The First Animated Cartoon: How It All Began

The inception of animated cartoons marks a significant milestone in cinematic history, with Émile Cohl's Fantasmagorie (1908) widely regarded as the first fully animated film. This pioneering work laid the foundation for the evolution of animation as an art form and entertainment medium.​

Émile Cohl and Fantasmagorie

In 1908, French artist Émile Cohl created Fantasmagorie, a groundbreaking short film that showcased a series of whimsical, hand-drawn scenes morphing fluidly into each other. The film features a stick figure encountering various transforming objects, presenting a dreamlike sequence that captivates the viewer's imagination. To achieve this effect, Cohl drew approximately 700 images on illuminated glass plates, employing a technique that allowed each drawing to seamlessly transition into the next. This meticulous process resulted in a film lasting about one minute and twenty seconds, which is celebrated as one of the earliest examples of traditional hand-drawn animation. 

Predecessors and Early Experiments

Before Fantasmagorie, there were notable experiments with animated sequences. In 1906, J. Stuart Blackton's Humorous Phases of Funny Faces featured hand-drawn faces appearing to move and change expressions through stop-motion photography. Although innovative, this film primarily showcased drawings being altered frame by frame, rather than the fluid animation seen in Cohl's work. ​

Another precursor includes The Enchanted Drawing (1900) by Blackton, which combined live-action and stop-motion to depict a cartoonist interacting with his illustrations. While these films incorporated animated elements, they did not achieve the continuous, hand-drawn animation that defines Fantasmagorie.​

Impact and Legacy

Fantasmagorie's release marked a transformative moment in the arts, demonstrating the potential of animation to convey stories and abstract concepts beyond the capabilities of live-action film. Cohl's innovative techniques inspired subsequent animators to explore and expand the medium, leading to the rich and diverse field of animation we know today.​

For those interested in viewing this historic piece, Fantasmagorie is available to watch online: