Brickfilm
animated film genre
A brickfilm is a film or Internet video made either by shooting stop motion animation using construction set bricks like Lego bricks and minifigures or using computer-generated imagery or traditional animation to imitate the look. They can sometimes also be live action films featuring plastic construction toys (or representations of them). Since the 2000s The Lego Group has released various films and TV series and brickfilms have also become popular on social media websites. The term “brick film” was coined by Jason Rowoldt, founder of the website brickfilms.com.
History
Early history; 1960s-2001
While the technique has been used in official commercials dating back to the 1960s, the earliest known amateur brickfilm, En rejse til månen (Danish for 'Journey to the Moon'), was created in 1973 by Lars and Henrik Hassing for their grandparents' wedding anniversary. The six-minute video, which depicted a mission to space, was shown to Godtfred Kirk Christiansen, The Lego Group's owner at the time, who had a personal copy made and rewarded the creators with a tour of Lego's factory.
Another well-known early brickfilm, The Magic Portal, was produced from 1985 to 1989 by Lindsay Fleay in Australia. The film also combines Lego with live-action and claymation. Fleay sent the film to The Lego Group, who initially responded positively, but then responded by threatening legal action. As a result, it was ultimately not shown at any film festivals.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Brickfilm” as animated film genre. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the arts & letters register because the source frames it as animated film genre. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Reception evidence should be dated and situated: later canonical status may differ sharply from the work’s initial circulation. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 21, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q849666. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 2001, 1973, 1985 and 1989.
Titles can refer to several editions, objects or performances, making precise identification essential before interpretation. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
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Separate the work, its editions or performances, and its later reception. Catalogue records, publication histories and object files often preserve different parts of that story.
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The original object or edition, catalogue raisonné, performance record, rights file and holding institution.
Three-step research path
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Questions for further research
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This entry incorporates text from “Brickfilm” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.