: A History of Computer Animation Tom Sito MIT Press , 2013 - 362 pages , 2013 - Art 0 Reviews Computer graphics (or CG) has changed the way we experience the art of moving images.Computer graphics is the difference between Steamboat Willie and Buzz Lightyear, between ping pongand PONG. It began in 1963 when an MIT graduate student named Ivan Sutherland created the first truecomputer animation program. Instead of presenting a series of numbers, Sutherland's Sketchpadprogram drew lines that created recognizable images. Sutherland noted: "Since motion can be putinto Sketchpad drawings, it might be exciting to try making cartoons." This book, the firstfull-length history of CG, shows us how Sutherland's seemingly offhand idea grew into a multibilliondollar industry. In Moving Innovation, Tom Sito -- himself an animator andindustry insider for more than thirty years -- describes the evolution of CG. The history oftraditional cinema technology is a fairly straight path from Lumière to MGM. Writing the history ofCG, Sito maps simultaneous accomplishments in multiple locales -- academia, the military-industrialcomplex, movie special effects, video games, experimental film, corporate research, and commercialanimation. His story features a memorable cast of characters -- math nerds, avant-garde artists,cold warriors, hippies, video game enthusiasts, and studio executives: disparate types united by acommon vision. Computer animation did not begin just with Pixar; Sito shows us how fifty years ofwork by this motley crew made movies like Toy Story and Avatarpossible. Preview this book »