was popular in Victorian times.A disk or card with a picture on each side is attached to two pieces of string. When the strings are twirled quickly between the fingers the two pictures appear to combine into a single image due to persistence of vision.The invention of...
was a simple toy used in the Victorian era. A thaumatrope is a small circular disk or card with two different pictures on each side that was attached to a piece of string or a pair of strings running through the centre. When the string is twirled quickly between the fingers, the two pictures appear to combine into a single image. The thaumatrope demonstrates the Phi phenomenon
Phi phenomenon
The phi phenomenon is an optical illusion defined by Max Wertheimer in the Gestalt psychology in 1912, in which the persistence of vision formed a part of the base of the theory of the cinema, applied by Hugo Münsterberg in 1916....
, the brain's ability to persistently perceive an image. Its invention is variously credited to Charles Babbage
Charles Babbage
Charles Babbage, FRS was an English mathematician, philosopher, inventor and mechanical engineer who originated the concept of a programmable computer...
, Peter Roget
Peter Roget
Peter Mark Roget FRS was a British physician, natural theologian and lexicographer. He is best known for publishing, in 1852, the Thesaurus of English Words and Phrases , a classified collection of related words.-Biography:...
, or John Ayrton Paris
John Ayrton Paris
John Ayrton Paris, FRS was a British physician. He is most widely remembered as the probable inventor of the thaumatrope, which he used to demonstrate persistence of vision to the Royal College of Physicians in London in 1824; at about this time he wrote a book entitled Philosophy in sport made...
, but Paris is known to have used one to illustrate the Phi phenomenon
Phi phenomenon
The phi phenomenon is an optical illusion defined by Max Wertheimer in the Gestalt psychology in 1912, in which the persistence of vision formed a part of the base of the theory of the cinema, applied by Hugo Münsterberg in 1916....
in 1824 to the Royal College of Physicians.
Phenakistoscope (1831)
Phenakistoscope
The phenakistoscope was an early animation device that used the persistence of vision principle to create an illusion of motion.-History:...
was an early animation device, the predecessor of the zoetrope
Zoetrope
A zoetrope is a device that produces an illusion of action from a rapid succession of static pictures. The term zoetrope is from the Greek words "ζωή – zoe", "life" and τρόπος – tropos, "turn". It may be taken to mean "wheel of life"....
. It was invented in 1831 simultaneously by the Belgian
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
Joseph Plateau and the Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n Simon von Stampfer.
Flip book (1868)
The first flip bookFlip book
A flip book or flick book is a book with a series of pictures that vary gradually from one page to the next, so that when the pages are turned rapidly, the pictures appear to animate by simulating motion or some other change. Flip books are often illustrated books for children, but may also be...
was patented in 1868 by John Barnes Linnet. Flip books were yet another development that brought us closer to modern animation. Like the Zoetrope, the Flip Book creates the illusion of motion. A set of sequential pictures flipped at a high speed creates this effect. The Mutoscope
Mutoscope
frame|right|An 1899 trade advertisementThe Mutoscope was an early motion picture device, patented by Herman Casler on November 21, 1894. Like Thomas Edison's Kinetoscope it did not project on a screen, and provided viewing to only one person at a time...
(1894) is basically a flip book in a box with a crank handle to flip the pages.
Praxinoscope (1877)
The praxinoscopePraxinoscope
The praxinoscope was an animation device, the successor to the zoetrope. It was invented in France in 1877 by Charles-Émile Reynaud. Like the zoetrope, it used a strip of pictures placed around the inner surface of a spinning cylinder...
, invented by French scientist Charles-Émile Reynaud
Charles-Émile Reynaud
Charles-Émile Reynaud was a French science teacher, responsible for the first projected animated cartoon films....
, was a more sophisticated version of the zoetrope. It used the same basic mechanism of a strip of images placed on the inside of a spinning cylinder, but instead of viewing it through slits, it was viewed in a series of small, stationary mirrors around the inside of the cylinder, so that the animation would stay in place, and provide a clearer image and better quality. Reynaud also developed a larger version of the praxinoscope that could be projected onto a screen, called the Théâtre Optique
Théâtre Optique
The Théâtre Optique was a moving picture show presented by Charles-Émile Reynaud in 1892. It was the first presentation of projected moving images to an audience, predating Auguste and Louis Lumière's first public performance by three years.- History :...
.
Traditional animation
The first animated film was created by Charles-Émile ReynaudCharles-Émile Reynaud
Charles-Émile Reynaud was a French science teacher, responsible for the first projected animated cartoon films....
, inventor of the praxinoscope, an animation system using loops of 12 pictures. On October 28, 1892 at Musée Grévin
Musée Grévin
The Musée Grévin is a waxwork museum in Paris located on the Grands Boulevards in the IXe arrondissement on the right bank of the Seine, at 10, Boulevard Montmartre, Paris, France. It is open daily; an admission fee is charged....
in Paris, France he exhibited animations consisting of loops of about 500 frames, using his Théâtre Optique
Théâtre Optique
The Théâtre Optique was a moving picture show presented by Charles-Émile Reynaud in 1892. It was the first presentation of projected moving images to an audience, predating Auguste and Louis Lumière's first public performance by three years.- History :...
system - similar in principle to a modern film projector.
The first animated work on standard picture film was Humorous Phases of Funny Faces
Humorous Phases of Funny Faces
Humorous Phases of Funny Faces is a silent cartoon by J. Stuart Blackton released in 1906. It features a cartoonist drawing faces on a chalkboard, and the faces coming to life. It is generally regarded by film historians as the first animated film. It features movements as where a dog jumps through...
(1906) by J. Stuart Blackton
J. Stuart Blackton
James Stuart Blackton , usually known as J. Stuart Blackton, was an Anglo-American film producer of the Silent Era, the founder of Vitagraph Studios and among the first filmmakers to use the techniques of stop-motion and drawn animation...
. It features what appears to be a cartoonist drawing faces on a chalkboard, and the faces apparently coming to life; whereas it was actually black line art drawn on white paper and then printed as a film-negative to look like white chalk.
Fantasmagorie
Fantasmagorie (1908 film)
Fantasmagorie is an 1908 French animated film by Émile Cohl. It is one of the earliest examples of traditional animation, and considered by film historians to be the first animated cartoon.-Description:...
