Stop Motion — Stan Winston School of Character Arts Forums https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/ Fri, 10 Jul 2026 16:54:42 +0000 en Stop Motion — Stan Winston School of Character Arts Forums Rudolph the Rednose Reindeer, murder scene https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/discussion/12351/rudolph-the-rednose-reindeer-murder-scene Sat, 27 Dec 2025 07:38:48 +0000 Stop Motion Darrell Green 12351@/discussions We just finished watching the Burl Ives version of Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. A famous stop motion production. At the very very end, they are flying in Santa's sleigh and an elf from the workshop is pulling out toys from the magic bag and dropping them off the sleigh (falling from the sky) but gives each one an umbrella for a parachute.

He pulls out this bird and opens an umbrella for it. I loudly announce, "push", as a joke because why would a bird need a parachute. The elf looks at the umbrella, looks at the bird and PUSHES THE BIRD OFF WITHOUT THE UMBRELLA.

He gives the umbrella to the next toy. I laugh because I guessed right and then I said, "But what if the bird can't fly because he is a misfit toy?"

My daughter says, "Oh wow, that was the bird from the isle of misfit toys. He can't fly. He swims."

I went back through the film and confirmed, same bird.

What the heck did I just see?
]]> Stop motion raven https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/discussion/12162/stop-motion-raven Wed, 28 May 2025 16:49:29 +0000 Stop Motion John Terebetsky 12162@/discussions

]]> Digital muscle jiggle and lip sync https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/discussion/11847/digital-muscle-jiggle-and-lip-sync Fri, 24 Jan 2025 12:57:24 +0000 Stop Motion John Terebetsky 11847@/discussions Underwater Scene https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/discussion/9587/underwater-scene Fri, 06 May 2022 18:11:26 +0000 Stop Motion John Terebetsky 9587@/discussions The making of the house from UP. https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/discussion/1350/the-making-of-the-house-from-up Sat, 02 May 2015 20:50:29 +0000 Stop Motion Julian Baker 1350@/discussions My short film on the making of the house from UP.
imagehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6a9MjdirbY
]]> New stop motion project https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/discussion/3598/new-stop-motion-project Thu, 08 Jun 2017 14:53:40 +0000 Stop Motion Freddy Stynen 3598@/discussions But first lets start with a storyboard :D
Well drawing stuff is not my thing doh.



]]> 'Warrior Cats' Stop motion puppet https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/discussion/10590/warrior-cats-stop-motion-puppet Wed, 23 Aug 2023 14:00:39 +0000 Stop Motion Bobbie Taylor 10590@/discussions  It has a fully removable head, limbs, tails and faceplates using magnet attachment points. The fore and back legs are attached onto the chemiwood ‘hip’ and ‘chest’ using a series of concentric brass tubes that allow fluid movement of the joints, which are made of copper at a scale of 2-3mm.
The spine and tail are made using annealed copper wire with metal beads that act as ‘bones’ and control the way the wire bends to make realistic shapes and movement. The whole armature was then covered with foam so the muscles and fat could be shaped, then covered in orange fur from neck to tail.
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]]> Marionette pour mon projet de stop motion https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/discussion/8523/marionette-pour-mon-projet-de-stop-motion Mon, 22 Mar 2021 08:29:50 +0000 Stop Motion L'atelier du chat noir 8523@/discussions  en visionnant la géniale leçon des Chiodo brothers, j'ai pu tester les armatures, ce cours est exellent. Merci ]]> Question about pricing a stop motion puppet https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/discussion/10216/question-about-pricing-a-stop-motion-puppet Fri, 17 Feb 2023 15:18:36 +0000 Stop Motion Boglarka Zilahi 10216@/discussions I got commissioned by a studio to make a 14 inches wide and 12 inches tall realistic stop motion puppet horse with full poseability of the body + jaw, ears and eyes similar to Ray Harryhausen's pegasus puppet but with aluminium wire armature.
They asked a price quote but I'm not sure what would be a fair price since I've never made a horse puppet before only dinosaurs. Also, I'm not professional yet but not a beginner puppet maker.
Thank you so much for the help!

Here are exaples of my work:




 ]]> Silicone stop motion puppets https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/discussion/10221/silicone-stop-motion-puppets Wed, 01 Mar 2023 14:48:23 +0000 Stop Motion Ainslie 10221@/discussions
I tried Aron Globermans character Maquette Molding & Casting Part 1 :Sculpture Breakdown, Mounting and Molding, but it seems like he's making actual Molds made from silicone. I'm a real beginner with this, Can someone point me to a good place to start. What i ultimately want is to make my own silicone stop motion puppets. 


