Advances in communication technology during the post-world war period caused rapid and widespread modifications in the way Animation was presented to the Australian audience. The introduction of television in Australia in 1956 transformed the way Australians at the time received information.
TELEVISION TECHNOLOGY CHANGING ANIMATION
1956
Diagram 6: The television changing animation in Australia forever.
Television was introduced into Australia in September 1956. Since then it has had a major impact on the lifestyles of all Australians and has contributed largely to the development of animation. TCN9 Sydney was the first TV station in Australia to begin regular transmission. Sunday 16 September at 7.00 pm, would be the day that changed the way Australians lived and would help the animation industry boom. As expected by many the television was widely accepted by everybody. While the faces on our screens were not yet Australians, they slowly started making appearances on Australian TV. The only issue with television was that due to the cost of it, many Australian households were unable to afford the “luxury”.
Diagram 7: Television changing the lives of people in Australia.
Television exposed Australians to other cultures and worldviews from different countries mostly from America. By the mid-1960s, television had truly taken hold as the most popular form of communication. Television was available in all but the most remote areas of Australia and it was estimated that by 1965, nine in ten Australian families owned a television set. Television became very popular in the 1950s as it allowed people to watch important events live. decade it was estimated that over two-thirds of families in Sydney and Melbourne owned a television set. Over the next five years, television had spread to most other States.
Popular Animation Films Watched In Australia
Blinky Bill, Skippy, Bananas In Pyjamas
One impact of the introduction of television was that it posed a challenge to print media. However, popular animations during the 50s and 60s such as Blinky Bill, Skippy and Bananas in Pyjamas watched by children began to be featured in animated films that became a very popular form of entertainment for young Australians.
Diagram 8: Skippy was one of the popular animation films amongst children.
THE INTRODUCTION OF COLOUR TELEVISION
1970s
Diagram 9: The first colour television was introduced.
Australian animation spread rapidly during the 60s when television sets became cheaper and more were in people's homes. In the 1970s a revolution in television technology was colour tv replacing many original black and white sets in the 70s. Colour technology allowed certain kinds of shows well-suited to colour, like music and sport programmes, to flourish. During the early 1980s, new developments of devices like video cassette recorders (VCRS) transformed home entertainment. VCRS freed viewers from the constraints of television schedules and enables Australians to view pre recorded shows and films, thus contributing to the popularisation of Animation in Australia. Higher definition screens made animation films more interesting and images of famous cartoons to be more vibrant on screen.
SATELLITE TECHNOLOGY
ANOTHER COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY IMPACTING ANIMATION
Diagram 10: Introduction of satellite technology.
To broadcast a television programme in several cities in the 1950s, a tape of the programme would have been hand-delivered from one city to another. Satellite technology, however, allowed programmes to be broadcast simultaneously to many cities in Australia, or even to other countries. News stories and programmes could also be shared between capital cities.Over the years, popular animation cartoons were also present in books.
Video 2: In 1972, Eric Porter produced and directed Australia's first feature-length animated film, Marco Polo Junior Versus the Red Dragon.
