The History of Christian Animation

History Of Christian Animation

How much do we as Christians value animation as a medium? 

Some of the earliest documented animation in history dates back to the late 1800s. According to Wikipedia, a French inventor Charles-Émile Reynaud created Pauvre Pierrot in 1892. 

But when was the first Christian animation produced? If there is Christian animation before the 1950s it may not be well documented, otherwise we could be about sixty years behind in terms of animation!

Since the 1950s there might be only two animated productions that have targeted mature audiences. The animated short My Last Day is an unflinching brutal anime about the crucifixion of Jesus, similar to the Passion of the Christ. The second animation for mature audiences is The Bible Project. Of course, this is mature for intellectual and educational purposes and not for graphic content.

The majority of Christian animation has been made for children because we have BELIEVED that animation is ONLY for little kids. 

The goal of Animation Ministry.com is to fulfill the Great Commission Jesus gave. One way of doing that is by producing feature length movies primarily for the PG-13 market, one that has been largely ignored for decades! 

Below is a timeline of Christian animated media mostly compiled from Wikipedia.

1956

The Candlemaker (animated short)

1961

Davey And Goliath 

1965

Jot, or Jot The Dot (series of shorts)

1980s

1. The Flying House (1982)
2. Superbook (1983)
3. The Greatest Adventure: Stories from the Bible (1985)
4. The Kingdom Chums: Little David’s Adventure (1986)
5. Adventures in Odyssey (1987)
6. The Little Troll Prince (1987)
7. McGee and Me! (1989)

1990s

1. Secret Adventures (1993)
2. VeggieTales (1993)
3. Bibleman (1995)
4. Testament: The Bible in Animation (1996)
5. In the Beginning: The Bible Stories (1997)
6. The Prince of Egypt (1998)
7. Angelmouse (1999)
8. The Miracle Maker (1999)

2000

1. Joseph: King of Dreams (2000)
2. 3-2-1 Penguins! (2000)
3. Jonah: A Veggie Tales Movie (2002)
4. Larryboy: The Cartoon Adventures (2002)
5. The Star of Christmas (2002)
6. Ben Hur (2003)
7. Bugtime Adventures (2003)
8. Hermie and Friends (2003)
9. The Legend of the Sky Kingdom (2003)
10. Lenny & Sid (2003)
11. Angel Wars (2004)
12. Auto-B-Good (2004)
13. Paws & Tales (2004)
14. Prince Vladimir (2006)
15. Friends and Heroes (2007)
16. The Pirates Who Don’t Do Anything: A Veggie Tales Movie (2008)

2010s

1. The Lion of Judah (2011)
2. My Last Day (2011)
3. Bible Project (2014)
4. VeggieTales in the House (2014)
5. The Star (2017)
6. VeggieTales in the City (2017)
7. The VeggieTales Show (2019)

Go to -->> Animation Ministry <<-- for concept movie trailers and more information!