Witness

In 1941, Walt Disney made a tempting offer to a fellow pioneer of the animation industry, Quirino Cristiani - the author of the first animated feature film.Cristiani was an Italian immigrant raised in Argentina who built a career creating animated political satires in the early days of cinema. He authored full-length movies that he drew entirely on his own, sketching and cutting thousands of figures that he tied with thread to facilitate motion. Quirino’s technique was rudimentary, but impressive enough to prompt Disney to propose that he join his staff. Hector Cristiani, Quirino’s grandson, tells Stefania Gozzer why his grandfather declined the offer, and what happened to most of his work. Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by the past. We take you to the events that have shaped our world through the eyes of the people who were there. For nine minutes every day, we take you back in time and all over the world, to examine wars, coups, scientific discoverie