When Did Computer Animation Begin?

Computer animation changed the animated film industry. Animation today is based more on math formulas than the ability to draw.

Animated films such as "Toy Story," "A Bug's Life" and "Beowulf" wouldn't have been possible without the new advances in computer technology. However, computer animation itself is not new.

DAC

According to Library.ThinkQuest.org, computer animation began about 40 years ago by General Motors. The company created a design system called DAC (Design Augmented by Computers). With it, they could look at 3D models of their cars from every angle.

Sketchpad

In 1961, a student from MIT, Ivan Sutherland, designed a piece of software called Sketchpad, which allowed its user to draw a figure onto a computer screen using a light pen.

Bell Telephone

E.E. Zajac made a computer animation of his work at the Bell Telephone Laboratory in 1963. Since then, scientists have used computer animation to illustrate their work.

University of Utah

In 1970, the University of Utah developed the "hidden surface" algorithm, which allowed the computer to "know" which sides of an object should be hidden from the viewer.

1970s

During the '70s, computer advances in rendering curved surfaces and texture mapping were developed. Benoit Mandelbrot also published a paper on fractal geometry, which helps computers form images found in nature more realistically.

1980s

George Lucas started Industrial Light and Magic, an offshoot of his Lucasfilm empire. In 1986 several members of Lucas' team left to form Pixar, which later produced "Toy Story," among other computer-animated gems.

References

• Computer Animation History: Library Think Quest

Resources

• Industrial Light and Magic
• Pixar
• History of Animation