, by the French director Émile Cohl
Émile Cohl
Émile Cohl , born Émile Eugène Jean Louis Courtet, was a French caricaturist of the largely forgotten Incoherent Movement, cartoonist, and animator, called "The Father of the Animated Cartoon" and "The Oldest Parisian".-Biography:Émile's father Elie was a rubber salesman, and his mother, Emilie...
(also called Émile Courtet), is also noteworthy. It was screened for the first time on August 17, 1908 at Théâtre du Gymnase in Paris. Émile Courtet later went to Fort Lee, New Jersey
Fort Lee, New Jersey
Fort Lee is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough population was 35,345. Located atop the Hudson Palisades, the borough is the western terminus of the George Washington Bridge...
near New York City in 1912, where he worked for French studio Éclair
Éclair
An éclair is a pastry made with choux dough filled with a cream and topped with icing.The dough, which is the same as that used for profiterole, is piped into an oblong shape with a pastry bag and baked until it is crisp and hollow inside...
and spread its technique in the US.
Influenced by Cohl, Russian scientist Ladislas Starevitch started to create animated films using dead insects with wire limbs. In 1911 he created "The Cameraman's Revenge", a complex tale of treason, suicide and violence between several different insects. It is a pioneer work of puppet animation, and the oldest known example of an animated film of such dramatic complexity, with characters filled with motivation, desire and feelings.
In 1914, American cartoonist Winsor McCay
Winsor McCay
Winsor McCay was an American cartoonist and animator.A prolific artist, McCay's pioneering early animated films far outshone the work of his contemporaries, and set a standard followed by Walt Disney and others in later decades...
released Gertie the Dinosaur
Gertie the Dinosaur
Gertie the Dinosaur is a 1914 American animated short film by Winsor McCay. Although not the first feature-length animated film, as is sometimes thought, it was the first cartoon to feature a character with an appealing personality...
, an early example of character animation
Character animation
Character animation is a specialized area of the animation process concerning the animation of one or more characters featured in an animated work. It is usually as one aspect of a larger production and often made to enhance voice acting. The primary role of a Character Animator is to be the...
.
Feature-length films
The first animated feature film was El ApóstolEl Apóstol
El Apóstol was a 1917 Argentine animated film utilizing cutout animation, and the world's first animated feature film...
, made in 1917 by Quirino Cristiani
Quirino Cristiani
Quirino Cristiani was an Argentine animation director and cartoonist, responsible for the world's first two animated feature films as well as the first animated feature film with sound, even though the only copies of these two films were lost in a fire...
from Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
. He also directed two other animated feature films, including 1931's Peludopolis, the first to use synchronized sound. None of these, however, survive to the present day. The earliest-surviving animated feature, which used colour-tinted scenes, is the silhouette-animated Adventures of Prince Achmed
The Adventures of Prince Achmed
The Adventures of Prince Achmed is a 1926 German animated fairytale film by Lotte Reiniger. It is the oldest surviving animated feature film; two earlier ones were made in Argentina by Quirino Cristiani, but they are considered lost...
(1926) directed by German Lotte Reiniger
Lotte Reiniger
Charlotte "Lotte" Reiniger was a German silhouette animator and film director.- Early life :Lotte Reiniger was born in Berlin-Charlottenburg, German Empire, on June 2, 1899...
and French/Hungarian
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
Berthold Bartosch
Berthold Bartosch
Berthold Bartosch was a film-maker, born in Bohemia .He moved to Berlin in 1920 and collaborated with Lotte Reiniger on her paper silhouette animations:*The Ornament of the Loving Heart...
. Walt Disney
Walt Disney
Walter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon, and philanthropist, well-known for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. Along with his brother Roy O...
's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937 film)
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is a 1937 American animated film based on Snow White, a German fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm. It was the first full-length cel-animated feature in motion picture history, as well as the first animated feature film produced in America, the first produced in full...
(1937) is often considered to be the first animated feature when in fact at least eight were previously released. However, Snow White was the first to become successful and well-known within the English-speaking world and the first to use cel animation
Traditional animation
Traditional animation, is an animation technique where each frame is drawn by hand...
.
The first animation to use the full, three-color Technicolor
Technicolor
Technicolor is a color motion picture process invented in 1916 and improved over several decades.It was the second major process, after Britain's Kinemacolor, and the most widely used color process in Hollywood from 1922 to 1952...
method was Flowers and Trees
Flowers and Trees
Flowers and Trees is a 1932 Silly Symphonies cartoon produced by Walt Disney, directed by Burt Gillett, and released to theatres by United Artists on July 30, 1932...
(1932) made by Disney Studios which won an Academy Award for this work.
The first Japanese-made feature length
Feature length
Feature length is motion picture terminology referring to the length of a feature film. According to the rules of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, a feature length motion picture must have a running time of more than 40 minutes to be eligible for an Academy Award.The term may also...
anime film was the propaganda film Momotaro's Divine Sea Warriors
Momotaro's Divine Sea Warriors
is the first Japanese feature-length animated film. It was directed by Mitsuyo Seo, who was ordered to make a propaganda film for the war by the Japanese Naval Ministry. Shochiku Moving Picture Laboratory shot the 74-minute film in 1944 and screened it on April 12, 1945. It is a sequel to Momotarō...
(桃太郎 海の神兵) by the Japanese director Mitsuyo Seo
Mitsuyo Seo
was a Japanese animator, screenwriter and director of animated films who played a central role in the development of Japanese anime. He was born in Himeji, Hyōgo Prefecture.-Career:...
. The film, shown in 1945, was ordered to be made to support the war by the Japanese Naval Ministry. The film's song AIUEO no Uta (アイウエオの歌) was later used in Osamu Tezuka
Osamu Tezuka
was a Japanese cartoonist, manga artist, animator, producer, activist and medical doctor, although he never practiced medicine. Born in Osaka Prefecture, he is best known as the creator of Astro Boy, Kimba the White Lion and Black Jack...
's anime series Kimba the White Lion
Kimba the White Lion
, known in the United States as Kimba the White Lion, is an anime series from the 1960s. Created by Osamu Tezuka and based on his manga of the same title which began publication in 1950, it was the first color animated television series created in Japan. The manga was first published in serialized...
. Originally thought to have been destroyed during the American occupation, a negative copy survived and the film is now available in Japan on VHS.
