The Best Animated Feature category was first awarded at the Oscars in 2002.
The inaugural presentation took place at the 74th Academy Awards on March 24, 2002, honoring films released during 2001. Shrek won the new prize, defeating Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius and Monsters, Inc. The category was created as animated feature production became frequent enough—and commercially important enough—to justify its own annual Oscar.
The date can cause a common mix-up: 2001 is the film-release year and the year of the winning film, while 2002 is the ceremony and award year. Animated films had appeared in Oscar history long before then. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs received an honorary award in 1938, and Beauty and the Beast became the first animated feature nominated for Best Picture in 1991.
The Academy defines an animated feature as a film longer than 40 minutes in which a significant number of major characters are animated and animation makes up at least 75 percent of the running time. That definition separates this competitive category from earlier special and honorary awards.