Humorous Phases of Funny Faces
About Humorous Phases of Funny Faces
J. Stuart Blackton's hand starts a chalk face on a board. The drawings then finish themselves and move with nobody holding the chalk: a clown toys with a hat, and a dog jumps a hoop. A short stretch changes the lines from frame to frame so the faces keep shifting. The artist is back only at the edges of the trick.
Cast & crew
More about Humorous Phases of Funny Faces
Blackton directed and produced the short for Vitagraph. It was released on April 6, 1906. The moving drawings mix stop-motion, cut-outs, and a brief run of chalk altered between exposures.
Themes
Background
Vitagraph issued it in April 1906, when a three-minute trick short could still be a whole turn on a variety bill.
In film history
Its reputation rests on that claim: chalk figures recorded on ordinary film stock, rather than a device built only for drawings.
Technique
Stop-motion and cut-out figures share the reel with a short section made by changing the chalk one frame at a time. The camera speed cited for the film is 20 frames a second.
Notes
- Film historians usually treat it as the first animated film photographed on standard picture film.
- The release print runs at about 20 frames a second.
- Blackton is in the live-action opening, drawing the first lines, then leaves the board to the animation.
Scenes
- The chalk lines complete themselves after Blackton's hand leaves.
- A clown plays with a hat while a dog jumps through a hoop.
Also available
- Wikimedia Commons (Humorous Phases of Funny Faces HD.webm)