Stop motion
Stop motionStop motion
Stop motion is an animation technique to make a physically manipulated object appear to move on its own. The object is moved in small increments between individually photographed frames, creating the illusion of movement when the series of frames is played as a continuous sequence...
is used for many animation productions using physical objects rather than images of people, as with traditional animation. An object will be photographed, moved slightly, and then photographed again. When the pictures are played back in normal speed the object will appear to move by itself.
The first example of object manipulation and stop-motion animation was the 1899 short film by Albert E. Smith and J. Stuart Blackton
J. Stuart Blackton
James Stuart Blackton , usually known as J. Stuart Blackton, was an Anglo-American film producer of the Silent Era, the founder of Vitagraph Studios and among the first filmmakers to use the techniques of stop-motion and drawn animation...
called The Humpty Dumpty Circus. A European stop motion pioneer was Wladyslaw Starewicz (1892–1965), who animated The Beautiful Lukanida (1910), The Battle of the Stag Beetles (1910), The Ant and the Grasshopper (1911).
This process is used for many productions, for example, the most common types of puppets are clay puppets, as used in The California Raisins
The California Raisins
The California Raisins were a fictional rhythm and blues musical group as well as advertising and merchandising characters composed of anthropomorphized raisins based on black caricatures. Lead vocals were sung by musician Buddy Miles...
and Wallace and Gromit
Wallace and Gromit
Wallace and Gromit are the main characters in a series consisting of four British animated short films and a feature-length film by Nick Park of Aardman Animations...
, and figures made of various rubbers, cloths and plastic resins, such as The Nightmare Before Christmas
The Nightmare Before Christmas
The Nightmare Before Christmas, often promoted as Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas, is a 1993 stop motion musical fantasy film directed by Henry Selick and produced/co-written by Tim Burton. It tells the story of Jack Skellington, a being from "Halloween Town" who opens a portal to...
and James and the Giant Peach
James and the Giant Peach
James and the Giant Peach is a popular children's novel written in 1961 by British author Roald Dahl. The original first edition published by Alfred Knopf featured illustrations by Nancy Ekholm Burkert. However, there have been various reillustrated versions of it over the years, done by Michael...
. Sometimes even objects are used, such as with the films of Jan Švankmajer
Jan Švankmajer
Jan Švankmajer is a Czech filmmaker and artist whose work spans several media. He is a self-labeled surrealist known for his surreal animations and features, which have greatly influenced other artists such as Tim Burton, Terry Gilliam, the Brothers Quay, and many others.- Life and career :Jan...
.
Stop motion animation was also commonly used for special effects work in many live-action films, such as the 1933 version of King Kong
King Kong (1933 film)
King Kong is a Pre-Code 1933 fantasy monster adventure film co-directed by Merian C. Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack, and written by Ruth Rose and James Ashmore Creelman after a story by Cooper and Edgar Wallace. The film tells of a gigantic island-dwelling apeman creature called Kong who dies in...
and The 7th Voyage of Sinbad.
CGI animation
Computer-generated imageryComputer-generated imagery
Computer-generated imagery is the application of the field of computer graphics or, more specifically, 3D computer graphics to special effects in art, video games, films, television programs, commercials, simulators and simulation generally, and printed media...
(CGI) revolutionized animation. The first feature film done completely in CGI was Toy Story
Toy Story
Toy Story is a 1995 American computer-animated film released by Walt Disney Pictures. It is Pixar's first feature film as well as the first ever feature film to be made entirely with CGI. The film was directed by John Lasseter and featuring the voices of Tom Hanks and Tim Allen...
, produced by Pixar
Pixar
Pixar Animation Studios, pronounced , is an American computer animation film studio based in Emeryville, California. The studio has earned 26 Academy Awards, seven Golden Globes, and three Grammy Awards, among many other awards and acknowledgments. Its films have made over $6.3 billion worldwide...
. The process of CGI animation is still very tedious and similar in that sense to traditional animation, and it still adheres to many of the same principles.
A principal difference of CGI Animation compared to traditional animation is that drawing is replaced by 3D modeling, almost like a virtual version of stop-motion, though a form of animation that combines the two worlds can be considered to be computer aided animation but on 2D computer drawing (which can be considered close to traditional drawing and sometimes based on it).
CGI Animated humans
Most CGI created films are based on animal characters, monsters, machines or cartoon-like humans. Animation studios are now trying to develop ways of creating realistic-looking humans. Films that have attempted this include Final Fantasy: The Spirits WithinFinal Fantasy: The Spirits Within
Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within is a 2001 Japanese-American computer animated science fiction film directed by Hironobu Sakaguchi, creator of the Final Fantasy series of role-playing video games. It was the first photorealistic computer animated feature film and also holds the record for the most...
in 2001, Final Fantasy: Advent Children in 2005, The Polar Express
The Polar Express (film)
The Polar Express is a 2004 motion capture computer-animated film based on the children's book of the same title by Chris Van Allsburg. Written, produced, and directed by Robert Zemeckis, the human characters in the film were animated using live action performance capture technique, with the...
in 2004, Beowulf
Beowulf (2007 film)
Beowulf is a 2007 American animated fantasy film written by Neil Gaiman and Roger Avary inspired by the Old English epic poem of the same name. Directed by Robert Zemeckis, the film was created through a motion capture process similar to the technique he used in The Polar Express...
in 2007 and Resident Evil: Degeneration
Resident Evil: Degeneration
Resident Evil: Degeneration, known in Japan as , is the first full-length CG animation feature based upon Capcom's Resident Evil video game series. The film was made by Capcom Studios in cooperation with Sony Pictures Animation and Sony Pictures Entertainment...
in 2009. However, due to the complexity of human body functions, emotions and interactions, this method of animation is rarely used. The more realistic a CG character becomes, the more difficult it is to create the nuances and details of a living person. The creation of hair and clothing that move convincingly with the animated human character is another area of difficulty. The Incredibles
The Incredibles
The Incredibles is a 2004 American computer-animated action-comedy superhero film about a family of superheroes who are forced to hide their powers. It was written and directed by Brad Bird, a former director and executive consultant of The Simpsons, and was produced by Pixar and distributed by...
and Up
Up (2009 film)
Up is a 2009 American computer-animated comedy-adventure film produced by Pixar, distributed by Walt Disney Pictures and presented in Disney Digital 3-D. The film premiered on May 29, 2009 in North America and opened the 2009 Cannes Film Festival, becoming the first animated and 3D film...
both have humans as protagonists, while films like Avatar combine animation with live action to create humanoid creatures.
