THE RISE OF STYLIZED ANIMATION IN FILM

By using computer animation, Pixar’s 1995 film “Toy Story” impacted the animation industry more than any other movie since Disney’s 1937 film “Snow White and the Seven Dwarves.” Animators were suddenly able to keep characters, sets, and other designs stored in their computers, and hand-drawn animation became a tool of the past. This digital method of animation was more e cient, but as a consequence, critics began judging the merit of animated films based on the realism of their shots were rather than their storytelling or unique art style. This trend increasingly pushed animators to incorporate the photorealistic, 3D “Pixar e ect,” which made them lose sight of the stylized, artistic aspect of animation that makes animated movies distinct from live-action films.

Lately, stylized animation—that is, nonphotorealistic animation—has been on the rise, largely thanks to Sony’s 2018 film “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.” The animators paid homage to the original illustrated material by including the speech bubbles, thought balloons, and crosshatch shading commonly used in physical comics. By liberating themselves from photorealism, the animators were able to create a colorful, exciting, and magical experience that would never have been possible in a photorealistic film.

After seeing that animated movies did not have to use the “Pixar e ect” to succeed, other animation studios began experimenting further with animation. For example, Dreamworks’ new movie “Puss in Boots: The Last Wish” experiments with painted backgrounds to create the illusion of depth. Netflix’s 2020 release “The Willoughbys” uses crafty textures and stop-motion animation to give it the classic, cozy feel of older animated movies. Even video games have experimented with stylized animation, including Riot Games’ Arcane, which has a painted style that deviates from classic animation styles.

Stylized animation is becoming more popular in media, but what does this increased traction mean for the future of animation? One major impact is that superhero movies and book adaptations may increase their use of stylized animation to pay tribute to their source texts. More broadly, stylized animation gives animators an opportunity to return to what made animation incredible in the first place: being able to turn imaginative, unrealistic ideas into reality.