Modernism

The world 'shrinks' at the start of the modern era because urbanisation becomes a trend for those who lived in rural areas due to the popular belief that they would hace better living conditions if they live in the city. The modern era started off positively with the excitement of the people towards new inventions; or rather inventions gave them psychological shock. Living itself becomes more organised as people have routinised work and leisure, yet this lifestyle compromises the free form of existence. Eventually, people start to develop a fear of work, and escape the reality of work by adopting hedonistic lifestyle, such as drinking alcohols, taking drugs, and leisure. Many modern filmmakers immortalise the experience of the brutal and unapologetic aesthetic in modern lifestyle, and it has successfully made working class trend into subculture like mods, skinheads and punk.

Mosh pits and rave painting by Dan Witz

A large fraction of the population living in the modern era could read and write, which is a factor to why they subscribe to the process of rationality and reason. The Western world had undergone secularisation which have significant impact on individuals. And, this had become a common subject matter in modern paintings where artists expresses personal feeling of isolation and sense of being lost in the crowd similar to how modern fashion taught us to express individuality. This characteristic of modern artwork is also visible in modern cartoons like Gerald McBoingBoing produced by UPA. In the animation, the main character is isolated from the other character as he offers a unique talent, which made him stood out. The highly style of the design reflects modernism with the clean and simple look. Truth to materials is evidenced by the use of colour blocking method in the mis-en-scene, such that no effort is put on to add details and realistic elements to the character.

Scientific breakthroughs in modern era had encouraged modern artists to do experimentation, and pioneered modern art movements, one of which is animation. The interest of the population towards optical illusion contributes to animation's success as commercial entertainment, and inventors like the Fleischer's Brothers continue to make animation and invent camera tricks to give fantastical experience to the audience.