''El Apóstol'' (
English: ''The Apostle'') was a 1917
lost Argentine
animated film
Animation is a filmmaking technique whereby still images are manipulated to create moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited on film. Animati ...
, directed and produced by
Quirino Cristiani
Quirino Cristiani (2 July 1896 – 2 August 1984) was an Italian-born Argentine animation director and cartoonist, responsible for the world's first two animated feature films as well as the first animated feature film with sound, even though the ...
and respectively. Historians consider it the world's
first animated feature film. Production began after the success of Cristiani and Valle's short film ''La intervención a la provincia de Buenos Aires'', lasting either less than ten months or twelve months; accounts differ. Its script was written by , the background models of
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the RÃo de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...
were created by , and the initial character designs were drawn by Diógenes Taborda.
''El Apóstol'' is a satire based on Argentina's then-president
Hipólito Yrigoyen. In the film, Yrigoyen dreams about going to
Mount Olympus
Mount Olympus (, , ) is an extensive massif near the Thermaic Gulf of the Aegean Sea, located on the border between Thessaly and Macedonia (Greece), Macedonia, between the regional units of Larissa (regional unit), Larissa and Pieria (regional ...
and discussing politics with the gods before using one of
Zeus
Zeus (, ) is the chief deity of the List of Greek deities, Greek pantheon. He is a sky father, sky and thunder god in ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, who rules as king of the gods on Mount Olympus.
Zeus is the child ...
's lightning bolts to cleanse Buenos Aires of corruption. Well received at the time in Buenos Aires, it was not distributed beyond that city. The film was destroyed in a 1926 fire in Valle's studio.
Plot
Argentine president
Hipólito Yrigoyen dreams about ascending to Olympus dressed as an apostle. He speaks with the gods about the deeds and misdeeds of the
porteños, and how they laugh at him and every political program he sets up. A few congressmen appear, and express their positions. Yrigoyen discusses the level of chaos in the capital administration with the gods, and the government's financial situation. After the discussion, Yrigoyen asks
Zeus
Zeus (, ) is the chief deity of the List of Greek deities, Greek pantheon. He is a sky father, sky and thunder god in ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, who rules as king of the gods on Mount Olympus.
Zeus is the child ...
for lightning bolts to cleanse Buenos Aires of immorality and corruption. Zeus grants his request; lightning bolts consume the city's main buildings, and Yrigoyen awakens.
Production

was an industrial-film producer who produced a newsreel, ''Actualidades Valle''. He hired
Quirino Cristiani
Quirino Cristiani (2 July 1896 – 2 August 1984) was an Italian-born Argentine animation director and cartoonist, responsible for the world's first two animated feature films as well as the first animated feature film with sound, even though the ...
, known at the time for
caricature
A caricature is a rendered image showing the features of its subject in a simplified or exaggerated way through sketching, pencil strokes, or other artistic drawings (compare to: cartoon). Caricatures can be either insulting or complimentary, ...
s in daily newspapers, to help animate an experimental political vignette for Valle's newsreel. They made ''La intervención a la provincia de Buenos Aires'' (
English: ''Intervention in the Province of Bueno Aires''), a one-minute sketch ridiculing governor
Marcelino Ugarte, using paper-cut animation, which Cristiani learned from a film by
Émile Cohl. Although many Argentine sources identify the release of ''La intervención a la provincia de Buenos Aires'' as 1916, its actual release date is unknown.
After the success of ''La intervención a la provincia de Buenos Aires'', Valle began working on the full-length film ''El Apóstol'', which satirized President Yrigoyen, who won the 1916 presidential election as part of the
Radical Civic Union
The Radical Civic Union (, UCR) is a major political party in Argentina. It has reached the national government on ten occasions, making it one of the most historically important parties in the country. Ideologically, the party has stood for r ...
and had a reputation for lengthy speeches and
demagoguery
A demagogue (; ; ), or rabble-rouser, is a political leader in a democracy who gains popularity by arousing the common people against elites, especially through oratory that whips up the passions of crowds, Appeal to emotion, appealing to emo ...
