The history of anime begins at the start of the 20th century, when Japanese filmmakers experimented with the animation techniques that were being explored in the West. Though filmmakers in Japan experimented with animation earlier, the first widely popular anime series was Osamu Tezuka's Astro Boy (1963). During the 1970s, anime developed further, separating itself from its Western roots, and developing unique genres such as mecha. Notable shows in this period include Lupin III and Mazinger Z. During this period several filmmakers became famous, especially Hayao Miyazaki and Mamoru Oshii.
Animation became popular in Japan as it provided an alternative format of storytelling compared to the underdeveloped live-action industry in Japan. Unlike America, where live-action shows and movies have generous budgets, the live-action industry in Japan is a small market and suffered from budgeting, location, and casting restrictions. The lack of Western-looking actors, for example, made it next to impossible to shoot films set in Europe, America, or fantasy worlds that do not naturally involve Asians. The varied use of animation allowed artists to create characters and settings that did not look Japanese at all.
In the 1980s, anime was accepted in the mainstream in Japan, and experienced a boom in production. The start of the Gundam franchise and the beginnings of Rumiko Takahashi's career began in this decade. Akira set records in 1988 for the production costs of an anime.
The 1990s and 2000s saw an increased acceptance of anime in overseas markets. Akira and Ghost in the Shell (1995) became famous worldwide. The series Sailor Moon and Dragon Ball Z became worldwide successes. Other series like Neon Genesis Evangelion and Cowboy Bebop were popular in Japan and attracted attention from the West. Spirited Away shared the first prize at the 2002 Berlin Film Festival and won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature in 2003, and Innocence: Ghost in the Shell was featured at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival.
[quoted from Wikipedia under the Wikipedia GNU]
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