A Complete History of 3D Film Animation

What is 3D Animation? 2D vs. 3D Animation

It doesn’t matter what type of animation we’re talking about, every animation style is the process of taking a static image and making it appear in motion. Since the 1800s, 2D animation has been used in a variety of classic Disney films such as Cinderella, Aladdin, The Little Mermaid, and more. The main difference between 2D and 3D animation is that while 2D is the combination of flat images to create a seamless video production, 3D adds a third dimension to these images; depth. The 3D animation process is often a quicker technique compared to 2D technology, since artists don’t have to animate every single frame as you do with 2D. Although it’s a time-efficient tool, 3D animation is much more difficult than 2D. The many different moving parts involved make 3D very advanced, and it’s often more expensive than 2D due to the resources and equipment needed. 

While 2D animation techniques were all the rage of the early 1900s, we’re thankful for the advancement of 3D animation techniques and where it’s taken the film industry. Let’s go back in time to the very beginning of 3D animation and how it came to be what it is today.

The Start of 3D Animation

Let’s begin at the very start with computer-generated imagery (CGI) or 3D animation. In the early 1900s, a unique one-of-a-kind style of animation known as claymation came into being. This style of animation uses clay models formed into objects and characters and manipulated frame-by-frame. Popular movies like Coraline, Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas, and the 1964 version of Rudolph the Rednosed Reindeer all use claymation for the entirety of filming. If you’ve seen the stop motion technique used in claymation, 3D animation is essentially the digitized version of the animation style. 

In the 1960s, William Fetter, an employee at Boeing, is often credited as the inventor of computer-generated (CG) 3D animation. Fetter’s job was to create 3D models using computers to animate and design these models for Boeing. He went on to create short videos compiling these 3D images of rigged pilots used to understand ideal methods for cockpit design. Because 3D moving imagery had never been invented or even heard of, Fetter became known as the father of computer-generated 3D animation.

3D Animation’s Debut: Toy Story and Veggie Tales

During the 1960s and 1970s, computer scientists worked to learn how to use 3D animation on bigger objects. Edwin Catmull, the co-founder of Pixar, and Frederic Parke, a graduate student from the University of Utah College of Engineering, were coined as some of the first to design realistic human hands and faces using 3D technology. In 1976, their hard work paid off, and their techniques were used in the movie Futureworld.

The advancement of software and technology during the 1980s made way for 3D animation to thrive in the 1990’s. The children’s TV series, Veggie Tales, debuted in 1993 and was the first fully animated 3D show in the US. On the back of Veggie Tales’ success came the blockbuster hits Terminator 2 (1991) and Jurassic Park (1993), which were both live-action but used the effects of CG animation techniques to create stunning visuals audiences had never seen before. With all of these major hits coming out, there was still one thing filmmakers hadn’t tried yet: a full-length 3D animated feature film. In 1995, this would change. Pixar released Toy Story as the first-ever completely CG animated feature-length movie. It instantly became a success, with a box office gross of $363 million and millions of raving fans. At this point, it was clear that 3D animation was here to stay for the long haul.

Current Status and The Future of 3D Animation

As the 1990s came to an end, technology continued to advance rapidly. CGI and 3D animation techniques are now used in almost every film and TV series we see today. In 2009, the megahit, Avatar, broke records for its incredible use of 3D animation at the highest level known to filmmakers at the time. Movies like Disney’s new “live-action” remakes of classic 2D animated films started to roll out in the 2000s. These live-action films involve shooting at a physical location with an entire cast, and editors will add 3D and CGI animation to the footage in the post-production phase of the production process. 

Today, you’ve probably heard of Frozen, Zootopia, and Sing which all use 3D animation throughout the entire film. However, 3D animation as an art form is more versatile than ever before. Films like Dune, Tenet, and just about every Marvel movie use some form of animation technology for enhancement. The combination of live-action acting and animation is an incredible discovery of the 21st century. The presence of 3D animation is strong and will continue to rise and develop for many years to come. 

Use 3D Animation In Your Next Film Production

As 3D animation continues to gain momentum, now is the time to experience its full potential. It’s time to add animation to your next film, and we’ll help you do just that. Avalanche Studios is a full-service video production company based in Utah that helps with the pre-production, production, and post-production phases of filmmaking. With decades of experience, we know the ins and outs of animation and motion graphics. We’ve seen the power animation has to enhance a film project and make it 10x better. Are you ready to upgrade your film project, and take it to the next level with our animation services? Request a quote today, and we’ll get back to you about a future partnership.