. Valle hired to write the script and Cristiani to serve as the principle animator. Upon Cristiani's request for aid due to the meticulous nature of animation, Valled hired to build three-dimensional models of buildings in Buenos Aires. The animation method would be identical to that of ''La intervención a la provincia de Buenos Aires''.
To attract publicity, Valle hired the popular
cartoon
A cartoon is a type of visual art that is typically drawn, frequently Animation, animated, in an realism (arts), unrealistic or semi-realistic style. The specific meaning has evolved, but the modern usage usually refers to either: an image or s ...
ist Diógenes "El Mono" Taborda. Taborda liked the idea of bringing his caricatures to life and gave Cristiani sketches of the characters. Although Cristiani thought they were good, they were too rigid and detailed for him to animate. Taborda left the production, daunted by the amount of work needed to complete the film, but allowed Cristiani to make his drawings simpler and easier to animate.
It is unknown exactly how long ''El Apóstol'' took to produce, but it was quick for an animated film. According to different accounts, production took either a year or less than ten months. Filming was done in the studio Talleres Cinematográficos, using self-made
voltaic arc lamps set up by Cristiani as artificial light. A total of 58,000 frames were filmed, clocking in at one hour and ten minutes.
The destruction of Buenos Aires scene at film's conclusion used the three-dimensional models of the city created by Ducaus.
Reception and legacy

''El Apóstol'' was released on November 9, 1917, at the Cine Select-Suipacha. The film was successful in Buenos Aires,
with newspapers favorably reviewing the film. ''CrÃtica'', ''
La Nación
''La Nación'' () is an Argentine daily newspaper. As the country's leading conservative newspaper, ''La Nación''s main competitor is the more liberal ''ClarÃn (Argentine newspaper), ClarÃn''. It is regarded as a newspaper of record for Argen ...
'', and ''La PelÃcula'' considered ''El Apóstol'' a cinematic advancement, and ''
La Razón'' considered it good satire. The destruction of Buenos Aires near the end of the film was considered its most impressive scene. While ''El Apóstol'' was initially paired with other films during cinema showings, success among the general public in Buenos Aires led to theater managers running repeated showings of the film in a single days. ''El Apóstol'' screenings lasted for six months before it was banned by the Buenos Aires town council for being a caricature of a current political situation. Because it appealed primarily to Buenos Aires residents, it was not distributed beyond its initial location, making it obscure.
Cristiani reportedly received little credit for the film; he was paid a meager 1,000
pesos (Equivalent to ~
US$
The United States dollar (Currency symbol, symbol: Dollar sign, $; ISO 4217, currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and International use of the U.S. dollar, several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introdu ...
in 1917, or ~US$ in 2024) and received minimal credit in the intro. Cristiani left Valle due to his interference with his work such as hiring unwanted collaborators, and Valle never made another animated feature film. A 1926 fire destroyed Valle's film studio, including his equipment and the only known copy of ''El Apóstol''. It is now a lost film. Cristiani worked on many animated short films during his career
[ and at least two other animated feature films: '' Sin dejar rastros'' ''(Without Leaving a Trace)'' and '' Peludópolis''. Cristiani retired from the animation industry in 1941. ''El Apóstol'' became known as the first animated feature-length film.] Available information about ''El Apóstol'' comes from Argentine film records, the Cristiani family archives, and Cristiani's memories as recorded by Giannalberto Bendazzi.
See also
* Lists of animated feature films
*List of lost films
For this list of lost films, a lost film is defined as one of which no part of a print is known to have survived. For films in which any portion of the footage remains (including trailers), see List of incomplete or partially lost films.
Reas ...
*'' Peludópolis''
References
Sources
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External links
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''El Apostol'' at SilentEra
{{DEFAULTSORT:Apostol, El
1917 films
1917 animated films
1917 lost films
1910s stop-motion animated films
1910s political films
Animated feature films
Argentine animated films
Argentine silent films
Argentine black-and-white films
Argentine satirical films
Political satire films
Cutout animation films
Films about fires
Films about presidents
Cultural depictions of politicians
Cultural depictions of Argentine people
Animation based on real people
Animated films based on classical mythology
Films directed by Quirino Cristiani
Films set in Buenos Aires
Films set in heaven
Lost animated films
1910s Spanish-language films
Lost Argentine films