The world was officially introduced to the cartoon as an art form in 1908 when a French artist named Emile Cohl filmed a series of hand-drawn images and then showed them at a high speed to give the illusion of motion to tell a story.

Today, just over 100 years later, animation has grown leaps and bounds with many full-length movies being created and enjoyed, including many that John Lasseter was involved in.

Computers are also able to save time and energy by helping render realistic characters and settings. Modern animated films are not only amazing visually but have strong stories and even stronger emotional engagement for viewers.

Along with John Lasseter, certain names should receive credit for helping drive commercial animation forward, such as Walt Disney, Matt Groening, and Hayao Miyazaki.

John Lasseter has been a director, producer, writer, voice actor, and animator for some of the most successful animated features of the last 30 years, including the "Toy Story" franchise. He directed the first "Toy Story," and several other successful Pixar features.

He also belongs on other lists, including people who are going to be involved in upcoming animated hits.

As the current head of animation at Skydance Animation, he has a prime role in directing the team that creates more amazing short and long feature films.

In 2021, Skydance Animation released “Blush,” a short science fiction feature about an astronaut/herbalist stranded on a strange planet and the strange things he encounters.

Earlier in 2022, the studio released “Luck,” a heartwarming story that provides a clever theory about the meaning of good luck and bad luck, and what life lessons we can learn from both.

The film drew plenty of acclaim for telling the story of Sam, who believes she's the unluckiest person around. A strange coin and a talking cat eventually lead her to the Land of Luck, where she learns how everything is supposed to balance out, and how, even if things don't go the way you want them to, you can still learn a lot from good times and adversity.

Next year, Skydance Animation is excited to release something more magical: “Spellbound.”

A magical film

Details are still trickling out to build up anticipation and get people talking, but what’s already been released about “Spellbound” tells us it’s going to be an exciting story accompanied by amazing visuals.

Plus, “Spellbound” already has a stellar voice cast with everyone from Nicole Kidman to Javier Bardem joining the ensemble. The cast list also includes notable names such as Nathan Lane and John Lithgow.

The lead role, Princess Eileen, is voiced by Rachel Zegler, who showed strong acting abilities and singing abilities in the recent retelling of “West Side Story.”

The entire plot hasn't been shared publicly, but Skydance Animation has given out information that the story takes place in the mythical kingdom of Lumbria which is in danger of being split between the powers of darkness and light.

A king and queen are ruling over the population, but they're not sure how to bring everyone back together and eliminate the darkness. When they fall under a curse, their feisty daughter, Princess Eileen, has an idea. Using her untested magic powers, she heads out into a strange and scary world.

As is common in hero stories set in fantasy worlds, she meets all sorts of unusual friends and enemies on her quest, many with their own abilities and powers that can help her and teach her about herself.  

Like other Skydance Animation features, “Spellbound” is designed for the whole family to enjoy, with simple humor that little kids will love, blended with the occasional subtle grown-up jokes slipped in that adults may be amused by.

Part of the legacy of John Lasseter’s films is that there are always lessons to be learned from every adventure, so expect “Spellbound” to share an emotionally strong story.

“Spellbound” is expected to stream on Apple TV+. Plenty of merchandising in the works, including toys of favorite characters.