What is the name of the very first cartoon in the world and when was it released? The very first cartoon in the world. The first Soviet cartoon

They can’t come to a common opinion, what was the very first cartoon in the world? Three cartoons at once can lay claim to the palm. These are "Phantasmagoria" by Emile Cohl, as well as "The Humorous Phases of Funny Faces" and "The Haunted Hotel" by James Stuart Blackton. Even before 1900, J. Stewart Blackton, along with Thomas Edison, made "moving drawings" and filmed them, thereby combining film techniques with graphics. The resulting film was called Humorous Phases funny faces" and presented to the French public on April 6, 1906.

Using the same dynamic animation technique, Blackton created another film in 1907, The Haunted Hotel. But in our understanding, these cartoons were still very imperfect, and only demonstrated some of the capabilities of the animation technique, which was then called the “American Movement.”

Later, these possibilities were used by the French cartoonist Emile Colas in the cartoon Phantasmagoria, shown by Gaumont in August 1908. Although “Phantasmagoria” lasts only one and a half minutes, many experts consider it to be the first full-fledged cartoon in the world. It was drawn on white paper and filmed in negative, with light lines on dark background created an unusual effect.

The first cartoons of Russia and the USSR

By the way, the very first cartoon was made in Russia in 1912, and first soviet cartoon published in 1924. It was called " Soviet toys"and, of course, promoted the Soviet system.

It came out in 1928 and was called Plane Crazy. Disney's very first feature-length animated film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, premiered on December 21, 1937. It was a cinematic sensation. In the same year, for his first cartoon, Walt Disney received one full-length and seven small (according to the number of gnomes) Oscar statuettes. Since February 4, 1938, this cartoon has been widely released and to this day occupies a high place among the best animated films.

When children sit down to watch another colorful cartoon, they don’t even think about what the very first cartoons in the world were like. The history of animation is very interesting and controversial, and it contains not only color films for children, but also black and white works without sound.

In this material you will learn about the first foreign and Soviet cartoons that were released on blue screens back in the last century.

Today Youtube is flooded with modern cartoons with interesting characters and instructive implications. Just remember the tape "Shrek". The terrible green ogre turned into a sweet and childishly naive giant, thanks to the love and care of his beloved. However, for just over a hundred years, the first cartoons did not look so spectacular.

We invite you to look into the past of animation to find out where it all began, what the most old cartoon in the world was watched not only by children, but also by their parents, and what contribution the legendary Walt Disney made to the development of animated films for children. What is the name of the first European black and white film for children? When was the first 3D cartoon released in the world and in Russia?

When did the first cartoon come out in the world?

The history of world animation begins before 1900. Stuart Blackton and Thomas Edison made "moving drawings", and after that the resulting pictures were shot on film.

American works

The first animated films began to be created in America. At the dawn of the twentieth century (in 1900), the world's first silent short cartoon was released. "Enchanted Drawing" Stuart Blackton. He is considered the progenitor of American animation.

This was followed by an animated film "Funny transitions of funny faces", released in 1906. It gathered not only children, but also adults in the cinema hall, because it contained an interesting and even philosophical subtext. The screening of the cartoon was accompanied by the playing of a pianist, and entire orchestras played in large halls in America.

The very first cartoons in the world had more in common with newspaper comics than with modern animation. One of the first works with a cartoon animal character was a twelve-minute film about a female Hertidinosaurus.

The first European cartoons

In 1908, the French cartoonist Emile Col began to actively study graphic animation. It was during this period that he created his first work, the title of which is "Phantasmagoria". This film became iconic because Emil was the first to create a cartoon with a clear plot. Also distinctive feature black and white tape became that main character Fantosh was endowed with certain character traits.

This is interesting: To create his first hand-drawn cartoon, two minutes long, Emil needed to make about 700 drawings.

In honor of the centenary "Phantasmagoria" Serbian director Rastko Ciric released a remake of the cartoon, which had the same name. IN new job not only drawn ones have already been used, but also computer technicians animations.

Walt Disney's first cartoons

When remembering colorful Disney animated films, what immediately comes to mind is "The Lion King" and a legend that is recognized in every corner globe – Mickey Mouse.

