Session 8: Claymation

Claymation

Despite the increased popularity of CGI in animation with companies like Pixar raking in millions of pounds from films such as Toy Story, Claymation is still a popular method of animation.

Used since early last century, it has been the method of animation for the academy award nominated Nick Park’s Aardman Animations which has produced films like Wallace and Gromit and Chicken Run.

Models are made using materials such as plasticine, sometimes around wire armature and filmed using stop-motion animation. It can be a lengthy process filming a Claymation animation as there may be hundreds of frames to make using many small movements of clay parts between takes.  Below is an example of lip sync-ing, to co-incide with our lesson of face movements.
 

 

Claymation Lesson: The poem

A really enjoyable session

So I will set the scene

We looked at people’s feelings

And played with plasticine

 

We drew some happy faces

And then we drew some sad

I couldn’t draw confusion

Instead the face looked mad

 

Then there came the fun bit

The highlight of the day

We took our lovely pictures

And created them with clay!