Pioneers of

Animation
Tasmin Saunders

Joseph
Plateau
He was aBelgianphysicist. He was
the first person to demonstrate the
illusion of a moving image. To do
this he used counter rotating disks
with repeating drawn images in
small increments of motion on one
and regularly spaced slits in the
other. He called this device of 1832
thePhenakistoscope.

William
Horner
Hewas aBritish
mathematician; he

was a schoolmaster, headmaster

and school keeper, proficient in
classics as well as mathematics,
who wrote extensively on functional
equations, number theory and
approximation theory, but also on
optics. His contribution to
approximation theory is honored in
the designationHorner's method, in
particular respect of a paper
inPhilosophical Transactions of the
Royal Society of Londonfor 1819.
The modern invention of the
zoetrope, under the
nameDaedaleumin 1834, has been
attributed to him.

Emile
Hewas a French inventor,
Reynaud
responsible for the first projected
animated cartoons. Reynaud
created thePraxinoscopein 1877
and theThtre Optiquein
December 1888, and on 28 October
1892 he projected the first animated
film in public,Pauvre Pierrot, at
theMuse Grvinin Paris. This is
also notable as the first known
instance offilm perforations being
used.

Eadweard
Muybridge

important for his pioneering work in

photographic studies ofmotion, and
early work in motionpictureprojection. He adopted the
name Eadweard Muybridge,
believing it to be the originalAngloSaxon formof his name.
At age 20, he emigrated to America,
first to New York, as a bookseller,
and then to San Francisco. He
returned to England in 1861, and
took up professionalphotography,
learning thewet-plate
collodionprocess, and secured at
least two British patents for his
inventions. He went back to San
Francisco in 1867, and in 1868 his
large photographs ofYosemite
Valleymade him world famous.
Today, Muybridge is known for his
pioneering work onanimal
locomotionin 1877 and 1878, which
used multiple cameras to
capturemotioninstopmotionphotographs, and
hiszoopraxiscope, a device for
projectingmotion pictures that predated the flexible perforated film

Thomas
Edison
Hewas anAmericaninventorandbusinessman. He
developed many devices that greatly influenced
life around the world, including thephonograph,
themotion picture camera, and the long-lasting,
practical electriclight bulb. Dubbed "The Wizard of
Menlo Park", he was one of the first inventors to
apply the principles ofmass productionand largescale teamwork to the process of invention, and
because of that, he is often credited with the
creation of the first industrialresearch laboratory.
Edison was aprolific inventor, holding 1,093US
patents in his name, as well as many patents in the
United Kingdom, France, and Germany. More
significant than the number of Edison's patents
was the widespread impact of his
inventions:electric lightand powerutilities,sound
recording, andmotion picturesall established
major new industries world-wide. Edison's
inventions contributed tomass
communicationand, in particular,
telecommunications. These included astock ticker,
a mechanical vote recorder, a battery for an
electric car, electrical power, recorded music
andmotion pictures.
His advanced work in these fields was an
outgrowth of his early career as
atelegraphoperator. Edison developed a system of
electric-power generation and distributionto
homes, businesses, and factories a crucial
development in the modern industrialized world

Lumire
brothers
The Lumire
brothers, Auguste
Marie Louis Nicolas and Louis Jean
were the first filmmakers in history.
They patented the cinematograph,
which in contrast to Edison's
"peepshow" kinetoscope allowed
simultaneous viewing by multiple
parties. Their first film, Sortie de
l'usine Lumire de Lyon, shot in
1895, is considered the first true
motion picture.

George
Pal
He was aHungariananimatorand
film producer, principally associated
with thescience fictiongenre. He
became an American citizen after
emigrating from Europe.