Directing - Stop Motion: Passion, Process and Performance - page 308

Deathmatch , but I would have rather learned about tap dance from Holiday Inn . I use my body quite a bit,
so it's natural for me to act out the character. I took dance lessons when I was in summer music theatre.
For my current fi lm, The Labyrinth , there is a rather lengthy virginal sacrifi ce dance using four female
dancers and one male dancer wearing a bull's head. Ridiculously ambitious, but if I pull it off, I can retire.
For me, body posture is most satisfying, as the human form can say quite a bit in simple gesture.
KD - No, but I know I should. I was nervous about tending acting classes at university, but I forced
myself as I knew my animation would benefi t, but they got cancelled. Would love to do more, and think
about movement, balance, etc.
RC - Yes … a little dance study, mountain climbing study, etc. I have a good sense of timing, weight
and how the body transitions, from years in martial arts and playing soccer. I act out the performance,
because there can be so many timing issues that you don't want to leave them to chance. At least I don't,
because I want a specifi c performance to have a specifi c timing. I enjoy getting expression out of a pose
but putting an expression on the face is meaningless if the body pose says something different (unless
that's an intentional contrast). I studied jiu-jitsu, karate and tai chi for many years, which was extremely
valuable, and started playing soccer.
DC - I research a character to get to know them. Learning new skills isn't necessary; you just have
to make it look like he can do it. My skill is as an animator and I act through shots in character and
look at video reference where possible. We fi lmed ourselves on Curse of the Were-Rabbit . I like to believe
I can animate from my imagination and not have to see it on the monitor fi rst, that's a bit like cheating.
It helps to see things sometimes for timing and poise and balance but it's good not to 'need' it.
AW - I don't need to act out for myself, but I use it to communicate with the director.
SB - I've looked at different dance styles for scenes, but sometimes it's best to animate a heightened
version or caricature of the movement and not be too real.
RH - I can feel the action, but I do fi nd myself acting out the puppet's actions from time to time. I like the
head and face best, although I do like to get expression with the upper body and arms.
JC - I do character research looking at old fi lms, classic performances, even people I know who
share character traits. I love theatre and dance. Every animator should go to a performance regularly.
There is so much to be learned from watching other people interpretations. I've learnt new skills to aid
my animation. On Hamilton Mattress a group of us learnt to tango dance for the nightclub sequences.
Having video reference is a very useful technique used at Aardman Animations. On Creature Comforts
USA you and your director would act out the lines you had to animate, sometimes twenty times and then
picking one or two for reference, not to 'copy' the action but to give performance clues. It helped you
both to be on the same wavelength. This technique is often used on feature fi lms. Though the face
can be very expressive, a lot of puppets have limited movement. I like to use whole body language to
emote; there is so much to be read from posture and movement.
FL - I like to do the action of the puppet myself during animation. In that precise moment, I fi nd it even
more useful than watching another person doing it.