However, few people know that one of Disney’s very first works was a black and white cartoon "Alice's Day at Sea". This film, based on the events of Alice in Wonderland, was released in 1924. The very first cartoon in Walt Disney's career was "Laughogram"(1921). Next job, which also remains unfamiliar to modern kids, is "Oswald the Lucky Rabbit".

Speaking about the first works of Walt Disney, one cannot fail to mention animated film, in which the world-famous mouse first appeared Mickey Mouse. The character flashed on screens back in 1928 in a black and white cartoon "Crazy Plane". In the same year, Mickey became the hero of the first voice-over film for children - "Steamboat Willie". It was at that time that a love for a cute and funny mouse began to emerge in children all over the world. By the way, they originally wanted to call it Mortimer.

Disney's first full-length animated film "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs"- came out at the end of 1937. It was he who brought to his creator world fame and success, and in addition another 8 million dollars.

Interesting fact: For this film, Walt Disney received one big Oscar and seven small statuettes (just the number of dwarves). Even though Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was released 80 years ago, it is still considered one of the best animated films Disney has ever made.

Animation, which is familiar to us, came to the USSR much later. At first she was a doll. And the first Soviet children's cartoon is considered to be the work of choreographer Alexander Shiryaev, created in 1906. The primitive cartoon shows viewers 12 dancing figures performing all kinds of ballet steps against the backdrop of motionless scenery.

This is interesting: During the three months of creating the first Soviet puppet cartoon, Alexander Shiryaev rubbed a hole in the parquet with his feet.

Who would have thought that the first animated work of the Soviet era was not intended to entertain children. In 1924, documentary director David Abelevich Kaufman decided to create a hand-drawn film about the history of the formation of Soviet Union. For 10 minutes, peasants, workers, Red Army soldiers, an arrogant bourgeois and priests flash on the screen. The plot of the cartoon develops against the backdrop of constantly changing music. "Soviet toys", at the end of which the Red Army soldiers hang their enemies on a Christmas tree. In this animated film, the Christmas tree has become a symbol of the birth of a bright future.

This was followed by another series of animated films telling about the most important historical events in the life of the Soviet Union. However, Ivan Petrovich, who is considered the progenitor of domestic animation, moved away from the topic of propaganda. He created a simple short film for children called "Ice rink". Its plot is very ordinary and, nevertheless, instructive. A young speed skater, escaping from pursuit, accidentally becomes a champion.

Interesting fact: many people who have seen foreign films for children as adults underestimate Soviet cartoons, preferring colorful and magical works Disney. However, the patriarch of Soyuzmultfilm, Leonid Shvartsmaan, is offended by this attitude. In one of his interviews, he says that Disney was his teacher. It was he who introduced the conveyor production method, which was adopted by Soviet animators.

The first full-length cartoon of the USSR "New Gulliver" published in 1935. This satirical animated film by Alexander Ptushko was created based on the work of J. Swift “The Adventures of Gulliver”. The picture shows classic painting life during the USSR: the Lilliputian working class fights against rotten capitalism in the person of the secret police and the puppet king.

The very first color works

And again everyone’s favorite creator enters the arena fairy world- Disney. It was Walt Disney Studios that released the world's first cartoon in color in 1932. It is noteworthy that initially the short film "Flowers and Trees" filmed in classic black and white.

However, Walt Disney decided to take a chance and remade the children's film using a three-color process - "Tricolor". It's simple and at the same time touching story about the revived forest and its inhabitants. And even modern children have a lot to learn from the main character of the film - young Maple.

The very first color cartoon in the world received an Oscar for best animated short film. After this, several more color cartoons were published in the “Silly Symphonies” series.

First Russian color work "The Fox and the Wolf" was published in 1936. Few people know that the director was the artist Jewish origin Sarah Mokil. Already from the title itself it becomes clear that the woman took the Russian folk tale of the same name as the basis for the plot.

The very first 3D cartoon in the world

The end of the era of 2D animation came in 2004, after the legendary Disney released its last job in the usual format - "Don't hit with your hoof".

