History of animation

The first traditional Animated Short

Aug 17, 1908

French artist Émile Cohl is credited with the first ever animated film – 1908’s Fantasmagorie. The hand drawn film follows a stick figure running into morphing objects. Cohl made the film by drawing each frame on a piece of paper and shooting it on film. There are a few scenes in the film where Cohl’s hands are visible while taking the photograp

First synchronized sound and Dialogue

1924

In 1924, brothers Max and Dave Fleischer released Oh Mabel, a seven minute animated short that used Phonofilm to sync sound and footage. It was the first animated film to have a talking character with synced dialogue – a dog shouting “Follow the ball, and join in, everybody!”

The Multiplane Camera

1933

To break away from the previously one-dimensional work of animation, Walt Disney devised a new machine dubbed the multiplane camera. The device use a series of glass panes with individual elements painted on them. A camera was placed high above all the planes of glass and an image was taken. Then individual panes were moved – and another photo taken. This created a three dimensional world in which elements in the foreground would move separately from those in the background.

First Feature Length Cel-Animated Film

Feb 4, 1938

You can’t write about animation breakthroughs without including the 1937 animated film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Produced by Walt Disney, the film was a massive critical and commercial success – which is incredible for a film that so many thought would bankrupt Disney. Using the multiplane camera used in The Old Mill, Disney and his small crew managed to get the film finished in time.

First Primetime Animated Television Show

Sep 30, 1960

From 1960 through 1966, Hanna-Barbera produced The Flintstones for ABC – the first ever primetime animated show. It was the most financially successful animated franchise until the debut of The Simpsons. The Flintstones had the perfect blend of stone age comedy and 1960s family life. Hanna-Barbera would go on to produce a similar primetime series, The Jetsons, as well as other animated hits like Johnny Quest and Scooby Doo, Where are You!.

Xerography

Jan 25, 1961

In 1942, Chester Carlson developed an electrophotographic (or dry photocopying) technique later dubbed Xerography. (The term comes from the Greek xeros – dry and graphia – writing).It would be the 1961 Disney classic One Hundred and One Dalmations that truly utilized xerography for the first time in an entire feature length production. Xerography became the standard animation process at Walt Disney Studios up until 1989.

A Computer Animated Hand

1972

In 1972, University of Utah researchers Ed Catmull and Fred Parke developed a computer animated short of Catmull’s left hand. A Computer Animated Hand used 350 triangles and polygons to create a 3D model. The model was then animated in a program created by Catmull himself.

First Live-Action and Cartoon Animation Feature Film

1988

it wouldn’t be until 1988’s Who Framed Roger Rabbit that a live action actor and an animated character would share the screen the entire time in a feature film.Upon release, Who Framed Roger Rabbit was a critical success and box office smash. It was the second highest grossing film of the year. The film was nominated for seven Academy Awards, walking away with 4 – including a Special Achievement Award for Richard Williams‘ animation direction and creation of the cartoon characters.

Computer Animation Production System (CAPS)

1989

The Computer Graphics Lab at NYIT first developed a scan and paint system for cel animation in the late 1970s. This was the beginning of a digital ink and paint program used to digitally color films in post production. The goal was to input an animator’s drawings into a computer. The computer would then recognize the individual lines, and allowed users to fill shapes with colors.First Featured In The Little Mermaid at the end of the film.

First Computer Animated Feature Film

1995

The 1995 animated film Toy Story wasn’t only revolutionary in the fact that it was the first computer animated feature,it set up the computer animation workflow that has since been adapted for new technology yet still mostly in place today.Catmull and Lasseter have continued to push the technological boundaries of their animated films constantly created new software and hardware to handle the massive amounts of data something they still do to this day as heads of Walt Disney Animation and Pixar.