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Thaumatrope
The Thaumatrope was invented in 1824. It is unsure who actually first invented it but the credit normally goes to either John Ayrton Paris or Peter Mark Roget. It is an illusion similar to a flip book where it blurs drawings together to make it look like they are changing. -
Phenakistoscope
The Phenakistoscope was invented by Joseph Plateau and was a predecessor to the Zoetrope. It involved a series of drawings on a circle which, when spun, merges them all together and makes it look like they are moving. -
Flipbook
The flip book was first invented by John Barnes Linnet. It was another adaptation of the Zoetrope which involves merging images to give an illusion of movement however this method wasn’t restricted to a certain amount of frames. -
Praxinoscope
The Praxinoscope was invented by Charles-Émile Reynaud. It is very similar to the Zoetrope except this version was viewed using mirrors which provided a clearer image and better quality. -
Kinetoscope
The Kinetoscope was first invented by Thomas Edison and was the first basic motion picture exhibition device. It was the basis for most projection methods up untill video. It was pretty much a cabinet with a viewing window on it. -
Charles-Émile Reynaud
Charles-Émile Reynaud later combined his Praxinoscope with a projector to allow him to project images on a large scale. The first public showing of this sparked wide interest and this technology was later used to inspire cinema projection a few years on. -
James Stuart Blackton
James Stuart Blackton made the first animation using stop action technology. This was where artists drew a picture, shot in on camera then made a subtle tweak to it and shooting the result therefore making the drawing look like it was moving by merging fast moving pictures. This method was probably inspired by flipbooks. -
Émile Cohl
Emile Cohl produced En Route in 1910. This was an animation which was the first to include character cut outs. This saved time for animators as they did not have to repeatedly draw scenes, only move the cut outs. -
Windsor McCay
In 1914 Windsor McCay produced an animation called Gertie the Dinosaur. This was the first animation which included his new technique called keyhole animation. This method is where the position in time is measured in frames on a strip of film. This is still used today and inspired many. -
Earl Hurd
In 1915 Earl Hurd patents his cel animation method along with Bray. This method was a huge time saver for fellow animators and meant that animations could be longer. The method means that you draw a portions of a scene on celluloid sheets then layer them together to film. -
Max Fleischer
Fleischer devised a method to simplify the animation process by tracing frames of live action film called Rotoscoping. The patent for the Rotoscope was granted in 1915 and was used by Fleischer and his brother to make the character Koko the Clown. This technique featured in the cartoon series Out of the Inkwell. -
Warner Brothers Studios.
‘Warner Brothers Entertainment Inc.’ (better known simply as ‘Warner Bros.’) was formed in 1918 when 4 brothers, Harry, Albert, Sam and Jack Warner opened a theatre in Pennsylvania. -
Felix the Cat
It is disputed whether Pat Sullivan or his lead animator Otto Messmer are the creator of Felix, who is one of the most recognisbale cartoon characters in its history. -
Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio
Walt and Roy Disney open their first animation studio. It was here that they made the Alices Wonderland, the first animation which included real life footage on a cartoon background. -
Steamboat Willie
Disney's most famous character, Mickey Mouse, makes his first TV appearance. This was the first animation to feature synchronised sound. -
Looney Tunes
Looney Tunes was first created by Hugh Harman and Rudolph Ising. This series went on to be one of the most famous in the world and featured well known characters such as Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck and Porky Pig. -
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was the first full length colour animated film and has made $184,925,486. It was produced by Walt Disney and was the basis of most of his other various feature films. -
UPA
UPA, (United Productions of America) was formed by Zack Schwarts, Stephen Bosustow and Dave Hilberman. This company is responsible for characters such as Mr Magoo and Gerald McBoing-Boing. -
Hanna Barbera
Hanna Barbera formed in1957 when two directers, William Hanna and Joseph Barbera joined forces after meeting working at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Over the duration of the company it made many famous well known programmes. These include The Flintstones, Scooby-Doo, Yogi Bear, Top Cat and Wacky Races. -
Aardman Studios
Aardman Studios is a claymation studio founded by Peter Lord and David Sproxton. This studio has made many acomplished characters such as Wallace and Gromit, Morph and Shaun the Sheep. -
Pixar Animation Studios
Pixar was formed originally in 1979 as a company called Graphics Group. The company then changed to Pixar when Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple, joined forces with the other founders Ed Catmull and Alvy Ray Smith. The company is responsible for many computer generated animations such as Toy Story and Finding Nemo. -
WETA Digital
WETA Digital was founded in 1993 and is responsible for some of the biggest films that have used CGI. Some example include Avatar, King Kong, The Lord of the Rings series and The X-Men series. -
Dreamworks Animation SKG
Founded in 1994, Dreamworks Animation SKG specialises in CGI and motion pictures. The company have released 23 films to date including Shrek, Kung-Fu Panda and Madagascar. -
Toy Story
Toy Story was the first computer generated animation. It was released by Pixar and was their first feature film. -
Chicken Run
Chicken Run was the first feature length film made using claymation, It was produced by Aardman Studios and Dreamworks Animation SKG. -
Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within
This was the first CGI animated film which attempted to show realistic-looking humans. Most films beforehand had featured either animals or anthromorphic machines such as cars or robots. -
Reign of Fire
The film Reign of Fire used CGI to create realistic fire which featured in the film. -
Avatar
James Camerons Avatar was the first 3D film made. This featured motion capture suits and CGI to produce the Na'vi characters and the complex environment in which they live. According to Cameron, 60% of the whole film is animated and 40% live action. -
Toy Story 3
Toy Story 3 was the first full length 3D film released in cinemas which was computer generated. It was 11 years after Toy Story 2 but Pixar wanted to wait until the technology was available to produce it in 3D. It has so far made $1,063,171,911 in the box office. -
The Hobbit, An Unexpected Journey
Peter Jackson is currently in production of The Hobbit. It is going to be made entirely in 3D also with 3D storyboards. The film will be made in 48 frame/s instead of the standard 24 frame/s which has been seen for over 90 years. Jackson believes that this will provide a smoother viewing experience and also increase quality of the picture. -
James Cameron - Avatars 2 & 3
It is planned that in 2014 Cameron will be releasing a second Avatar. The filming for both sequels is planned to be done back to back. Cameron want s to film footage for the second roughly seven miles underwater in the Mariana Trench, the worlds deepest point. Even the best Russian submarines cannot withstande the pressure at that level. These films will be pushing boundaries. -
Zoetrope
Ding Huan created the first form of a Zoetrope in 180 AD. This was ground breaking because it was the earliest form of any animation. It involved spinning a drum with images on then looking through slots which gives the illusion that the merged images are moving.