Cel-shaded animation
A type of non-photorealistic renderingNon-photorealistic rendering
Non-Photorealistic rendering is an area of computer graphics that focuses on enabling a wide variety of expressive styles for digital art. In contrast to traditional computer graphics, which has focused on photorealism, NPR is inspired by artistic styles such as painting, drawing, technical...
designed to make computer graphics
Computer graphics
Computer graphics are graphics created using computers and, more generally, the representation and manipulation of image data by a computer with help from specialized software and hardware....
appear to be hand-drawn. Cel-shading
Shader
In the field of computer graphics, a shader is a computer program that is used primarily to calculate rendering effects on graphics hardware with a high degree of flexibility...
is often used to mimic the style of a comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
or cartoon
Cartoon
A cartoon is a form of two-dimensional illustrated visual art. While the specific definition has changed over time, modern usage refers to a typically non-realistic or semi-realistic drawing or painting intended for satire, caricature, or humor, or to the artistic style of such works...
. It is a somewhat recent addition to computer graphics, most commonly turning up in console
Video game console
A video game console is an interactive entertainment computer or customized computer system that produces a video display signal which can be used with a display device to display a video game...
video games. Though the end result of cel-shading has a very simplistic feel like that of hand-drawn animation
Traditional animation
Traditional animation, is an animation technique where each frame is drawn by hand...
, the process is complex. The name comes from the clear sheets of acetate (originally, celluloid), called cel
Cel
A cel, short for celluloid, is a transparent sheet on which objects are drawn or painted for traditional, hand-drawn animation. Actual celluloid was used during the first half of the 20th century, but since it was flammable and dimensionally unstable it was largely replaced by cellulose acetate...
s, that are painted on for use in traditional 2D animation. It may be considered a "2.5D
2.5D
2.5D , 3/4 perspective and pseudo-3D are terms used to describe either:* 2D graphical projections and techniques which cause a series of images or scenes to fake or appear to be three-dimensional when in fact they are not, or* gameplay in an otherwise three-dimensional video game that is...
" form of animation. True real-time cel-shading was first introduced in 2000 by Sega
Sega
, usually styled as SEGA, is a multinational video game software developer and an arcade software and hardware development company headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan, with various offices around the world...
's Jet Set Radio
Jet Set Radio
is a video game for the Dreamcast, developed by Smilebit and published by Sega on June 29, 2000. A 2D version of the game was later released for Game Boy Advance; this version was developed by Vicarious Visions and published by THQ. Its sequel, Jet Set Radio Future was released 2 years later for...
for their Dreamcast console. Besides video games, a number of anime have also used this style of animation, such as Freedom Project
Freedom Project
Freedom Project is a Japanese promotional project by Nissin Cup Noodles for their 35th anniversary in 2006. As part of the project, the 7-part OVA series, titled Freedom, was commissioned with and designed by Katsuhiro Otomo serving as the character and mecha designer...
in 2006.
History of Chinese animation
- 180 AD: zoetropeZoetropeA zoetrope is a device that produces an illusion of action from a rapid succession of static pictures. The term zoetrope is from the Greek words "ζωή – zoe", "life" and τρόπος – tropos, "turn". It may be taken to mean "wheel of life"....
is invented by Ting Huan - 1922: first animation in a commercial Shuzhendong Chinese TypewriterShuzhendong Chinese TypewriterShuzhendong Chinese Typewriter is the first Chinese animation ever made in 1922 by Wan Laiming and Wan Guchan.-Translations:There are 2 possible translations...
- 1926: first animation to showcase technology Uproar in the StudioUproar in the StudioUproar in the Studio is a black and white Chinese animation short made in 1926 by Wan Laiming and Wan Guchan. The short film helped the Wan brothers become recognized as the official pioneer of the animation industry in China. The film is now lost....
and acknowledge Wan LaimingWan LaimingWan Lai-Ming was born in Nanjing, China. He was one of the Wan brothers who pioneered the Chinese animation industry, and became China's first animator. As the director of the Shanghai Animation Film Studio, he would raise the standard to International level before other historical events...
and Wan GuchanWan GuchanWan Guchan was a Chinese filmmaker. Born in Nanjing, China, he was one of the Wan brothers who pioneered the Chinese animations industry.-Early history:Wan Guchan joined his twin brother Wan Laiming in most of the animation projects and experimentations....
as pioneers. - 1935: The Camel's DanceThe Camel's DanceThe Camel's Dance is a black and white Chinese animation made in 1935 by 3 of the Wan brothers. It is considered the first animation with sound in China.-History:...
first chinese animationChinese animationChinese animation or Manhua Anime, in narrow sense, refers to animations that are made in China. In broad sense, it may refers to animations that are made in any Chinese speaking countries such as People's Republic of China , Republic of China , Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, etc.- History :The...
with sound. - 1941: Princess Iron FanPrincess Iron Fan (1941 film)Princess Iron Fan , is the first Chinese animated feature film. It was directed in Shanghai under difficult conditions in the thick of World War II by Wan Guchan and Wan Laiming and was released on January 1, 1941.-Plot:...
History of Indian animation
- 1974: Ek Anek Aur EktaEk Anek Aur EktaEk Anek Aur Ekta or "One, Many, and Unity" is a traditionally animated short educational film released by the Films Division of India . It was released in 1974....
- 1986: Ghayab Aaya
- 1992: Ramayana: The Legend of Prince Rama
History of Iranian animation
Iran's animation owes largely to the animator Noureddin ZarrinkelkNoureddin Zarrinkelk
Noureddin Zarrinkelk is a renowned Iranian animator, concept artist, editor, graphic designer, illustrator, layout artist, photographer, script writer and sculptor....
. Zarrinkelk was instrumental in founding the Institute for Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults (IIDCYA) in Tehran in collaboration with the late father of Iranian graphics Morteza Momayez
Morteza Momayez
Morteza Momayez was an Iranian graphic designer. He was one of the founders of Iranian Graphic Design Society and held a membership to Alliance Graphique Internationale...
and other fellow artists like Farshid Mesghali
Farshid Mesghali
Farshid Mesghali is an Iranian graphic designer, illustrator, animator and author.- Biography :Studying painting at Tehran University, he began his professional career as a graphic designer and illustrator in 1964. After his graduation, he joined the Institute for the Intellectual Development for...
