What was the first feature-length film centered on emoji, released in 2017?

The Emoji Movie was the first feature-length film centered on emoji, released in 2017.

Produced by Columbia Pictures and Sony Pictures Animation, the film follows Gene, an emoji who lives inside a teenager’s smartphone. It turns the phone’s apps and symbols into a fictional world and uses emoji culture as the basis for its story.

The film premiered in Los Angeles on July 23, 2017, and was released in the United States on July 28, 2017. Tony Leondis directed it, and the voice cast included T. J. Miller, James Corden, Anna Faris, and Maya Rudolph.

It is easy to confuse the film with unrelated animated movies that feature digital technology or colorful characters. The Emoji Movie is specifically built around emoji as its central fictional subject, which distinguishes it from films that merely include texting or smartphones.