Mickey Mouse was created by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks, one of the leading animators of the time. Mickey Mouse first appeared to the public in Steamboat Willie, which was released in 1928. In an era when movies were moving from silent movies to “talkies”, which had synchronised sound, this film was the world’s first-ever “talkie” animation. The first films produced featuring Mickey Mouse were silent movies, including Plane Crazy (1928) and The Gallopin’ Gaucho (1928), which were completed prior to Steamboat Willie, but were released afterwards, when sound was finally added to them. Walt Disney supplied the voice of Mickey Mouse himself and would go on to voice Mickey for another 20 years.
This model sheet of Mickey Mouse represents the way that early animators had to learn how to make drawings move when they were animated. While this one only shows Mickey Mouse, they are created for all characters so that artists can convey all the principles of movement, including the effects of weight and heaviness, as well as what they’ll look like stretching or bouncing. It’s the art behind the animation and required studying physics and anatomy to create realistic, though fantastical, characters.