A Is for Atom is a 1953 animated educational short directed by
Carl Urbano for John Sutherland Productions, sponsored by General
Electric. The film explains what an atom is, how nuclear energy is
released from certain kinds of atoms, the peacetime uses of nuclear
power, and the by-products of nuclear fission. The periodic table is
represented as "Element Town," with each element depicted in a
distinctive shape. The short ends with a majestic atomic giant
straddling the earth as the narrator declares that our future "depends
on man's wisdom, on his firmness in the use of that power." The film
won the Second Grand Award for science films at the Venice Film
Festival in 1954 and was seen by more than twelve million people in its
first three years. The film is in the public domain.
Animation · Educational
