On September 9, 2004, Casey Safron, the event's founder, curated the first Animation Block Party, held in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

[2][3] In 2006, the festival expanded to its current multi-day format,[4] drawing an average of over 2,500 attendees per summer.

[5][7] Animation Block Party expanded to a four-day festival in 2013, including an opening night concert with performances by Adam Green, Hooray for Earth, Tim Harrington, and others, and exclusive animation from Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon and Pixar.

[8] Animation Block Party has held traveling shows in Philadelphia,[9] Austin,[10] Omaha,[11] Boston[12] and Los Angeles, including a 2014 Valentine's Day showcase at The Troubadour in West Hollywood, which included original shorts from MTV Other, Nickelodeon, Six Point Harness, Loopdeloop and Bill Plympton.

[14] In 2008, Animation Block produced the series "Perfectland" for MTV, which premiered on April 22, 2008.