Pioneers of Stop Motion Animation

By Remi Burgher

Joseph Plateau (phenakitoscope)Joseph Plateau (14 October 1801-15

September 1883) was the first person to demonstrate the illusion of a moving

image. He did this by using a continues rotating disk with the same changes to

make it look like the image was moving, this created motion. The device was

called a Phenakitoscope.

William Horner (Zoetrope)

William Horner invented the zoetrope in 1834 and had originally called it a Daedalum meaning “Wheel of the devil. The zoetrope was based on Plateau’s Phenakistoscope but is more convenient as it does not require a

mirror and more then one person can use it.When the image is drawn with small changes in each image the illusion is created by the

drum which spins faster smoothing it to show the progression of the image. a person can

look at the image at any point through one of the walls.

Emile MuybridgeWith the first success of the photographic studies, Muybridge inspired such scientists

such as Thomas Alva Edison and more significantly Etienne-Jules Marey. Marey’s own analytical study of animal locomotion

had motivated Leland Stranford to apply the same research but with the technology in

photography. After analyzing Muybridges publishing work, Marey had the vision of using Muybridge’s

photographs in a zeotrope, the Philosophical toy was adapted as a sequence of drawing

attached to a paper band placed in the rotating drum for viewing.

Edison (kinetoscope)

Thomas Edison is most famous for creating the electric light bulb and the phonograph. However he was the first person to show moving images to the public. The images he used where record on a wax cylinder, by 1889 he had passed the project on to a Scotsman named Will Dickson. He began working on a camera using celluloid film. He named this camera the Kinectograph and used rolls of film 35mm wide. These strips had holes along the sides to let the camera pull them through at an even rate.

Lumiere brothers

Louis and Auguste came from Lyon in France and worked in their fathers photography factory. In 1894 they viewed Edion’s Kinectoscope in paris and decided to make one of their own. By February the following year they had made created working model called the Cinematographe. However it could also be used a projected if a lantern was placed infront of it. The films they produced where usually around 50 seconds long and created by taking one shot with the camera and keeping it on a fixed tripod making sure it was in the same direction each time. Their first film was shown in the Lyon Factory.