List of years in animation

Before 1920

• 1897 - The Captain and the Kids is created by Rudolph Dirks and debuted December 12, 1897
• 1900 – J. Stuart Blackton and Thomas Edison create The Enchanted Drawing, the first film to feature ground breaking animated sequences.
• 1908 – Fantasmagorie, considered by animation historians as the world's first cartoon, is released.
• 1917 – El Apóstol (the first full-length animated feature film)
• 1911 – Little Nemo
• 1914 – Gertie the Dinosaur
• 1919 – Felix the Cat debuts

1920s

• 1920 –
• 1921 – Fleischer Studios is founded
• 1922
• 1923 – Walt Disney Animation Studios is founded
• 1924 –
• 1925
• 1926 – The Adventures of Prince Achmed
• 1927 – First appearance of Oswald the Lucky Rabbit in Trolley Troubles. He appears in Poor Papa, which is made earlier in 1927, but it is rejected by Universal Pictures and not released until 1928.
• 1928 – Mickey Mouse makes his first appearance in Steamboat Willie, the first ever synchronized cartoon with sound
• 1929 – Silly Symphonies, Talkartoons

1930s

• 1930 – Looney Tunes, Betty Boop; Warner Bros. Animation is founded
• 1931 – Merrie Melodies
• 1932 – Silly Symphony cartoon Flowers and Trees becomes the first cartoon in colour and first Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film
• 1933 – Popeye the Sailor
• 1934 –
• 1935 –
• 1936 –
• 1937 – Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (the first American full-length animated feature film)
• 1938 –
• 1939 – Gulliver's Travels; National Film Board of Canada is founded.

1940s

• 1940 – Tom and Jerry, Pinocchio, Fantasia
• 1941 – Woody Woodpecker, Raggedy Ann and Andy, Dumbo, Superman, Princess Iron Fan
• 1942 – Bambi, Mighty Mouse, Saludos Amigos, How to Play Baseball
• 1943 – Red Hot Riding Hood, Little Lulu, Victory Through Air Power
• 1944 – The Three Caballeros
• 1945 – Casper the Friendly Ghost
• 1946 – Make Mine Music, Heckle and Jeckle
• 1947 – Fun and Fancy Free, The Crab with the Golden Claws, Slap Happy Lion
• 1948 – Melody Time, Little Tinker, Animaland
• 1949 – The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad, Mr. Magoo, Crusader Rabbit (the first ever animated television series)

1950s

• 1950 – Cinderella, Gerald McBoing-Boing
• 1951 – Alice in Wonderland
• 1952 – Tony the Tiger (Kellogg's Frosted Flakes), The Scarlet Flower, The Snow Maiden, Lambert the Sheepish Lion, The Curious Adventures of Mr. Wonderbird
• 1953 – Peter Pan, Chilly Willy
• 1954 – Animal Farm
• 1955 – Lady and the Tramp (becoming the first animated film to be filmed in CinemaScope)
• 1956 - The Gumby Show, The Twelve Months; Toei Animation is founded
• 1957 – Let's All Go to the Lobby, The Snow Queen, Hergé's Adventures of Tintin; Hanna-Barbera is founded, followed by the first broadcast of its first show The Ruff and Reddy Show
• 1958 – The Huckleberry Hound Show, The White Snake Enchantress
• 1959 – Rocky and Bullwinkle and Friends, Sleeping Beauty, 1001 Arabian Nights, The Quick Draw McGraw Show

