Animation has been around for a very long time, but the earliest cartoons were not much more than flipbooks. The first cartoon characters were created as early as 1908 by American animators Earl Hurd and J.R. Bray. These early cartoons featured Felix the Cat, who became one of the most popular cartoon characters of all time, and Koko the Clown. Animation has a unique way of bringing stories to life in the most imaginative of ways without the barriers that come with live-action. You really can make anything possible and nothing seems out of reach!

The advancements in animation over the decades since its inception have been remarkable, to say the least, with new techniques bringing to life new stories and characters for each new generation. It’s widely accessible for all genres and can be a great way of telling any story. From the early days of animation loops and cell animation to the immensely impressive abilities of modern-day CGI, the art of animation has remained a strong contender in some of the most loved movies ever made.

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Early Animation

     McCay | Vitagraph Company of America

The silent era of animation (1900s – 1920s) was when animation took its first pivotal steps into its evolution as a valid form of entertainment. Animation made its way into films when silent movies became popular in the late 1910s and early 1920s. Implementing animation into silent movies made it easier for movie patrons to engage with what they were watching on the screen.

One of the earliest pieces of animation was Humorous Phases of Funny Faces in 1906 from the mind of J. Stuart Blackton. Soon after this came the charming, and first notable animated character, Gertie the Dinosaur in 1914. It was the first of its kind to use keyframing, registration marks, and animation loops. This approach became an industry standard for many years to follow.

Early animation became known as cel animation because animators used sheets called cels that had painted drawings on them which acted like frames in a movie reel when placed together on top of each other. Cel animation remained popular until the 1960s when computer technology started to make its way into Hollywood studios.

The Golden Age of Animation

     Walt Disney Pictures

The golden age of animation could be said to include animation from the 1920s to the 1950s. A major player in these days, and still a major player today, would be Walt Disney Animation Studios. Their main mascot being that of Mickey Mouse. Mickey actually featured in the first animated movie to ever feature sound, Steamboat Willie, back in 1928. Walt Disney and his team undeniably changed the course of animation movies for the decades that followed. Disney would continue to revolutionize animation by owning multiple ‘firsts’ with this form of entertainment. For example, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) was the first full-feature animation to be entirely hand-drawn, and One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961) was the first full-feature to use xerography. To note, xerography is the technique that involves directly printing drawings onto cels instead of meticulously hand-inking the outlines of characters on every cell.

Another notable animation studio that really got going in the golden age of animation was Warner Bros animation, especially when Tex Avery joined the ranks. Sinkin’ in the Bathtub was Warner Bros first animation release under the much-loved Looney Tunes label in 1930. The animated content of Warner Bros seemed to push the boundaries of animated content at the time and bring with it some immensely hilarious and chaotic characters.

The Rise in Stop-Motion Animation in the 1960s

     Columbia Pictures

Stop-motion animation has been around for a long time. The first stop-motion film was made in 1896, and since then it has been used in many classic movies like Wallace & Gromit and Chicken Run. Stop-motion animation is still popular today, however, it saw itself in high demand, especially during the 60s. For example, it brings the skeleton army to live in Jason and the Argonauts (1963).

Stop-motion animation is not just limited to real-world objects; it can also be combined with other types of computer graphics (CG) or live-action footage. This kind of hybrid filmmaking technique is often referred to as claymation, but there are other terms too like puppetoon.

The Renaissance Age of Animation

The renaissance age of animation was between the 1980s and 1990s when a lot of companies were trying to compete with the might of Disney. Don Bluth was a big player during this time, releasing some truly brilliant films such as The Secret of NIMH (1982), All Dogs go to Heaven (1989), and An American Tail (1986). In addition to this, Brad Bird’s The Iron Giant (1999 – Warner Bros animation studios) was another animated classic that seemed to compete well with Disney during this era.

A notable movie of the renaissance age that really helped elevate the art of animation was Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988). This movie was the first of its kind to successfully blend animation with live-action. It was jam-packed with imaginative characters that helped create something truly memorable as a milestone in animation history. Not as ground-breaking as its predecessor, Space Jam (1996) also did a pretty good job implementing the same approach almost a decade later.

Worth mentioning is that Pixar animation studios also joined the game in the renaissance age, releasing its first-ever movie in 1995, Toy Story. In fact, Toy Story was revolutionary in its own right as being the first feature-length movie made entirely with CGI, an animation technique that proved popular in the millennium age of animation.

The Millenium Age of Animation

     20th Century Studios

The millennium age of animation began in the noughties and takes us to the heavy use of CGI within modern-day cinema. Pixar was indeed the first to the podium in using CGI for animated movies, and they’ve continued to bring out some absolute crackers since their first release. These techniques have been advanced over the years and the millennium age of animation heavily features the use of CGI to bring its characters to life. In fact, they look more life-like now than ever before with insanely high-level work from the likes of Avatar 1 & 2 (2009 & 2022) which are both in the top 4 of highest-grossing movies of all time.

CGI takes over from stop-animation in turning the art of animation into something truly diverse and intricate. It includes both 2D and 3D graphics put into motion either frame-by-frame or by using a rigging technique. This technique has effectively moved animation purely from being TV and movie based, to being widely used throughout media including web series, marketing, and brand building.

From its humble begins with Felix the Cat (1919) and Gertie the Dinosaur to its blockbuster, box office exploders like Avatar and Avatar: The Way of Water, animation sure has come a long way. The art of animation has evolved into something more than just entertainment. Furthermore, with technologies constantly evolving and bringing out new techniques you couldn’t have dreamed of being possible, it seems there’s no limit to what the future of animation can bring.