Imokawa Mukuzo Genkanban no Maki
Encyclopedia
is the first professional Japanese animation
film ever made. It was made by Ōten Shimokawa
in 1917.
by Émile Cohl
was screened under the title . This seems to be the first drawn-animation film screened in Japan. (There were other animated films screened earlier.)
Japanese movie productions inspired by this film, and started studying animation techniques. In 1915, Nikkatsu
production started studying animation with , a painter. In the next year, Tenkatsu, or Tennenshoku Katsudō Shashin
Kabushiki Gaisha ("Natural Color Moving Picture Company"), started studying with a manga
artist Hekoten/Oten Shimokawa. Kobayashi Shōkai started their production with a manga artist .
Among these three productions, Tenkatsu film The Story of the Concierge Mukuzo Imokawa, directed by Shimokawa, came out first, completed in January 1917. It was screened a few times on movie theaters by the production. However, it is said the animation quality of the film was so poor that even Shimokawa himself was disappointed.
Four months later, in May, 1917, Nikkatsu's , directed by Kitayama, was released. In the next month, Kobayashi Shōkai's , directed by Kōuchi was also screened.
Mukuzo Imokawa was a manga character that Shimokawa used in his manga.
. This undated 3 second film, plainly titled , has been speculated to be as much as 10 years older than Mukuzo Imokawa.
This supposedly older anime is assumed to have been made for private viewing. Therefore, as a professional commercial anime, Mukuzo Imokawa still seems to hold the title of "the first".
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
film ever made. It was made by Ōten Shimokawa
Oten Shimokawa
a Japanese artist, is considered to be one of the founding artists and pioneers of anime. Little is known of his early personal life, other than that his family moved to the Tokyo area when he was nine years old...
in 1917.
Backgrounds
In April 1914, French animation FantasmagorieFantasmagorie (1908 film)
Fantasmagorie is an 1908 French animated film by Émile Cohl. It is one of the earliest examples of traditional animation, and considered by film historians to be the first animated cartoon.-Description:...
by Émile Cohl
Émile Cohl
Émile Cohl , born Émile Eugène Jean Louis Courtet, was a French caricaturist of the largely forgotten Incoherent Movement, cartoonist, and animator, called "The Father of the Animated Cartoon" and "The Oldest Parisian".-Biography:Émile's father Elie was a rubber salesman, and his mother, Emilie...
was screened under the title . This seems to be the first drawn-animation film screened in Japan. (There were other animated films screened earlier.)
Japanese movie productions inspired by this film, and started studying animation techniques. In 1915, Nikkatsu
Nikkatsu
is a Japanese entertainment company well known for its film and television productions. It is Japan's oldest major movie studio. The name Nikkatsu is an abbreviation of Nippon Katsudō Shashin, literally "Japan Cinematograph Company".-History:...
production started studying animation with , a painter. In the next year, Tenkatsu, or Tennenshoku Katsudō Shashin
Tennenshoku Katsudō Shashin
was a Japanese film studio active in the 1910s. The name translates as the "Natural Color Moving Picture Company," but it was known as Tenkatsu for short...
Kabushiki Gaisha ("Natural Color Moving Picture Company"), started studying with a manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
artist Hekoten/Oten Shimokawa. Kobayashi Shōkai started their production with a manga artist .
Among these three productions, Tenkatsu film The Story of the Concierge Mukuzo Imokawa, directed by Shimokawa, came out first, completed in January 1917. It was screened a few times on movie theaters by the production. However, it is said the animation quality of the film was so poor that even Shimokawa himself was disappointed.
Four months later, in May, 1917, Nikkatsu's , directed by Kitayama, was released. In the next month, Kobayashi Shōkai's , directed by Kōuchi was also screened.
Contents
Because there are no films or photographs left now, exact contents or animation techniques are unknown. Some speculate Shimokawa drew pictures with a chalk on a blackboard, and when he wanted to move a character's hand, he only redrew a hand. Another possibility is that he printed backgrounds on a white paper, and drew characters with white paints.Mukuzo Imokawa was a manga character that Shimokawa used in his manga.
"The oldest anime" title challenged
In July 2005, an old animation film was found in KyotoKyoto
is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...
. This undated 3 second film, plainly titled , has been speculated to be as much as 10 years older than Mukuzo Imokawa.
This supposedly older anime is assumed to have been made for private viewing. Therefore, as a professional commercial anime, Mukuzo Imokawa still seems to hold the title of "the first".