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Animated Kids Films And Why They Are So Popular

Who doesn’t love an animated film? Grown-ups and children alike, love them. 

For some they offer a nostalgic moment, reminiscent of childhood memories, for others it provides a restful family moment or a fun way for messages to be portrayed. 

Challenging imagination, telling engaging and even enriching tales and offering exposure to different cultures, family dynamics and countries, they are a wonderful form of entertainment. Although designed to entertain kids, they are enjoyed by adults throughout the world. 

Featured Animation makes up a huge industry. It includes cartoons, animated full length movies, short films, interactive content, adverts and so much more. 

Not only bringing entertainment to people of all ages, animation bridges the gap from reality to the realm of imagination. With fantastic adventures, fairy tales being brought to life, humor, engaging imagery and sound it is easy to understand why animation has held a part in the hearts of people for decades. 

What Makes Animations So Popular?

Historically children have always loved watching animated cartoon programs. With a combination of vibrant colors, talking animals and plots that open the mind, what is not to love?

Taking kids along for the journey, they enter fantastic surroundings, embark on adventures, slay dragons, rescue princesses, transform from sea creature to human, as shown in ‘Luca’, overcome obstacles, meet aliens and transcend reality. 

Bypassing the realities of the world, animated films allow the characters to suppress real-world capabilities. It is the exciting journey they embark on and their ability to carry out the unbelievable that make them so appealing. This ability to manipulate reality, transcend time, space, all contribute to their appeal for adult viewers as well. 

Although they can be described or generalized as kids animations, they resonate with such a larger audience due to their ability to engage with the viewers imagination, provide education, touch on and showcase positive messages such as resilience, friendship, love and other important topics. All whilst entertaining and enticing the viewer into connecting with the characters on the screen. 

Great For Educating

Most animated films have a message. They are not just created to provide viewing pleasure, they have messages, lessons and can aid in children’s development. 

With animated programs the combination of color, music, vibrancy, the connection to the characters and the emotion you invest into the character and their tale, all aid in making teaching moments. 

There is evidence showing that when you are emotionally invested, you are more inclined to retain information and remember the lesson for longer. This is what makes teaching through animation so different to previous textbook forms of learning. 

Animation can be used, and is used, to aid teaching. Not only within films, cartoons, short movies. There are specific animations that have been created to support teaching across all forms of accademia. 

Taking complex ideas or lessons, animation has the capacity to take those moments and apply them in unique or abstract ways to engage with the viewer and provide the lesson. 

Through their ability to manipulate how the story is told, the lesson is explained and apply it to any type of genre, animation can easily be adapted to take the most serious subjects and provide a child-friendly and child oriented way for it to be explained. All whilst engaging on an emotional level, ensuring that the lesson taught remains and will form a place in their memory.

Visually They Are Mesmerizing

Unlike live action films that can carry the same messages and teachings, animation is not restricted by realistic limitations. It can exceed reality. 

No matter how impressive a live-action production set may be, they cannot have the same level of open ended imaginative freedom that is offered in animation. 

If it can be thought up, animation can bring it to life and bring it to the screen. Only with animation can fantasy be offered. Unlike real-life adaptations, dragons, mermaids, and aliens are not realistic options that can grace our screens without creative freedom being applied behind the scenes. 

In addition to unrestricted creativity, there are many examples of animated films being re-made into real life productions which don’t have the same wow factor. Although the story plot has been retained and CGI applied, they don’t have the same emotional connection that the animated originals hold. 

The use of vibrant colors, artistry to capture emotions, places and build a connection, animated films attract an audience in a different way. 

An Abundance Of Imaginative Freedom

Even with advancements in technologies allowing more films to be made into real life productions, in some occasions they won’t work. 

Animation is a needed form of film. Through the use of animation and cartoons, something that is far-fetched can still become a masterpiece and be welcomed by audiences. They allow the absurd or thinkable to still be made into a hit. A prime example of this is ‘Monsters, Inc’. Monsters sneaking into childrens bedrooms to scare them and cause them to scream, is not most parents’ idea of a film they would want their children to watch. 

However, through animation, a concept that usually wouldn’t be welcomed has become a favorite for children and adults alike. If this was a real-life production, would it have been received so favorably? Perhaps not. Being made in an animated form is genius. 

It makes this idea of monsters entering childrens bedrooms for ‘screams’, seem fantastical. Paired with how a friendship is developed between the monster and small girl, it has taken this unique concept and produced a film that showcases how friendship is not limited based on species. It shows how using good morals can provide a positive outcome. It teaches children not to make assumptions and judge people based on their appearance. 

The same can be said for ‘Ratatouille’. If it wasn’t animated, would you really want to watch a film that has a rat in the kitchen? 

Only through animation can ideas and imaginative freedom be offered and applied to film. Unlike real-life films, animation can take over-reaching ideas, take the unimaginable and experiment with plots. 

Pip Ellwood-Hughes
Pip Ellwood-Hughes
Pip is the owner and Editor of Entertainment Focus, and the Managing Director of Piñata Media. With over 19 years of journalism experience, Pip has interviewed some of the biggest stars in the entertainment world. He is also a qualified digital marketing expert with over 20 years of experience.

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