1960s

• 1960 – The Flintstones, The Bugs Bunny Show, Goliath II
• 1961 – One Hundred and One Dalmatians, The Alvin Show, Top Cat
• 1962 – The Jetsons, Gay Purr-ee, The Hanna-Barbera New Cartoon Series, Wally Gator
• 1963 – Astro Boy (the first ever anime television series), The Sword in the Stone
• 1964 – The Pink Panther cartoon series, Hoppity Hooper, Johnny Quest, Underdog, The Magilla Gorilla Show, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
• 1965 – A Charlie Brown Christmas (first Peanuts TV special), The Magic Roundabout, The Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show,The New 3 Stooges
• 1966 – Winnie the Pooh featurettes, Space Ghost, Trumptonshire trilogy, Ultra Series, How the Grinch Stole Christmas!, Kimba the White Lion anime series
• 1967 – The Jungle Book, George of the Jungle, Speed Racer, Spider-Man
• 1968 – Yellow Submarine, Wacky Races, The Herbs, The Archie Show
• 1969 – Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!, The Perils of Penelope Pitstop, Dastardly and Muttley in Their Flying Machines, The Wonderful World of Puss 'n Boots, Nu, pogodi!, Clangers, Moomin, Hey, Hey, Hey, It's Fat Albert, Frosty the Snowman, It's Tough to Be a Bird; The Archies release "Sugar Sugar"

1970s

• 1970 – The Aristocats, Broom-Hilda, The Phantom Tollbooth, Josie and the Pussycats
• 1971 – Mr Benn, Here Comes Peter Cottontail
• 1972 – Fritz the Cat (bringing in the age of adult animation) The Amazing Chan and the Chan Clan, Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids, Calimero; Aardman is founded; the 1st Annie Awards are awarded
• 1973 – Schoolhouse Rock!, The Wombles, Heavy Traffic, Star Trek: The Animated Series, Charley Says, Robin Hood, Charlotte's Web, Fantastic Planet
• 1974 – Roobarb, Hong Kong Phooey, Bagpuss, Mio Mao, Heidi, Girl of the Alps
• 1975 – Paddington Bear, Tubby the Tuba, Great, Mr. Men, Hedgehog in the Fog, Hugo the Hippo, Bod, Ivor the Engine
• 1976 – Dynomutt, Dog Wonder, Chorlton and the Wheelies, Noah and Nelly in... SkylArk, Monica and Friends, Allegro Non Troppo
• 1977 – The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, Morph, Wizards, The Rescuers, Baggy Pants and the Nitwits, Captain Caveman and the Teen Angels, The Hobbit, Raggedy Ann & Andy: A Musical Adventure, Dot and the Kangaroo, The Flumps
• 1978 – Watership Down (first animated feature film to be presented in Dolby Stereo), Future Boy Conan, The Lord of the Rings, Ringing Bell, Galaxy Express 999, Battle of the Planets, The Fabulous Funnies
• 1979 – Tale of Tales, Banjo the Woodpile Cat, The Castle of Cagliostro, Anne of Green Gables, Nutcracker Fantasy, Mobile Suit Gundam

1980s

• 1980 – The Amazing Adventures of Morph, Strawberry Shortcake, Heathcliff
• 1981 – The Smurfs, Danger Mouse (1981), Postman Pat, American Pop, Heavy Metal, The Fox and the Hound, Willo the Wisp, Dogtanian and the Three Muskehounds
• 1982 – The Secret of NIMH, The Snowman, SuperTed, The Last Unicorn, Monica and Friends, Super Dimension Fortress Macross, The Mysterious Cities of Gold, The Plague Dogs, Hey Good Lookin', Ziggy's Gift, Les Maîtres du temps
• 1983 – He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero, Alvin and the Chipmunks, Golgo 13: The Professional, The Wind in the Willows, Crusher Joe, Inspector Gadget, Henry's Cat, Bananaman, Rock & Rule (first animated feature film to use Computer graphics), Fire and Ice, Nanako SOS, Mickey's Christmas Carol, Twice Upon a Time, Chronopolis, Creamy Mami, the Magic Angel, Dallos (first animated production released exclusively on direct-to-video)
• 1984 – The Transformers, Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, Gallavants, Fist of the North Star, Voltron, Rainbow Brite, The Family-Ness, Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends, The Trap Door, Rupert and the Frog Song, Muppet Babies, Lensman
• 1985 – ThunderCats, The Raccoons, Disney's Adventures of the Gummi Bears, M.A.S.K., Jem, The Black Cauldron; Studio Ghibli is founded
• 1986 – Dragon Ball, Footrot Flats: The Dog's Tale, An American Tail, Castle in the Sky, The Transformers: The Movie, The Great Mouse Detective, The Real Ghostbusters, The Raggy Dolls, When the Wind Blows, Pingu; Pixar is founded, along with its first short film Luxo Jr.
• 1987 – Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, DuckTales, Fireman Sam, The Adventures of Spot, ALF: The Animated Series, Beverly Hills Teens, Royal Space Force: The Wings of Honnêamise, Once Upon a Time... Life, The Chipmunk Adventure, The Brave Little Toaster, Bubblegum Crisis, Gandahar
• 1988 – Who Framed Roger Rabbit, My Neighbor Totoro, Akira, The Land Before Time, Charlie Chalk, Count Duckula, Charlie Chalk, Grave of the Fireflies, Tin Toy, Oliver & Company, Garfield and Friends, City Hunter, Alice, Technological Threat, Fantastic Max
• 1989 – The Simpsons, Wallace and Gromit, The Little Mermaid (starting off the Disney Renaissance), The BFG, Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers, Babar, Beetlejuice, Ranma ½, Kiki's Delivery Service, Creature Comforts, All Dogs Go to Heaven, Muzzy, Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland, Jungle Book Shōnen Mowgli, Happily Ever After

