How Cartoons Came to Life
From spinning paper discs and chalk-line clowns to cels, clay and computers: the people, tricks and tools behind more than a century of animation.
10 deep dives
Fantastic Cartoon explores where animation came from and how it is made today. We cover the pioneers, the techniques, the studios and the craft behind every frame, in plain language and with facts you can check.
Optical Toys Before Film
Spinning discs that made pictures move
Fantasmagorie and Émile Cohl
The stick figure that started cartoons
Gertie the Dinosaur
The first cartoon star with personality
Cel Animation
Clear sheets, painted backs, one frame each
The 12 Principles of Animation
The rules that make drawings feel alive
Stop-Motion Animation
Puppets and clay, moved frame by frame
The Rise of CGI
From a teapot to the first CG feature
A Short History of Anime
From 1917 shorts to global hits
Saturday Morning Cartoons
When TV made weekends for kids
How a Cartoon Episode Is Made
From script to screen, step by step
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