, Ali Akbar Sadeghi
Ali Akbar Sadeghi
Ali Akbar Sadeghi a graduate of the College of Art, University of Tehran, is one of the most prolific and successful Iranian painters and artists....
, and Arapik Baghdasarian.
- Circa 3000 BCE: ZoopraxiscopeZoopraxiscopeThe zoopraxiscope is an early device for displaying motion pictures. Created by photographic pioneer Eadweard Muybridge in 1879, it may be considered the first movie projector. The zoopraxiscope projected images from rotating glass disks in rapid succession to give the impression of motion. The...
-style animated pottery is produced. This is considered to be one of the oldest forms of animation in the world. - 1970: Duty, First
- 1971: A Playground for Baboush
- 1971: Philipo and a Train from Hong Kong
- 1971: Seven Cities
- 1972: Shower of Flowers
- 1973: Association Of IdeasAssociation of IdeasAssociation of Ideas, or Mental association, is a term used principally in the history of philosophy and of psychology to refer to explanations about the conditions under which representations arise in consciousness, and also for a principle put forward by an important historical school of thinkers...
- 1973: I Am He Who…
- 1974: Atal-Matal
- 1974: The Castle
- 1975: The Mad, Mad, Mad World
- 1975: The Sun King
History of Japanese animation (Anime)
- Circa 1915: Discovered in Kyoto in 2005, the earliest known Japanese animated film depicts a boy wearing a sailor uniform performing a salute. The undated film is considered to be among the earliest examples of Japanese animation (the discoverer has speculated it to be as early as 1907) and is composed of 50 frames put together on 35mm Celluloid with paste.
- 1917: Imokawa Mukuzo Genkanban no MakiImokawa Mukuzo Genkanban no Makiis the first professional Japanese animation film ever made. It was made by Ōten Shimokawa in 1917.-Backgrounds:In April 1914, French animation Fantasmagorie by Émile Cohl was screened under the title . This seems to be the first drawn-animation film screened in Japan...
- 1917: Namakura GatanaNamakura Gatanaor is a short anime produced by Jun'ichi Kouchi at 1917. It was found in an antique shop in Osaka in central Japan in March 2008.This anime is a 2 minute silent short that tells a history about a samurai's foolish purchase of a dull-edged sword....
- 1918: Urashima TarōUrashima Tarō (anime)is an animated film produced by Seitaro Kitayama in 1918, which was found in an antique shop in Osaka in March 2008. The film is an adaptation of a folk tale Urashima Tarō about a fisherman traveling to an underwater world on a turtle....
- 1921: Kiatsu to Mizuage Ponpu
- 1922: Shokubutsu Seiri: Seishoku no Maki
- 1924: Usagi to Kame
History of British animation
- 1954: Animal FarmAnimal Farm (1954 film)Animal Farm is a 1954 British animated film by Halas and Batchelor, based on the book of the same name by George Orwell. It was the first British animated feature released worldwide, though Handling Ships was the first British animated feature ever made...
- 1978: Watership DownWatership Down (film)Watership Down is a 1978 English adventure drama animated film written, produced and directed by Martin Rosen and based on the book by Richard Adams. It was financed by a consortium of British financial institutions...
- 1982: Plague DogsThe Plague Dogs (film)The Plague Dogs is a 1982 animated film based on the 1977 novel of the same name by Richard Adams. The film was written-for-screen, directed and produced by Martin Rosen, who also directed Watership Down, the film version of another novel by Adams, produced by Nepenthe Productions and released by...
- 1982: SuperTedSuperTedSuperTed is a Welsh teddy bear who has magical super powers. He along with his friend Spotty try to do good. SuperTed was a series of stories created by Mike Young who eventually created a television series based on those stories.-Creation:...
- 1990: The DreamstoneThe DreamstoneThe Dreamstone is a British animated television series that ran for 4 series of 13 episodes each between 1990 and 1995. The original concept and artwork were created by Michael Jupp. The series was animated by the FilmFair animation studio as a Central production for ITV...
- 1999: Watership Down (TV series)Watership Down (TV series)Watership Down is an animated television series, adapted from the novel of the same name by Richard Adams. It was a co-production of Alltime Entertainment of the United Kingdom and Decode Entertainment of Canada, and produced by Martin Rosen, the director of the 1978 feature film...
History of Czech animation
The roots of Czech puppet animation began in the mid-1940s when puppet theater operators, Eduard Hofman and Jiří TrnkaJirí Trnka
Jiří Trnka was a Czech puppet maker, illustrator, motion-picture animator and film director. In addition to his extensive career as an illustrator, especially of children's books, he is best known for his work in animation with puppets, which began in 1946...
founded the Poetic animation school, Bratří v Triku. Since that time animation has expanded and flourished.
- 1945: Dedek Zasadil repu ("My grandfather planted a beet")
- 1946: Zvírátka to petrovstí ("Animals and bandits")
- 1946: Perak SS ("The jumper and the men of the SS")
- 1946: Darek ("The Gift")
- 1947: Špalíček ("The Czech Year")
- 1949: Román s basou ("Story of a bass")
- 1949: Certuv mlýn ("The Devil's Mill")
- 1949: Arie prerie ("Song of the Prairie")
- 1949: Cisaruv Slavik ("The Emperor's Nightingale")
History of Estonian animation
Estonian animation began in the 1930s and has carried on into the modern day.- 1931 - The Adventures of Juku The Dog, first Estonian animated short film
- 1950s - founding of puppet animation division of TallinnfilmTallinnfilmTallinnfilm is the oldest still functional film studio in Estonia. Originally founded as Estonian Culture Film in 1931, the studio was nationalized in 1940 after Estonia was forced into Soviet Union. During the first year of Soviet Occupation Eesti Kultuurfilm was taken over by the Communist Party...
by Elbert Tuganov - 1970s - founding of drawn animation division, Joonisfilm, by Rein RaamatRein RaamatRein Raamat is an Estonian animation film director, artist and screenwriter. He is the first internationally successful Estonian animator and along with Elbert Tuganov is regarded as the "Father of Estonian Animation"...