1990s

• 1990 – The Rescuers Down Under, Jetsons: The Movie, Captain Planet and the Planeteers, Tiny Toon Adventures, TaleSpin, Bobby's World; Nickelodeon Animation is founded
• 1991 – Beauty and the Beast, An American Tail: Fievel Goes West, Rock-a-Doodle, the first three Nicktoons (Doug, Rugrats and The Ren & Stimpy Show), Darkwing Duck, Only Yesterday, Æon Flux
• 1992 – Batman: The Animated Series, Sailor Moon, Aladdin, The World of Peter Rabbit and Friends, Shakespeare: The Animated Tales, Eek! the Cat, FernGully: The Last Rainforest, X-Men, Crayon Shin-Chan, Porco Rosso, Yu Yu Hakusho, Cartoon Network is launched
• 1993 – The Nightmare Before Christmas, Animaniacs, Beavis and Butt-Head, The Animals of Farthing Wood, Batman: Mask of the Phantasm, VeggieTales, 2 Stupid Dogs, Family Dog, The Thief and the Cobbler, Rocko's Modern Life, Madeline, The Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog, Sonic the Hedgehog, Biker Mice From Mars
• 1994 – The Lion King, Thumbelina, The Swan Princess, The Tick, Spider-Man, Duckman, Pom Poko, ReBoot, Magic Adventures of Mumfie, Gargoyles, Space Ghost Coast to Coast, The Magic School Bus, Aaahh!!! Real Monsters; DreamWorks Animation is founded
• 1995 – Toy Story, Pinky and the Brain, Freakazoid!, Ghost in the Shell, M&M's Spokescandies, Neon Genesis Evangelion, Whisper of the Heart, The Critic, Pocahontas
• 1996 – Dexter's Laboratory, Hey Arnold!, James and the Giant Peach, Blue's Clues, Space Jam, Arthur, KaBlam!, Superman: The Animated Series, The Hunchback of Notre Dame
• 1997 – South Park, Pokémon, Princess Mononoke, Anastasia, Todd MacFarlane's Spawn, Caillou, The Old Lady and the Pigeons, Johnny Bravo, King of the Hill, Daria, Hercules, Cow and Chicken, I Am Weasel, The Angry Beavers, Cats Don't Dance, Space Goofs, Recess
• 1998 – The Powerpuff Girls, Cowboy Bepop, Oggy and the Cockroaches, Kirikou and the Sorceress, Oh Yeah! Cartoons, The Wild Thornberrys, Mulan, A Bug's Life, The Prince of Egypt, CatDog, Bunny, Bob the Builder, Bob and Margaret
• 1999 – SpongeBob SquarePants, The Iron Giant, Family Guy, Futurama, One Piece, South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut, My Neighbours the Yamadas, Tarzan (final Disney Renaissance film), Toy Story 2, Digimon: Digital Monsters, Happy Tree Friends, Ed, Edd 'n Eddy, Batman Beyond, Home Movies, Olive the Other Reindeer, Robbie the Reindeer, Courage the Cowardly Dog, Rocket Power, The Old Man and the Sea, Dilbert, Mike, Lu and Og

