Cutout animation

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Cutout animation is a technique for producing animations using flat characters, props and backgrounds cut from materials such as paper, card, stiff fabric or even photographs. The world’s earliest known animated feature films were cutout animations (made in Argentina by Quirino Cristiani); as is the world’s earliest surviving animated feature. Today, cutout-style animation is frequently produced using computers, with scanned images or vector graphics taking the place of physically cut materials. South Park is a notable example of this transition since its first episode was made with paper cutouts before switching to computer animation. More complex figures depicted in cutout animation, such as in silhouette animation, often have joints made with a rivet or pin – or when made on a computer, an anchor. These connections act as mechanical linkage which have the effect of a specific, fixed motion. Other notable examples include Angela Anaconda, and—more recently—Charlie and Lola. One of the most famous animators still using traditional cutout animation today is Yuriy Norshteyn. .

Hi, I'm Kim, a mom and a stop-motion enthusiast with a background in media creation and web development. I've got a huge passion for drawing and animation, and now I'm diving headfirst into the stop-motion world. With my blog, I'm sharing my learnings with you guys.