A list of animated feature films released prior to 1940.
Title Country Director Production company Animation technique Notes Release date1916CreationPinto ColvigThe Animated Film CorporationTraditional/Cutout Claimed first animated feature; Lost film19161917 El Apóstol (The Apostle) Quirino Cristiani Traditional/Cutout Lost film: first Argentinian animated film 1918 Sin dejar rastros (Without a Trace) Argentina Quirino Cristiani Traditional/Cutout Lost film 1924Vida y milagros de Don Fausto
(The Life and Miracles of Jiggs)ChileCarlos EspejoCarlos F. BorcosqueTraditional/CutoutPossibly Lost film; first Chilean animated filmSeptember 19241926 The Adventures of Prince Achmed Die Abenteuer des Prinzen Achmed Germany Lotte Reiniger Silhouette The oldest surviving animated feature and the first German animated film. 1927A Look Back into the Prehistoric World Ein Rückblick in die UrweltGermanyN/A CutoutLost film1927The Story of the FlagUnited Kingdom Anson DyerCutoutLost film19271931 Peludópolis (Peludo City) Peludópolis Argentina Quirino Cristiani Traditional/Cutout Lost film and the first animated feature film with sound. 1935 The New Gulliver Новый Гулливер Soviet Union Aleksandr Ptushko Mosfilm Stop motion/Live action Combines live-action with animation, and the first animated feature film to be made in the Soviet Union. 1937 The Tale of the Fox Le Roman de Renard Germany France Ladislas Starevich Stop motion Although completed in 1930, it remained unreleased for years because of problems with the original French soundtrack. It premiered in Berlin in 1937 with a German soundtrack, and was released with a new French soundtrack in April 1941. It was also the first French animated film. Academy Award Review of Walt Disney Cartoons Burt Gillett Wilfred Jackson David Hand Traditional Package film. The first animated feature film to be presented in Technicolor. The Seven Ravens Die sieben Raben Germany Ferdinand Diehl Hermann Diehl Stop motion Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs United States David Hand William Cottrell Wilfred Jackson Larry Morey Perce Pearce Ben Sharpsteen Walt Disney Productions Traditional Oldest surviving American animated feature overall, and the first to use cels as its medium; the film won a special Academy Award for the first animated feature. 1939 The Golden Key Золотой ключик Soviet Union Aleksandr Ptushko Mosfilm Stop motion/Live action Combines live-action with animation; Ptushko's last foray into animation. Gulliver's Travels United States Dave Fleischer Fleischer Studios Traditional The first American Technicolor animated feature film not to be made by Disney. Also first Technicolor animated feature film made in World War II.
Key:
Highest-grossing animated films of the Period RankTitleStudioRelease YearGrossRef1Snow White and the Seven DwarfsWalt Disney Productions1937$8,000,0002Gulliver's TravelsFleischer Studios1939$3,270,0003Academy Award Review of Walt Disney CartoonsWalt Disney Productions1937$45,472
References
External links Animated films from 1915 to 1939, listed in the IMDb