2000s

• 2000 – Dora the Explorer, 3-2-1 Penguins!, Chicken Run, Aqua Teen Hunger Force, Static Shock, As Told By Ginger, Teacher's Pet, Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law, The Emperor's New Groove, The Road to El Dorado, For the Birds, Sheep in the Big City, Dinosaur
• 2001 – Shrek (which wins the first ever Academy Award for Best Animated Feature), The Fairly OddParents, Invader Zim, Samurai Jack, Spirited Away, The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy, Oswald,Time Squad, El Nombre, Monsters, Inc., Waking Life, Lloyd in Space, Justice League, Yu-Gi-Oh!, The Proud Family, Atlantis: The Lost Empire, Metropolis, Stanley,Totally Spies!,Beyblade; Osmosis Jones (2001 film), Gorillaz release their self-titled debut album
• 2002 – Lilo & Stitch, Ice Age, The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius, Whatever Happened to... Robot Jones?, Cyberchase, A Town Called Panic (TV series), Filmore!, Clone High, Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron, ChalkZone, ¡Mucha Lucha!, Kim Possible, Treasure Planet, The ChubbChubbs!, Codename: Kids Next Door
• 2003 – Finding Nemo, The Triplets of Belleville, Teen Titans, Xiaolin Showdown, My Life as a Teenage Robot, Tokyo Godfathers, Creature Comforts (TV series), The Venture Bros., Harvie Krumpet, Making Fiends, Jojo's Circus, Code Lyoko Crazy Frog,
• 2004 – Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends, The Incredibles, Drawn Together, Shrek 2, Shark Tale, Howl's Moving Castle, The Polar Express, Bleach, Atomic Betty, Peppa Pig, Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi, Danny Phantom, The Backyardigans, Super Robot Monkey Team Hyperforce Go!, Winx Club, Brandy and Mr. Whiskers, W.I.T.C.H.
• 2005 – Avatar: The Last Airbender, Ben 10, Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit, Corpse Bride, American Dad!, Robot Chicken, Madagascar,The X's, 9, The Boondocks, Camp Lazlo, Charlie and Lola, Squidbillies, Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf, American Dragon: Jake Long, Being Ian, My Gym Partner's A Monkey, Johnny Test; Gorillaz release Demon Days; Laika is founded
• 2006 – Happy Feet, Death Note, Yin Yang Yo!, Curious George, Cars, Monster House, Wonder Pets!, Wow! Wow! Wubbzy!, Over the Hedge, Code Geass, Pucca, Peter and the Wolf, The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, The Danish Poet, Paprika, Flushed Away,
• 2007 – Phineas and Ferb, Ratatouille, Ricky Sprocket: Showbiz Boy, Total Drama, Chowder, Persepolis, Surf's Up, WordGirl, El Tigre: The Adventures of Manny Rivera, Shaun the Sheep; Chris Meledandri leaves 20th Century Fox Animation to form his own company Illumination
• 2008 – Kung Fu Panda, Ponyo, The Mr. Men Show, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Chuggington, WALL-E, Waltz with Bashir, The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack, Kid vs. Kat, Batman: The Brave and the Bold, Tinker Bell, Bolt, Simon's Cat
• 2009 – Coraline, Up, Fantastic Mr. Fox, The Princess and the Frog, Mary and Max, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, Prep & Landing, Archer, A Town Called Panic (film), Monsters Vs. Aliens, Logorama, Summer Wars, The Secret of Kells,Compare the Meerkat, Logorama, The Gruffalo

