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Stop Motion is about giving movement and life to static objects through a photo sequence. As in the traditional animation, it has to be made frame by frame, with the difference that Stop Motion does not use drawings but other types of materials. In fact, by definition, to be a Stop Motion animation the animated material can’t be a drawing or a computer-generated scene, and it has to be made by a sequence of photographs. The most common elements used are clay, paper cuts, sand, everyday objects and even humans. Depending on the name of the material, the technique gets a different name.

The classical – and more common way- to do a Stop Motion animation is by creating a skeleton using either a soft wire or special joints made for that purpose. The body of the character is then made on top of the skeleton using clay. It is recommended that the models, props and scenery are big enough to easily manipulate them.

When all the materials are finished, it’s time to put in place the “acting set”. While the lighting technique will be similar to as in a live action movie, with the camera is the same situation: if the script indicates an accelerated shot or a static one, you will choose between using a tripod or attaching the camera to a moving object.

After taking the first picture, the animator will move a bit the character or prop. The variation in the position of the models between takes is minimal, but that’s the way the illusion of movement is made. Just like in the traditional animation, one second requires 24 frames, so you can imagine how minimal the movement is from a frame to the following.

Of all animation techniques, Stop Motion takes the longest to create – it can take up to 10 years to develop a long film, as happened with “Nightmare before Christmas”, one of the most famous films using Stop Motion. These productions need a lot of time because, as you could see, this is a delicate art that can’t be rushed – messing up only one second means messing up weeks of work. You have to do it slowly, patiently, delicately and with lots of passion to have a beautiful result.