History of French animation
- 1908-1925, The work of animation pioneer Émile CohlÉmile CohlÉmile Cohl , born Émile Eugène Jean Louis Courtet, was a French caricaturist of the largely forgotten Incoherent Movement, cartoonist, and animator, called "The Father of the Animated Cartoon" and "The Oldest Parisian".-Biography:Émile's father Elie was a rubber salesman, and his mother, Emilie...
produces a number of firsts in animation and animation techniques.- 1908: The first animated cartoon
- 1909: First use of morphingMorphingMorphing is a special effect in motion pictures and animations that changes one image into another through a seamless transition. Most often it is used to depict one person turning into another through technological means or as part of a fantasy or surreal sequence. Traditionally such a depiction...
- 1910: First use of puppet animation and first color-animated cartoon
- 1911: First use of pixilationPixilationPixilation is a stop motion technique where live actors are used as a frame-by-frame subject in an animated film, by repeatedly posing while one or more frame is taken and changing pose slightly before the next frame or frames. The actor becomes a kind of living stop motion puppet...
- 1916: Le chien Flambeau becomes the first animated series.
History of Italian animation
- 1970: The Italian animated cartoon art and industry (La Linea (cartoon), CaliméroCalimerois an Italian/Japanese cartoon about a charming, but hapless anthropomorphized cartoon chicken; the only black one in a family of yellow chickens. He wears half of his egg shell still on his head...
...) is born. - 1977: The animated Italian classic, Allegro non troppo, is both a parody of and homage to Disney's Fantasia. This is director Bruno Bozzetto's most ambitious work and his only feature-length animation, although he also directed several notable shorter works including West and Soda, an animated spaghetti westernSpaghetti WesternSpaghetti Western, also known as Italo-Western, is a nickname for a broad sub-genre of Western films that emerged in the mid-1960s in the wake of Sergio Leone's unique and much copied film-making style and international box-office success, so named by American critics because most were produced and...
.
History of Russian animation
- 1910-1913: Ladislas StarevichLadislas StarevichVladislav Starevich , born Władysław Starewicz , was a Russian and French stop-motion animator who used insects and other animals as his protagonists...
creates puppet animations - 1935: First animated feature film in the USSR, The New GulliverThe New GulliverThe New Gulliver is a Soviet stop motion-animated cartoon, and the first to make such extensive use of puppet animation, running almost all the way through the film . The film was released in 1935 to widespread acclaim and earned Ptushko a special prize at the International Cinema Festival in Milan...
- 1935: SoyuzmultfilmSoyuzmultfilmSoyuzmultfilm is a Russian animation studio based in Moscow. Over the years it has gained international attention and respect, garnering numerous awards both at home and abroad. Noted for a great variety of style, it is regarded as the most influential animation studio of the former Soviet Union...
Studio is created, will go on to fund many thousands of short animated films, mostly for kids - late 1930s to 1950s: enforced Socialist RealismSocialist realismSocialist realism is a style of realistic art which was developed in the Soviet Union and became a dominant style in other communist countries. Socialist realism is a teleologically-oriented style having its purpose the furtherance of the goals of socialism and communism...
in cartoons (with a few exceptions). - 1953: Puppet animation division re-founded at Soyuzmultfilm (it was closed shortly after The New Gulliver was released)
- 1962: Fyodor KhitrukFyodor KhitrukFyodor Savelyevich Khitruk is one of the most influential animators and animation directors in Russian animation.-Biography:Khitruk was born in Tver, Russian Empire and came to Moscow to study graphic design at the OGIS College for Applied Arts. He graduated in 1936 and started to work with...
's short film History of a Crime introduces new aesthetic to Soviet animation - 1969: First episode of popular series Nu, Pogodi!Nu, pogodi!Nu, pogodi! is a Soviet/Russian animated series produced by Soyuzmultfilm. The series was created in 1969 and became a popular cartoon of the Soviet Union. Additional episodes have been produced in Russia since 2006...
- 1972: First CheburashkaCheburashkaCheburashka , also known as Topple in earlier English translations, is a character in children's literature, from a 1966 story by the Russian writer Eduard Uspensky. In Estonian the character is called Potsataja...
short is made - 1979: Yuriy NorshteynYuriy NorshteynYuriy Borisovich Norshteyn , or Yuri Norstein is an award-winning Soviet and Russian animator best known for his animated shorts, Hedgehog in the Fog and Tale of Tales...
releases Tale of Tales, since then voted twice by a large panel of international critics as the best animated film ever made. - 1989: Studio Pilot, the first private animation studio in the USSR, is founded
- 1990s: government subsidies shrink dramatically, while the number of studios grow.
- 2000s: some high-profile animated features are made.
History of animation in Croatia (in former Yugoslavia)
- 1953: Zagreb FilmZagreb FilmZagreb Film is a Croatian film-producing company from Zagreb, founded in 1953. They have produced hundreds of animated films, documentaries, television commercials, educational films and several feature films....
inaugurates the ZagrebZagrebZagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
school of animation. - 1975: Škola Animiranog Filma Čakovec (ŠAF) inaugurates the ČakovecCakovecČakovec is a city in northern Croatia, located around 90 kilometres north of Zagreb, the Croatian capital. Čakovec is both the county seat and largest city of Međimurje County, the northernmost, smallest and most densely populated Croatian county.-Population:...
school of animation.
History of Argentinian animation
The world's first two feature-lengthFeature film
In the film industry, a feature film is a film production made for initial distribution in theaters and being the main attraction of the screening, rather than a short film screened before it; a full length movie...
animated films and the first film with sound were developed in Argentina by Quirino Cristiani
Quirino Cristiani
Quirino Cristiani was an Argentine animation director and cartoonist, responsible for the world's first two animated feature films as well as the first animated feature film with sound, even though the only copies of these two films were lost in a fire...
;
- 1917: El ApóstolEl ApóstolEl Apóstol was a 1917 Argentine animated film utilizing cutout animation, and the world's first animated feature film...
- 1918: Sin dejar rastrosSin dejar rastrosSin dejar rastros is a 1918 Argentine animated feature film. It was written and directed by Quirino Cristiani. The plot revolved around the recent incident involving the German commander Baron von Luxburg who sank an Argentine ship intending to frame the Entente for the act...
