CGI is cool, but have you ever considered using stop-motion in your film?
There’s something charming about stop-motion animation. Stop-motion has the power to bring our imaginations to the screen through detailed movements and hand-crafted models, which could make it the most human, personal and heartfelt type of cinema. It’s special to see the creative spirit come to life in 24 frames per second, especially when stop-motion comes in live.
With Marcel the shod shell Warming our hearts using stop-motion to blend the wholesome creature into the real world, we wonder why stop-motion has fallen out of favor with filmmakers, even though it has such a powerful effect on viewers. Of course, the realism is favorable, but stop-motion in live-action movies can present stories in an impressive way similar to the animation of Who Framed Roger Rabbit Where coolworld.
Old school classics like King Kong and fantasy-filled creatures combining live-action and stop-motion, and The Royal Ocean Film Society breaks down exactly how stop-motion pioneer Ray Harryhausen created his most memorable sequences through Dynamtion and the desire to push the boundaries of what was possible at the time. You can watch the full video here.
What is dynamization?
Dynamization is the technique developed by animator Ray Harryhausen. The process involves a sandwich composite of rear-projected footage, an animation table, a layer of matte glass, and a 35mm camera. The projector used is modified to play one frame at a time, allowing it to slightly move the stop motion model in the frame.
The idea behind Dynamation was to incorporate stop-motion into the images in a believable way. Crosscuts between a creature and the howling masses can only be done so many times before it gets boring. By using multiple layers to create the illusion of a creature emerging from the water behind crates, Harryhausen brought a level of depth never seen before.
Stop-Motion interacting with reality
Harryhausen’s process was slow and methodical, often handled solely by Harryhausen. He pushed the boundaries of what was possible with stop-motion in live action, encouraging productions to have characters interact with creatures to blend the two mediums.
To make these interactions believable, the actors would be lifted by wires, and Harryhausen would fill in the animation by replacing the actors’ contact points with animated parts. You can easily spot this shift from real to animated if you go frame by frame or look at Harryhausen’s earlier work, but the animation became smoother and barely recognizable as he developed the craft.
One of the hardest touchpoints to spot is the skeleton fight sequence in Jason and the Argonauts. As the swords clash, the sword quickly transforms into a model, then back to a normal sword. At normal speed, the fast animation is barely noticeable. This is due to Harryhausen’s ability to cleverly seal off layers of reality and stop-motion and suspend our disbelief for a brief moment.
As on-set editing became more complex, Harryhausen was able to find creative ways to incorporate stop-motion patterns. As technology evolved, more and more films moved away from static wide shots of stop-motion creatures interacting with live action to embrace dynamic camera movements and compositions with more depth. Harryhausen also embraced advances in technology, finding ways to make his model’s movements more subtle and eerie.
Harryhausen’s designs were beautiful, but he inevitably faced limitations that were beyond his control. In his memoirs, A bustling life, Harryhausen said: “When designing such a creature, I always have to ask myself, ‘Can I put this on screen?’ If I didn’t have such limitations, my imagination would run wild, but in the end, time and money dictate practicality…”
As we’ve seen recently with VFX artists working for Marvel, tight deadlines can limit an artist’s ability to create great visual effects. If the time allotted to visual effects artists is short, the work created will not look good. It’s not the fault of the artists. They produce the best possible work within the limits presented.
Stop-motion will always be in a state of evolution. Dynamic camera movements and intricate wire work can push the boundaries of what’s possible in stop-motion if artists have the time and budget to develop these intricate, highly detailed movements. It is our duty as filmmakers to embrace the unique mediums of art that can integrate with live action to add another layer of depth to visual storytelling.
Harryhausen’s goal with his stop-motion was to open up the possibilities of cinema to those who had not experienced certain mediums of the craft. Some great stop-motion artists are creating amazing short films today, but it would be great to see stop-motion combined with live-action make a comeback in cinema. It would be a welcoming burst of creativity that could spark the imagination of the next generation.
What’s your favorite live-action movie that uses stop-motion? Let us know in the comments below!