His father was a watchmaker, his mother a schoolteacher. He was taught by his parents, and they believed he should learn whilst having fun. When his father died, him and mother both left Paris for Puy-en-Velay. He became a professor of physics and natural sciences, and taught from 1873 to 1877. During this time he invented the "praxinoscope" which is an instrument that creates optical illusions. He returned to Paris with the invention, and it was a sucess. He perfected the "praxinoscope" and came up with a large praxinoscope which enabled him to project a strip of film. He hand drew his cartoons onto film paper, which he then projected to audiences. The first of these shown for the first time on 28th of October, 1892. These were called luminous pantomimes. He continued to perfect his instrument and created the stereo-cinema which enabled a 3-D animation. He died on January 9th, 1918 in Ivry-sur-Seine.