History of Canadian animation
- 1914: Raoul BarréRaoul BarréRaoul Barré was a Canadian and American cartoonist, animator of the silent film era, and artist.Barré was born in Montreal, Quebec, the only artistic child of an importer of communion wine...
of Barré StudioBarré StudioBarré Studio was, in all probability, the first film studio dedicated to animation . It was founded by Raoul Barré and William Nolan in 1914. They began with advertising films , then got a series with Edison called the Animated Grouch Chaser...
produces animated segments for Animated Grouch Chaser - 1916: Raoul BarréRaoul BarréRaoul Barré was a Canadian and American cartoonist, animator of the silent film era, and artist.Barré was born in Montreal, Quebec, the only artistic child of an importer of communion wine...
produces Mutt and JeffMutt and JeffMutt and Jeff was a long-popular American newspaper comic strip created by cartoonist Bud Fisher in 1907 about "two mismatched tinhorns." It is commonly regarded as the first daily comic strip. The concept of a newspaper strip featuring recurring characters in multiple panels on a six-day-a-week... - 1926: Raoul BarréRaoul BarréRaoul Barré was a Canadian and American cartoonist, animator of the silent film era, and artist.Barré was born in Montreal, Quebec, the only artistic child of an importer of communion wine...
works as guest animator for Felix the Cat - 1941: The National Film Board of CanadaNational Film Board of CanadaThe National Film Board of Canada is Canada's twelve-time Academy Award-winning public film producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary, animation, alternative drama and digital media productions...
's animation department is founded with the addition of Norman McLarenNorman McLarenNorman McLaren, CC, CQ was a Scottish-born Canadian animator and film director known for his work for the National Film Board of Canada...
to the organization.
History of Cuban animation
- 1985: ¡Vampiros en la Habana!¡Vampiros en La Habana!¡Vampiros en La Habana! is a Cuban animated film directed by Juan Padrón. Released in 1985, the film features trumpet performances by the legendary Arturo Sandoval...
- 1992: An animation category is added to the Festival Internacional del Nuevo Cine Latinoamericano
History of United States animation
- Beginning of industrial production of animated cartoon.
The history of Hollywood animation as an art form has undergone many changes in its hundred-year history, the following lists four separate chapters in the development of its animation:
- Animation in the United States during the silent eraAnimation in the United States during the silent eraAnimated films in the United States date back to at least 1906 when Vitagraph released Humorous Phases of Funny Faces. Although early animations were rudimentary they rapidly became more sophisticated with such classics as Gertie the Dinosaur in 1914, Felix the Cat, and Koko the Clown.Originally a...
(1900s through 1920s)
- The beginnings of theatrical, the earliest animated cartoons in the era of silent filmSilent filmA silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound, especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent films for entertainment the dialogue is transmitted through muted gestures, pantomime and title cards...
, ranging from the works of Winsor McCayWinsor McCayWinsor McCay was an American cartoonist and animator.A prolific artist, McCay's pioneering early animated films far outshone the work of his contemporaries, and set a standard followed by Walt Disney and others in later decades...
through Koko the ClownKoko the ClownKoko the Clown was an animated character created by animation pioneer Max Fleischer. The character originated when Max Fleischer invented the rotoscope, a device that allowed for animation to be more lifelike by tracing motion picture footage of human movement. To test out his new invention...
and Felix the CatFelix the CatFelix the Cat is a cartoon character created in the silent film era. His black body, white eyes, and giant grin, coupled with the surrealism of the situations in which his cartoons place him, combine to make Felix one of the most recognized cartoon characters in film history...
- The Bray Studios was the first and foremost cartoon studio, housed in New York City. Many aspiring cartoonists started their careers at Bray, including Paul TerryPaul Terry (cartoonist)Paul Houlton Terry was an American cartoonist, screenwriter, film director and one of the most prolific film producers in history...
of "Mighty MouseMighty MouseMighty Mouse is an animated superhero mouse character created by the Terrytoons studio for 20th Century Fox.-History:The character was created by story man Izzy Klein as a super-powered housefly named Superfly. Studio head Paul Terry changed the character into a cartoon mouse instead...
" fame, Max FleischerMax FleischerMax Fleischer was an American animator. He was a pioneer in the development of the animated cartoon and served as the head of Fleischer Studios...
of "Betty BoopBetty BoopBetty Boop is an animated cartoon character created by Max Fleischer, with help from animators including Grim Natwick. She originally appeared in the Talkartoon and Betty Boop film series, which were produced by Fleischer Studios and released by Paramount Pictures. She has also been featured in...
" fame, as well as Walter LantzWalter LantzWalter Benjamin Lantz was an American cartoonist, animator, film producer, and director, best known for founding Walter Lantz Productions and creating Woody Woodpecker.-Early years and start in animation:...
of "Woody WoodpeckerWoody WoodpeckerWoody Woodpecker is an animated cartoon character, an anthropomorphic acorn woodpecker who appeared in theatrical short films produced by the Walter Lantz animation studio and distributed by Universal Pictures...
" fame. The cartoon studio operated from circaCircaCirca , usually abbreviated c. or ca. , means "approximately" in the English language, usually referring to a date...
1915 until 1928. Some of the first cartoon stars from the Bray studios were Farmer Alfalfa (by Paul Terry) and Bobby Bumps (by Earl Hurd).
- Max and Dave FleischerDave FleischerDavid "Dave" Fleischer was an American animator film director and film producer, best known as a co-owner of Fleischer Studios with his two older brothers Max Fleischer and Lou Fleischer...
formed their own studio Fleischer Studios, and created the Koko the Clown, Out of the Inkwell, and Sound Car-TunesSound Car-TunesKo-Ko Song Car-Tunes, Song Car-Tunes, or Sound Car-Tunes, is a series of short three minute animation films produced by Max Fleischer and Dave Fleischer between May 1924 and September 1927, pioneering the use of the "Follow the Bouncing Ball" device used to lead audiences in theater sing-alongs...
series.
- Golden Age of American animation (1920s through 1950s)
- The dominance of Walt DisneyWalt DisneyWalter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon, and philanthropist, well-known for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. Along with his brother Roy O...
throughout the 1930s, through revolutionary cartoons Silly SymphoniesSilly SymphoniesSilly Symphonies is a series of animated short subjects, 75 in total, produced by Walt Disney Productions from 1929 to 1939, while the studio was still located at Hyperion Avenue in the Silver Lake district of Los Angeles...
, Mickey MouseMickey MouseMickey Mouse is a cartoon character created in 1928 by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks at The Walt Disney Studio. Mickey is an anthropomorphic black mouse and typically wears red shorts, large yellow shoes, and white gloves...
