Chapter 1
Magic tricks before the movie theater
Chapter 2
The era of ink and scissors
Chapter 3
Puppets, clay, and limited lines
Chapter 4
The pixels that learned to paint
YOUR GOAL
Master of How to make drawings run away
Ch 1 · Magic tricks before the movie theater
disney The Magic Lantern
With painted glass and candle light, a skeleton began to shake Within the magic lantern lens, the first cartoon was wide awake
disney A spinning zoetrope wheel displays moving drawings inside a warm, colorful Victorian parlor.
disney Warm light streams through the spinning slits of a rotating phenakistoscope disc.
Fun Fact
Movie speed: To trick our brains into seeing smooth motion, animations must show at least 12 frames per second.
Glossary
magic lantern (noun)
An early type of image projector that uses a light source to project pictures painted on glass plates onto a screen. In 1659, Dutch scientist Christiaan Huygens invented the device, pioneering early projected animation.
An early type of image projector that uses a light source to project pictures painted on glass plates onto a screen. In 1659, Dutch scientist Christiaan Huygens invented the device, pioneering early projected animation.
Quiz
What was the zoetrope originally called when William George Horner patented it in 1834?
Quiz
What optical illusion allows the brain to merge rapidly flashing images into one continuous motion?
Quiz
What did Charles-Émile Reynaud use instead of photographic film for his 1892 projections?