Stop Motion

Description

Stop motion is an animated filmmaking technique in which objects are physically manipulated in small increments between individually photographed frames so that they will appear to exhibit independent motion picture or change when the series of frames is played back. Any kind of object can thus be animated, but puppets with movable joints (puppet animation) or plasticine figures (clay animation or claymation) are most commonly used. Puppets, models or clay figures built around an armature are used in model animation. Stop motion filmmaking with live actors is often referred to as pixilation. Stop motion of flat materials such as paper, fabrics or photographs is usually called cutout animation.

Early stop motion was captured with film cameras. Film animators could not see how their work looked until they got their film processed. They used surface gauges to keep track of where their movie characters were, and how far to move them. If the animation was not fluid, if the set had been bumped, or if the lighting was bad, the work was lost and the movie animator had to start all over again.

Stop motion can be achieved using various materials and techniques, including clay (claymation), puppets, objects, cutout animation and more. It has been used in a wide range of films, from short animated movies to feature length films, and it continues to be a popular and creative form of filmmaking.