The Enchanted Drawing

James Suartt Blackton is the artist. He draws a sketch of the head of a bald elderly gentleman. Then he draws a sketch of a glass and bottle of wine. He then grabs for the bottle and the glass and they become real. He pours a drink for himself, and then pours one for the sketch, which smiles when presented with the libation. Next the artist draws a top hat on the head and when he reaches for it, the hat also becomes real. You don't see a cigar drawn on the sketch's mouth, but now there is indeed a cigar there, and the drawing frowns when the artist removes it. The artist takes a hat and cigar and places it on the drawing, they become part of the sketch, and again the face smiles.

Blackton started out as a journalist and a vaudeville cartoonist. In 1896, he was assigned to cover Thomas Edison's new invention - the Vitascope, an early film projector. Blackton liked the product so much he bought one. This led to Blackton and his vaudeville partner Albert Smith founding one of the first ever movie studios - the American Vitagraph Company. One of their first films was this one. In 1911, Blackton, along with his co-director Winsor McCay, made Little Nemo, a movie that hinted at the true potential of animation.

This "trick movie" (as they are known) lasts for a minute & a half & transpires much as the summary above describes: a man draws a face on a large sheet of paper, then several objects (a bottle, a glass, a cigar, a hat) which, thanks to stop motion, come to life as he reaches for them. The face itself changes when things are taken away or when they are returned. The face itself is not animated, though this film is considered an early example of the animated film.

The lightning-quick sketch artist in the film is James Stuart Blackton, who toured in vaudeville with his easel & amazed audiences with his quick drawings. He worked for Edison quite a while, for obvious reasons - a century later, the film is really, really cool, & the same stop motion that worked in TV shows like "Bewitched" always seems amazing.

But this one, even as early as it was made, has a charm that some shorts can't replicate. First of all, it's extremely well done; when Blackton grabs the bottle & glass, it's surprising. Second, Blackton himself is a showman, so his drawing & his interaction with it are done in an animated, entertaining way. & lastly, it's just fun: a drawing that gets mad when its bottle of wine is stolen, but becomes happy when it is fed the wine is just too cute & funny to find trite or dull.

"The Enchanted Drawing" is an early use of camera tricks. The artist in this short drew the face of a man, then above the face he drew a wine bottle and a wine glass. Then, he seemed to snatch the wine bottle and glass right from the paper as if by magic he made the drawings real.

"The Enchanted Drawing" is a 1900 silent film directed by J. Stuart Blackton. It is best known for containing the first animated sequences recorded on standard picture film, which has led Blackton to be considered the father of American animation. The short was produced by a man who needs no introduction: Thomas Edison.

Viewed on YouTube.

Enchanted Drawing, The (1900)

*** (out of 4)

Early attempt at animation is also another take on the work of Georges Melies. A cartoonist walks onto a stage with a large sheet of paper. He then begins to draw various items, which seems to come to life (this trick down with the editing). It's hard to be too hard on a film this early and running just over a minutes so I won't even try. This is a pretty fun little movie even with the various flaws. I found the cartoonist to be pretty entertaining and the drawings are quite nice. The "magic" tricks aren't that believable and are miles below the work of Melies but they're still mildly charming.

It's a cute idea that could be boring. However! The cartoonist is so joyful and exuberant that it draws you in and is quite engaging. I liked it.