Now both adults and children are divided into two categories. Some people remember their favorite cartoons with hand-drawn graphics with nostalgia, while others consider it a relic of the past and highly praise children's films in 3D format. Well, each person makes his own choice. We want to tell you about the first 3D cartoon. Many naively believe that it appeared some 5-10 years ago.

Let's think back to 1984. It was at this time that it came out on the screens short cartoon from Pixar - "The Adventure of Andre and Wally Bee"(but then the company was called Lucasfilm).

The first full-length animated 3D film was released in 1995. Many people probably remember the cartoon that has already become a classic - “Toy Story”. With the support of Steve Jobs, Pixar set about creating an iconic story. It must be said that the work process was very long and tedious. And it’s not just the technical difficulties, but also the Pixar curator’s meticulousness to detail. The expert did not hesitate to change the characters’ characters and the line of relationships between them.

The use of computer animation allowed the creators of the legendary "Toy Stories" create shots that are difficult to capture using traditional animation. For example, applying complex shadows.

Did you know: after release "Toy Stories" More than 250 3D cartoons were released.

In Russia, the first 3D cartoon was released in 2010. The National Film Center studio has created fascinating story called Belka and Strelka. Star Dogs". Animated film dedicated to “veterans” outer space who were accepted into the cosmonaut corps.

World animation has passed thorny path from primitive drawings to full-fledged animated 3D films. We are confident that even more will appear in the near future innovative technologies creating cartoons that will allow young viewers to watch what is happening on the screen or monitor without taking their eyes off and holding their breath.

Information for writing the material and photos were taken from free sources (including Wikipedia).

Examples of the first cartoons

Phantasmagoria (1908)

"Plane Crazy" - Mickey Mouse (1928)

Your children have probably asked you this question: when did the world’s first cartoon come out and is it possible to watch it? Don't be upset if you couldn't answer. There is no exact answer; experts and historians have not yet decided which of the first films can be called animated.

American cartoonist and actor Stuart Blackton is considered to be a pioneer of the industry. He filmed The Humpty Dumpty Circus or “Circus of Lilliputians” in 1898 with wooden dolls, two years later of the year The Enchanted Drawing - "Enchanted Drawing" with an artist who drew faces on paper sheets similar to modern flip charts.

The technology of stop-motion animation, when one image follows another, was invented and used later by Blackton, and for the first time he shot something like a cartoon on film. The well-known Thomas Edison, an American businessman, scientist and inventor, is related to the film Humorous phases of funny faces. Blackton worked as an engineer at Edison's company and they created the first drawn strip together. The screen showed drawings with white chalk on a black board. The characters, whom the artist began to draw in front of the audience, then acted and grimaced without his help. Of course, this amazed the first viewers of the film in France in April 1906. The plot development was a success, although there was no full-fledged plot in this cartoon.

Another experiment by Stuart Blackton can also claim the laurels of the first cartoon. This is The Haunted Hotel, the film was much more successful among viewers: special effects appeared here, inanimate objects moved in accordance with the laws of the genre. The kettle poured tea on its own, the knife cut the bread itself, towels flew and so on, but no one understood how it was all done. The effect was then called the “American movement.”

American director John Kenemaker is confident that it was Blackton who suggested the idea of ​​filming mankind frame by frame while working on " magical drawing"for Edison's camera. But most experts believe that the American’s experiments cannot be called real cartoons; it was a commercial demonstration by engineer Blackton of the capabilities of the technologies of that time.

Then the very first real cartoon can be considered the short film by the Frenchman Emile Cohl Fantasmagorie (“Phantasmagoria”), which was presented to viewers in 1908. The author created more than 700 drawings on white paper for this film, so it turned out to be the first hand-drawn cartoon. The character of the film Fantosh finds himself in difficult and comical situations, for example, he conquers the horizontal bar, falls off it and after that appears before the audience more plump and powerful. Surprisingly, this one-and-a-half-minute cartoon still looks quite modern today, at least original.