, and Donald DuckDonald DuckDonald Fauntleroy Duck is a cartoon character created in 1934 at Walt Disney Productions and licensed by The Walt Disney Company. Donald is an anthropomorphic white duck with a yellow-orange bill, legs, and feet. He typically wears a sailor suit with a cap and a black or red bow tie. Donald is most...
. - The rise of Warner Bros.Warner Bros.Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
and MGM - The Fleischer Studios creation of Betty BoopBetty BoopBetty Boop is an animated cartoon character created by Max Fleischer, with help from animators including Grim Natwick. She originally appeared in the Talkartoon and Betty Boop film series, which were produced by Fleischer Studios and released by Paramount Pictures. She has also been featured in...
and PopeyePopeyePopeye the Sailor is a cartoon fictional character created by Elzie Crisler Segar, who has appeared in comic strips and animated cartoons in the cinema as well as on television. He first appeared in the daily King Features comic strip Thimble Theatre on January 17, 1929...
cartoons - Disney's Snow White and The Seven DwarfsSnow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937 film)Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is a 1937 American animated film based on Snow White, a German fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm. It was the first full-length cel-animated feature in motion picture history, as well as the first animated feature film produced in America, the first produced in full...
marks the start of the "Golden Age" at Disney. - The departure from realism, and UPAUnited Productions of AmericaUnited Productions of America, better known as UPA, was an American animation studio of the 1940s through present day, beginning with industrial films and World War II training films. In the late 1940s, UPA produced theatrical shorts for Columbia Pictures, most notably the Mr. Magoo series. In...
- Animation in the United States in the television eraAnimation in the United States in the television eraTelevision animation developed from the success of animated movies in the first half of the 20th century. The state of animation changed dramatically in the four decades starting with the post-World War II proliferation of television...
(1930s through 1980s)
- 1938: Chad Grothkopf's eight-minute experimental Willie the Worm, cited as the first animated film created for TV, was shown on NBC.
- The emergence of TV animated series from Hanna-Barbera Productions
- The decline of theatrical cartoons and feature films
- The rise of Saturday morning cartoonSaturday morning cartoonA Saturday morning cartoon is the colloquial term for the animated television programming that has typically been scheduled on Saturday mornings on the major American television networks from the 1960s to the present; the genre's peak in popularity mostly ended in the 1990s while the popularity of...
s - The attempts at reviving animated features through the 1960s
- The rise of adult animationAdult animationAdult animation is a term used to describe animation that is targeted at adults. Animated films and television shows may be considered adult for a number of reasons. Some productions are noted for experimental storytelling and animation techniques, or sophisticated storytelling...
in the early 1970s - The onslaught of commercial cartoons in the 1980s
- Modern animation in the United States (1980s through present)
- Who Framed Roger RabbitWho Framed Roger RabbitWho Framed Roger Rabbit is a 1988 American fantasy-comedy-noir film directed by Robert Zemeckis and released by Touchstone Pictures. The film combines live action and animation, and is based on Gary K. Wolf's novel Who Censored Roger Rabbit?, which depicts a world in which cartoon characters...
and the Disney RenaissanceDisney RenaissanceThe Disney Renaissance refers to an era beginning roughly in the late 1980s and ending in the late 1990s, during which Walt Disney Animation Studios returned to making successful animated films mostly based on stories that were known to many, restoring public and critical interest in Disney.The... - Steven SpielbergSteven SpielbergSteven Allan Spielberg KBE is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, video game designer, and studio entrepreneur. In a career of more than four decades, Spielberg's films have covered many themes and genres. Spielberg's early science-fiction and adventure films were seen as an...
's collaborations with Warner Bros.Warner Bros.Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,... - A flood of newer, bolder animation studios
- Don Bluth films appear on the scene, creating potential competition for Disney.
- The SimpsonsThe SimpsonsThe Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
marks the resurgence of adult-oriented animation. - The rise of computer animationComputer animationComputer animation is the process used for generating animated images by using computer graphics. The more general term computer generated imagery encompasses both static scenes and dynamic images, while computer animation only refers to moving images....
, for both 2D and 3D (CGI) animation - The decline of traditional animationTraditional animationTraditional animation, is an animation technique where each frame is drawn by hand...
- The decline of Saturday morning cartoonSaturday morning cartoonA Saturday morning cartoon is the colloquial term for the animated television programming that has typically been scheduled on Saturday mornings on the major American television networks from the 1960s to the present; the genre's peak in popularity mostly ended in the 1990s while the popularity of...
s, the rise of NickelodeonNickelodeon (TV channel)Nickelodeon, often simply called Nick and originally named Pinwheel, is an American children's channel owned by MTV Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom International. The channel is primarily aimed at children ages 7–17, with the exception of their weekday morning program block aimed at preschoolers...
, Disney ChannelDisney ChannelDisney Channel is an American basic cable and satellite television network, owned by the Disney-ABC Television Group division of The Walt Disney Company. It is under the direction of Disney-ABC Television Group President Anne Sweeney. The channel's headquarters is located on West Alameda Ave. in...
and Cartoon NetworkCartoon NetworkCartoon Network is a name of television channels worldwide created by Turner Broadcasting which used to primarily show animated programming. The channel began broadcasting on October 1, 1992 in the United States.... - The Anime Explosion: mainstream popularization of Japanese animation, known as anime. ToonamiToonamiToonami was a registered trademark of Cartoon Network, used initially for action-oriented programming blocks on Cartoon Network television channels worldwide, mostly showing American cartoons and Japanese anime, originating in the United States on March 17, 1997 and ended on September 20, 2008.The...
/Cartoon NetworkCartoon NetworkCartoon Network is a name of television channels worldwide created by Turner Broadcasting which used to primarily show animated programming. The channel began broadcasting on October 1, 1992 in the United States....
contributes largely to the success. - Cartoon NetworkCartoon NetworkCartoon Network is a name of television channels worldwide created by Turner Broadcasting which used to primarily show animated programming. The channel began broadcasting on October 1, 1992 in the United States....
's late-night animation block Adult SwimAdult SwimAdult Swim is an adult-oriented Cable network that shares channel space with Cartoon Network from 9:00 pm until 6:00 am ET/PT in the United States, and broadcasts in countries such as Australia and New Zealand...
becomes immensely popular and leads to a resurgence in short, adult animation.