The History of Animation

Animation has been a principle in existence from almost the dawn of man. From Cavemen drawing down their ideas of life on the walls of their homes, to the creation of the flip book, to using light and projection technology at its most basic to light box drawings. All this helped move peoples thoughts to be able to come alive, and with new technology improving all the time, the ability to do this is far more accessible. In modern times, animation is primarily done via computers, most 2d animations being created without the traditional pencil. The most notable style of animation in modern times which pushes the extremes of visual experience would be CG. Here are a few examples of how animation came to be today.

In early animation the animators would produce simple drawings which were photographed one at a time. This was obviously extremely expensive as it had a need for a heavy amount of labour to complete the job. The development of Celluloid in around 1913 helped make animation a much easier principle to endure. Animators could now create a background which could have images placed over them therefore making the workload less extreme and the cost far more manageable.

Along came Walt Disney, who further took animation to a new level. He was the first to add sound to his animations with the film “Steamboat Willie” (1928). Walt Disney continued to work and pioneer new techniques behind animation, and in 1937 he produced the first full length animated feature film entitled “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs”.

When the assistance of computer aided technology came about, it changed the course of animation for good. Films would rely on computer animation to help produce the visuals and make them more realistic or smooth. Toy Story, produced by Walt Disney Productions and Pixar Animation Studios, became the first full length feature film to rely entirely on computers in its release in 1995.