If there are disputes about the very first world cartoon, then the author of the Russian cartoon, which became the first, is known for sure. This is research biologist Vladislav Starevich. He decided to make an educational film with a fight between stag beetles, but Starevich was not satisfied with the result. Then it occurred to him original idea: Starevich dissected the beetles, stuck the thinnest wires to them with wax, and by moving the beetles across the frames in 1912 he created a whole fairy tale story lasting more than ten minutes. Spectators around the world did not unravel Starevich’s technology and were delighted with how the scientist was able to “train” the beetles. And Vladislav Starevich himself, in addition to science, devoted himself to puppet animation.

The history of cinema is truly interesting, because in our time, modern high-tech special effects work real miracles: films amaze with their believability so much that viewers literally feel themselves during the events of the film! However, this was not always the case, and in order to achieve the results that each of us sees in the cinema now, people in the arts have been striving for this for decades. We invite you to take a look at where it all began!

THE VERY FIRST FILM IN THE WORLD - 1895

The beginning of the cinematic era was marked by this short documentary film, which was shot by the Lumiere brothers, called " Arrival of the train at La Ciotat station". Since then, Auguste Louis Marie Nicolas and Louis Jean have been considered the founders of cinema. Despite the simple plot, the picture shocked everyone, because before that people could not imagine that sitting in the room in front of them a real carriage train would pass.

French director Georges Méliès.

THE VERY FIRST HORROR FILM IN THE WORLD - 1896

It is difficult to surprise a modern viewer, much less frighten him, because he has already been spoiled. But there’s a first time for everything, just like the first “horror” movie on the planet. Of course, now the special effects of the 19th century look funny: people appear and disappear in clouds of smoke, and bats suddenly flutter out from behind the edge of the scenery, but precisely "Devil's Castle" officially considered the world's number one horror story.

American cartoonist Stuart Blackton.

THE VERY FIRST CARTOON IN THE WORLD No. 1 - 1906

And two contenders are competing for the title of the very first cartoon in the world: Stuart Blackton and Emil Kolya. In general, the very first was precisely " Humorous phases of funny faces", where the characters come to life with the help of the artist’s hand - it was shown to the public already in 1906 in France.

THE VERY FIRST CARTOON IN THE WORLD No. 2 - 1908

Despite the top multimedia film, scientists recognized the painting " Phantasmagoria" the very first full-fledged hand-drawn cartoon in history. During the creation of a 1.5-minute cartoon, 700 drawings were required!

Directed by Alan Crosland. USA.

THE VERY FIRST FILM IN THE WORLD WITH SOUND - 1927

Musical film "The Jazz Singer" became the first feature-length film in history with sound, which means that it was in 1927 that the era of silent films ended. 88 minutes long, its creation required a huge amount of money at that time, 422 thousand dollars.

Director: Dziga Vertov. USSR.

THE VERY FIRST CARTOON IN RUSSIA - 1924

First animated film in Russia "Soviet toys", was created as propaganda for the Soviet system. The leading roles are played by an overeating and morally decaying bourgeois, whose belly is full of money, but in the end there is a happy ending for everyone: a Red Army soldier appears, and all the proletarians formed christmas tree, on which the enemies of Soviet society hung in the form of toys...

Armenian director Ruben Mamulyan.

OFFICIALLY RECOGNIZED THE VERY FIRST COLOR FILM IN THE WORLD - 1935

Surprisingly, color cinema was invented by the Lumière brothers (they colored each frame by hand), then in 1902 the film “Traveling to the Moon” was released, where green and red tones appeared in several frames; in 1917 and 1922, the first films of Herbert Calamus, the founder of Technicolor company and the founder of color cinematography, 1925 USSR film "Battleship Potemkin" with splashes of red..

But apparently scientists found out about this too late, but because "Becky Sharp" 1935 is officially recognized as the very first color film in the world.

Walt Disney Company.

THE VERY FIRST DISNEY CARTOON - MARCH 1, 1924

The very first cartoon of the legendary and beloved Disney animation studio was the debut "Alice's Day at Sea", based on Lewis Carroll's book Alice in Wonderland. By the way, even now the picture is interesting to watch.