]]> Making a mechanical underskull on top of the sculpture? https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/discussion/9632/making-a-mechanical-underskull-on-top-of-the-sculpture Thu, 28 Jul 2022 21:36:38 +0000 Stop Motion Morgan A 9632@/discussions Working on a Dragon Stop Mo puppet https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/discussion/9591/working-on-a-dragon-stop-mo-puppet Tue, 10 May 2022 21:46:00 +0000 Stop Motion William Hennes 9591@/discussions
]]> Creation of puppets, about latex and hands https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/discussion/9373/creation-of-puppets-about-latex-and-hands Tue, 11 Jan 2022 16:16:49 +0000 Stop Motion Technoir Design 9373@/discussions Hello,
I would like to ask if i should put baby powder on the latex body of the puppet to keep it better? But I am also thinking of painting it in the future.
Is there also a way to make the clown's hands look scarier? I think I made his hands a little too small.
I thought about stick nails on fingers (with small wires) but I don't know if it will hold.

My story is almost ready: it will be inspired by the course of the chiodo brothers, "Killer clowns from outer space" and "Hansel and Gretel". The heads are prototypes, i will change them.

Do you know also if there is a european shop where i can buy some lipsync stickers?

 



I will continue to put latex on the two teenagers and finish the storyboard. 
]]> Ultracal thickness for foam latex https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/discussion/9368/ultracal-thickness-for-foam-latex Wed, 05 Jan 2022 11:58:17 +0000 Stop Motion John Terebetsky 9368@/discussions Feathers application https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/discussion/9134/feathers-application Sat, 25 Sep 2021 13:39:57 +0000 Stop Motion John Terebetsky 9134@/discussions Rear Screen Projection for Animation https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/discussion/8077/rear-screen-projection-for-animation Sat, 05 Dec 2020 23:49:30 +0000 Stop Motion John Terebetsky 8077@/discussions I   would   like   to   do   a   stop   motion   film   like Harryhausen   did, but  with  a  digital  projector,   but   I'm    not interested   in extensive   green screen.    Can anyone   help?   Thanks!]]> soldering iron and armature wire https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/discussion/8321/soldering-iron-and-armature-wire Thu, 04 Mar 2021 00:06:23 +0000 Stop Motion Melody Hellard 8321@/discussions I am making an armature that has a lot of wires converging in one place. My original plan was to use epoxy to connect them, but preferably the place where the wired come together would be a joint. The armature will be slightly exposed, so I didn't want to wrap it in smaller wire or tread. There is no clay going on top. I was curious if I used a soldering iron to connect them would it hold it together and would it bend? I have never used a soldering iron before so I thought I would see if anyone has any advice or experience using it before I invest. Thank you!]]> Epoxy Putty in the Oven? https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/discussion/8103/epoxy-putty-in-the-oven Mon, 11 Jan 2021 02:42:18 +0000 Stop Motion Melody Hellard 8103@/discussions
-Melody ]]> Mark Sawicki Character Animation https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/discussion/8076/mark-sawicki-character-animation Sat, 05 Dec 2020 01:37:24 +0000 Stop Motion John Terebetsky 8076@/discussions Communicating with experts https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/discussion/7478/communicating-with-experts Wed, 06 May 2020 13:09:47 +0000 Stop Motion Amira El Badry 7478@/discussions Trouble creating dinosaur puppets https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/discussion/5697/trouble-creating-dinosaur-puppets Tue, 12 Mar 2019 20:53:20 +0000 Stop Motion Kevin Cannarile 5697@/discussions Hi,
I'm new to puppet building, but I'm working on a dinosaur puppet that I'd like to cast from a Maquette I'm creating.  I've run into a problem with how to properly cast it.  It seems its a lot different than making a mold for a humanoid as I keep hearing I should cast the head, body, arms and legs all separately, but I'm unsure how to get the armature to work for this.

