Earlier this fall, SCAD celebrated International Animation Day, commemorating the world’s first public screening of an animated film, created long ago by Charles-Émile Reynaud using a technique he called “Théâtre Optique.” (For a quick primer on the early history of animation, check out this fascinating short film, hosted by Walt Disney himself.)
Reynaud’s animation debuted in 1892 — quite shocking when you consider that the world’s first live-action film would not be seen by the public for another three years, shown by Louis and Auguste Lumiere at the Grand Café in Paris. Most audiences, I would guess, don’t know that animation is the oldest genre of filmmaking. It should come as no surprise to anyone, then, that out of the top 50 highest-grossing films of the last 25 years, 10 of those are animated films and all 50 employ 3-D animations to achieve their visual effects. The spirit of Reynaud hovers over every great film of our time.
Earlier this year, our university launched Georgia’s first festival dedicated entirely to the art form, SCAD AnimationFest. We created this new annual event because — out of more than 100 professionally focused degree programs at SCAD — animation is by far our most popular major, followed by fashion, film and television, graphic design, and illustration.
See more at HuffPo.
