Animation

Animation is an illusory art form that lends itself to a popular model of visual media and large-scale global entertainment economy. The craft itself relies on phi phenomenon, the illusion of motion caused by a sequence of slightly differentiated images displayed in a rapid succession. Historically, this illusion has been created using three techniques: (1) traditional, (2) stop-motion, and (3) computer-generated methods. In the mass media, animation has found a wide success internationally in cinema, television, and new media channels beginning in the late 19th century and growing alongside the general moving picture industry.

This entry focuses on the history of animation in the mass media through its major movements of the 19th, 20th, and early 21st centuries, beginning with its prefilm origins and continuing through ...