This film is set BEFORE the advent of motion pictures--this becomes apparent near the end of the film. It's the story about one man's dogged pursuit of motion pictures--complete with sound and color. This is NOT based on any actual inventor as it took years to progress from the earliest films of Edison and the Lumière brothers.
This animated film was included with the special showing of the 2010 Oscar-nominated short films as one of the non-nominated but highly commended films.
As for me, I liked the film but am not in love with it. In other words, while it's a very good film and I appreciate what the folks did who made it, it did not seem as strong as the Oscar nominees that were shown in the same program. On one hand, the CGI was pretty good (though the characters had an odd wood-like appearance to their skin--particularly their hands. Also, the color palate for the film was very muted--something which I understood but made the film a bit flat. On the other, the story is awfully depressing and the characters not all that likable and were difficult to connect with as I watched. My daughter also saw the films with me and we both agreed on this film--nice looking but not one of our favorites.