2010s

• 2010 – Adventure Time, How to Train Your Dragon, My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic, Despicable Me, Shrek Forever After, Zig & Sharko, Tangled, The Ricky Gervais Show, The Illusionist, Chico and Rita, Zig & Sharko, A Cat in Paris, Regular Show, Young Justice; Gorillaz release Plastic Beach and The Fall
• 2011 – Bob's Burgers, The Adventures of Tintin, Rango, The Amazing World of Gumball, Arthur Christmas, Rio, Puss in Boots, The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore
• 2012 – Gravity Falls, ParaNorman, The Legend of Korra, Brave, Wreck-It Ralph, Hotel Transylvania, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2012), Daniel Tiger's Neighbourhood, Paperman Dumb Ways to Die,
• 2013 – Rick and Morty, Frozen, Attack on Titan, The Wind Rises, Steven Universe, The Croods, Teen Titans Go!, The Tale of Princess Kaguya, Boy and the World, PAW Patrol
• 2014 – BoJack Horseman, The Lego Movie, Over the Garden Wall, Big Hero 6, The Book of Life, The Boxtrolls, Star Wars Rebels, When Marnie Was There, Tumble Leaf, Song of the Sea
• 2015 – Inside Out, Shaun the Sheep Movie, Star vs. the Forces of Evil, F Is for Family, Minions, Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir, We Bare Bears, Supernoobs, Anomalisa, The Little Prince
• 2016 – Zootopia, The Haunted House, The Loud House, Moana, The Secret Life of Pets, Your Name, Kubo and the Two Strings, Milo Murphy's Law, Trolls, My Hero Academia, Tales of Arcadia, The Red Turtle, Piper, A Silent Voice, My Life as a Courgette, Voltron: Legendary Defender; Steve Cutts releases Moby's Are You Lost In The World Like Me?
• 2017 – Lucas the Spider, DuckTales (2017), Coco, Castlevania, The Breadwinner, In a Heartbeat, Big Mouth, Loving Vincent, Hanazuki: Full of Treasures; Gorillaz release Humanz The Boss Baby, Ferdinand,
• 2018 – Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Isle of Dogs, Bluey, Hilda, Incredibles 2, The Dragon Prince, Disenchantment, Summer Camp Island, Mirai, Final Space, Dragon Ball Super: Broly, Craig of the Creek, She-Ra and the Princesses of Power; Gorillaz release The Now Now, Early Man,
• 2019 – Harley Quinn, SparkShorts, Infinity Train, Klaus, Amphibia, Abominable, Green Eggs and Ham, Weathering with You, DC Super Hero Girls, Carmen Sandiego, Blue's Clues & You!, Undone, Hair Love, I Lost My Body, Missing Link, Toy Story 4, Frozen II, Primal; Demon Slayer, Kyoto Animation's first studio becomes the victim of an arson attack that kills 35 people

2020s

• 2020 – Wolfwalkers, The Owl House, Glitch Techs, Short Circuit, Onward, Soul, The Willoughbys, Central Park, Close Enough, Solar Opposites, Over the Moon, Song Machine, Scoob!, Trolls World Tour,
• 2021 – Invincible, Marcel the Shell with Shoes On, The Mitchells vs. the Machines, MeTV's Toon In With Me, What If...? (as part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe's series of Phase Four shows on Disney+), Raya and the Last Dragon, Encanto, Luca, Ron's Gone Wrong, Housebroken, Vivo, The Boss Baby: Family Business, Riverdance: The Animated Adventure, Sing 2, Tom and Jerry, Robin Robin, Space Jam: A New Legacy,
• 2022 – Smiling Friends, The Cuphead Show!, DC League of SuperPets, Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai, Lightyear, Turning Red, Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers (2022 film), Pinocchio, Wendell & Wild, We Baby Bears, The Bad Guys, Hotel Transylvania: Transformania, Minions: The Rise of Gru,

See also

• History of animation
• Lists of animated television series
• List of years in anime