The Rotoscope is arguably the most important invention in film animation history. The device, patented in 1917 by Max Fleischer and its use introduced in 1919 by a series of breathtaking (at the time) cartoons demonstrating its practicality, transformed animation to a level never seen before.
Fleischer, a newspaper cartoonist, felt film animation could provide both educational and entertainment benefits like no other medium. But he thought previous efforts in animation were laborious and especially unrealistic in its movements of characters and objects. He and his brother, Dave, took the basic idea of projecting a movie onto a glass panel and tracing the outlines of each frame. Each drawn panel would then be filmed in sequence, duplicating human-like action unlike anything seen in cartoons before.
The two created three experimental cartoons before their first released film, 1919's "The Clown's Pup" which introduced KoKo the Clown. Dave had donned a clown costume that he used during his part-time job at Coney Island and was filmed in it performing the movements scripted for the cartoon. Then the brothers traced each frame of Dave's movements, and through a combination of animation and live action (where both appeared in), "The Clown's Pup" became film legend. KoKo the Clown was one of the longest original animated cartoon characters in early cinematic history, lasting from 1919 until 1929. He evolved into Bimbo in the Betty Boop series.
A follow-up cartoon was the Fleischer's 1919 "The Tantalizing Fly." Again, KoKo was featured in the animation, where he's chasing a fly throughout the artist's canvass.
Because of his talent, Max was employed by John R. Bray's Studio, the leading cartoon production company, as production manager. His rotoscope proved to be the leading component for the company's vast output of cartoons. He became responsible for a series of highly popular cartoons, including Betty Boop, Popeye the Sailor Man, and Superman.
As for the rotoscope, the invention made Fleischer a very rich man. Walt Disney among others paid him royalties for the use of the machine, including implementing it for his 1937 classic "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs." With the modernization of animation technology, rotoscoping remained as a mainstay for delivering spectacular special effects, such as the multiple birds in Alfred Hitchcock's 1962 "The Birds," the cartoons within live action in 1964's "Mary Poppins," and the lasers in 1977's "Star Wars." The basic principle of rotoscoping still exists today with the computer generated images (CGI) in film, reflecting Fleischers' invention is acklowledged as one of the most important devices in cinematic history.
Fleischer, a newspaper cartoonist, felt film animation could provide both educational and entertainment benefits like no other medium. But he thought previous efforts in animation were laborious and especially unrealistic in its movements of characters and objects. He and his brother, Dave, took the basic idea of projecting a movie onto a glass panel and tracing the outlines of each frame. Each drawn panel would then be filmed in sequence, duplicating human-like action unlike anything seen in cartoons before.
The two created three experimental cartoons before their first released film, 1919's "The Clown's Pup" which introduced KoKo the Clown. Dave had donned a clown costume that he used during his part-time job at Coney Island and was filmed in it performing the movements scripted for the cartoon. Then the brothers traced each frame of Dave's movements, and through a combination of animation and live action (where both appeared in), "The Clown's Pup" became film legend. KoKo the Clown was one of the longest original animated cartoon characters in early cinematic history, lasting from 1919 until 1929. He evolved into Bimbo in the Betty Boop series.
A follow-up cartoon was the Fleischer's 1919 "The Tantalizing Fly." Again, KoKo was featured in the animation, where he's chasing a fly throughout the artist's canvass.
Because of his talent, Max was employed by John R. Bray's Studio, the leading cartoon production company, as production manager. His rotoscope proved to be the leading component for the company's vast output of cartoons. He became responsible for a series of highly popular cartoons, including Betty Boop, Popeye the Sailor Man, and Superman.
As for the rotoscope, the invention made Fleischer a very rich man. Walt Disney among others paid him royalties for the use of the machine, including implementing it for his 1937 classic "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs." With the modernization of animation technology, rotoscoping remained as a mainstay for delivering spectacular special effects, such as the multiple birds in Alfred Hitchcock's 1962 "The Birds," the cartoons within live action in 1964's "Mary Poppins," and the lasers in 1977's "Star Wars." The basic principle of rotoscoping still exists today with the computer generated images (CGI) in film, reflecting Fleischers' invention is acklowledged as one of the most important devices in cinematic history.