Any help or tips would be appreciated.
Thank you.
]]> Stop Motion as a Legitimate Special Effect https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/discussion/4116/stop-motion-as-a-legitimate-special-effect Sun, 21 Jan 2018 13:02:13 +0000 Stop Motion Cadmus Rimbeaux 4116@/discussions For the past many months I've been writing a horror-fantasy film in which an army of undead nazis comes into our world and wreaks havoc. The tone of the film will, I hope, successfully walk the line between horror comedy films like Return of the Living Dead and Evil Dead II and more somber coming of age stories like It and Stranger Things. I plan on filming in a "neo-expressionist" style similar to Edward Scissorhands, while incorporating vibrant symbolist imagery like that in Bram Stoker's Dracula. 
Most of the undead nazis will be cable control puppets and guys in zombie makeup. There are a few scenes however where I would like to use stop motion animation rather than CG/VFX. The stop motion will be used alongside live action characters and cut with full size sets. 
My question is whether or not stop motion can be used these days to successfully bring to life a realistic character.  ]]> Stop-Motion Hero Rig Concept Test, Footage https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/discussion/4098/stop-motion-hero-rig-concept-test-footage Tue, 26 Dec 2017 21:27:19 +0000 Stop Motion Mikey March 4098@/discussions
imagehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JdbgcSi8t6k

--
Testing an idea for a character rig & quickly slapped together a scene to support it. Against my better practices I elected to animate just the feets, straight-ahead without a plan nor actually reviewing my photos/onion-skinning. Despite having the camera secure, or so I had thought, the frames are remarkably shaky even taking into account the swaying "stage". Additional test footage will be created to determine how I can achieve the greatest stability with a 'portable' setup I don't really want to drill holes into.
I'll spend more than a few minutes lighting, too.

]]> Model needed! https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/discussion/3754/model-needed Sun, 03 Sep 2017 21:58:52 +0000 Stop Motion Jesse Kane 3754@/discussions jesse@CamelotKGP.com]]> New Dark Stop-Mo Short! https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/discussion/3596/new-dark-stop-mo-short Wed, 07 Jun 2017 19:25:40 +0000 Stop Motion Nathan Moody 3596@/discussions


The film, dozens of behind-the-scenes photos, and 2700 words' worth of production notes can all be found at SterileFlower.com. (direct Vimeo link)


https://vimeo.com/218107498
]]> How 2 Build A Simple Animation "stop motion" Stage. https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/discussion/3590/how-2-build-a-simple-animation-stop-motion-stage Thu, 01 Jun 2017 05:21:03 +0000 Stop Motion Freddy Stynen 3590@/discussions Here an example of a simple but very sturdy animation "stop motion" stage.
This stage is made from pine-wood and MDF.
You can paint it or just leave it like that, its all up 2 you.
Time for some animation you think ?
Lets stick with this rule ;

We must learn 2 walk before we can run !












So this Animation "stop motion" Stage is easy 2 work with.
So i can learn how 2 walk, because that is so pffffffffffffffffffffffffffffff :-/

imagehttps://youtu.be/hOtzh6qSKA4

]]> Just want 2 learn how 2 animate https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/discussion/3589/just-want-2-learn-how-2-animate Wed, 31 May 2017 22:42:47 +0000 Stop Motion Freddy Stynen 3589@/discussions
Well i'm Brand new here and i don't know what the do, but I (Try 2) Animate.


So i will try 2 make some puppets , its a StopmoNick tutorial i see on you tube.
We all have 2 start somewhere and now i'm a member of the Stan winston school, well hope 2 learn something here.
But i don't see much stop motion stuff, i need more input !!!
My almost naked puppets are made from aluminumwire, pine-wood, uinderwrap, epoxy, foam, underwrap
and latex.
My very first latex experience, dip and dry, dip and dry.................pffffffff, next time better, but the hands are oké?!


Some photo's of the armatures / puppets ;











Bah bad , oké lets make a mummy :-)



I love the stop motion world, but I'm still a giant NOOB in this world.
I'm a new member here, so i need some input :):):) 

We must learn 2 walk before we can run !

]]> Pat & Mat private project https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/discussion/3209/pat-mat-private-project Thu, 26 Jan 2017 15:14:44 +0000 Stop Motion Thomas van der Veer 3209@/discussions ]]> Stop Motion Puppet Time Lapse https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/discussion/650/stop-motion-puppet-time-lapse Wed, 01 Apr 2015 15:18:26 +0000 Stop Motion Cassie Seaboyer 650@/discussions
 After watching the webcourse of how to make an armature hand, I was able to use the techniques to create a dragon puppet for a stop motion project I was working on .  Decided to film myself working on it and put it together in a time lapse video to show the process.Take a look if you'd like! :smile: Hopefully the link below works!

Cheers

Cassie

imagehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S1JJ0D35Obo
]]> Stop-Motion Animation Software https://forums.stanwinstonschool.com/discussion/2624/stop-motion-animation-software Fri, 27 May 2016 17:19:19 +0000 Stop Motion Dezan Bruno 2624@/discussions
Could you explain all the software you use for stop motion animation.

Thanks



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