History of animation

Peter Roget presented his paper 'The persistence of vision with regard to moving objects' to the British Royal Society.

Dr. Joseph Antoine Plateau a Belgian scientist and Dr. Simon Rittrer constructed a machine called a phenakitstoscope. This machine produced an illusion of movement by allowing a viewer to gaze at a rotating disk containing small windows; behind the windows was another disk containing a sequence of images. When the disks were rotated at the correct speed, the synchronization of the windows with the images created an animated effect.

Eadweard Muybridge started his photographic gathering of animals in motion.

Thomas Edison started his research work into motion pictures.

George Eastman began the manufacture of photographic film strips using a nitro-cellulose base.

Thomas Edison announced his creation of the kinetoscope which projected a 50ft length of film in approximately 13 seconds.

Emile Renynaud, combining his earlier invention of the praxinoscope with a projector, opens the Theatre Optique in the Musee Grevin. It displays an animation of images painted on long strips of celluloid.

Louis and Augustine Lumiere issued a patent for a device called a cinematograph capable of projecting moving pictures.

Thomas Armat designed the vitascope which projected the films of Thomas Edison. This machine had a major influence on all sub-sequent projectors.

J. Stuart Blackton made the first animated film which he called "Humorous phases of funny faces." His method was to draw comical faces on a blackboard and film them. He would stop the film, erase one face to draw another, and then film the newly drawn face. The Ôstop-motionÕ provided a starting effect as the facial expressions changed be fore the viewerÕs eyes.