It’s a difficult choice, because there are several unforgettable animations, regardless of the criteria adopted. If we opt for the chronological criterion, for example, the most important is the first drawing, the ancestor Humorous Phases of Funny Faces (“Comic Phases of Funny Faces”), filmed by the Englishman James Stuart Blackton, in 1906. The making of the first animated figures paved the way for several talented designers in the following decades. In the 30s and 40s, the genre revealed great characters, such as the sexy Betty Boop, from 1932, and the sailor Popeye, from 1933, both created by the Fleischer brothers. Or even the crazy bunny Bugs Bunny, conceived in 1938 by the Americans Tex Avery and Chuck Jones. Later, animators William Hanna and Joseph Barbera produced some of TV’s best-known series, such as The Flintstones (1960), the first to occupy prime time in the United States.
But no retrospective of the cartoons would be complete without mentioning the genius work of nearly half a century by the American Walt Disney, responsible for some of the most important innovations of all time in animation. From the hands of his team came the first sound design, Steamboat Willie (“Willie of the Steamboat”, 1928), the first color drawing, Flowers and Trees (“Flowers and Trees”, 1932), and the first animated feature film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, from 1937. Successes with the public, Disney’s numerous creations were also rewarded by the critics: in all, the American collected 32 Oscars in his lifetime. After his death, his studios continued to produce revolutionary works, such as Toy Story (1995), the first fully computer-generated drawing.
Unforgettable masterpieces We selected 10 productions that changed the history of animation
FIRST CARTOON
HUMOROUS PHASES OF FUNNY FACES (1906)
To produce the three minutes of pioneering animation, Englishman James Stuart Blackton made 3,000 drawings and photographed them frame by frame. Armed with chalk, the artist’s hand appears in the drawing scribbling faces, men in profile and various objects. With the success, the producer commissioned a series of drawings for the cinema from Blackton.
FIRST DRAWING WITH SOUND
STEAMBOAT WILLIE (1928)
In the drawing that made Mickey the mouse famous, Disney himself conducted the orchestra responsible for the soundtrack and provided the voice of the little mouse, created in the same year in two silent animations that went almost unnoticed. The sound debut propelled the character to stardom: in just one year, Mickey won 15 more drawings
FIRST DRAWING TRANSMITTED ON TELEVISION
THE CAT FELIX (1930)
Launched by American Otto Messmer and Australian Pat Sullivan, the laughing black cat first appeared in animation Feline Follies (“Folias Felinas”), 1919. Félix was the biggest cartoon star of the silent era, but he couldn’t survive sound cinema. Despite the failure on the big screen, animation had the privilege of being the first to be broadcast on television, in 1930
FIRST COLOR DRAWING
FLOWERS AND TREES (1932)
In 1932, Disney went to Technicolor, the company that had created a system for using color in films, and asked them for exclusivity for two years. The first result of the partnership was Flowers and Trees (“Flowers and Trees”), the pioneering color cartoon that won Disney an Oscar the first year a specific trophy was created to celebrate animation.
FIRST ANIMATION FEATURE
SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN Dwarfs (1937)
In addition to being the first feature film, the animation is also considered one of the most beautiful in history. To finish it, 800 artists produced more than 1 million drawings, of which around 250,000 were used. The innovation was a success with the public (in today’s numbers, the box office would exceed 6 billion dollars), and earned Disney a special Oscar, accompanied by seven other mini-statuettes.
FIRST BRAZILIAN DESIGN
AMAZON SYMPHONY (1953)
The first Brazilian cartoon is a feature film, directed by Anélio Lattini Filho. To complete the film, the director took six years, working alone in the preparation of 500,000 drawings and in all stages of production. Considered by critics a masterpiece of national animation, the film tells folklore legends from the North region of the country.
FIRST DRAWING EXHIBITED IN PRIME TIME
THE FLINTSTONES (1960-1966)
The prehistoric family of Bedrock was created in 1960 by the Hanna Barbera studio, becoming the first animated series shown in prime time on American TV. The popularity guaranteed six years of duration to the confusions of Fred, Wilma, Barney and Betty, besides inspiring the creation of The Jetsons (1962), a kind of Flintstones of the future
THE MOST LONGEST ANIMATED SERIES
THE SIMPSONS (since 1989)
Created by artist Matt Groening, this crazy family debuted in vignettes in the United States in 1987. Two years later, Homer and company won a series that has already passed 20 seasons, with more than 500 episodes produced. Broadcast in 70 countries, the program has already taken home more than 20 Emmy awards, the most prestigious in American TV.
FIRST COMPUTER DRAWING
TOY STORY (1995)
Directed by John Lasseter, the first animated feature made entirely in computer was produced in a partnership between Disney and Pixar studios, at a cost of 30 million dollars. The success of the adventures of the toy astronaut Buzz Lightyear enabled the producers to launch one of the most beloved franchises in the Disney universe