Build your own Puppet Armature
Building puppets and sets for Stop Motion Animation is a true craft skill. Every professional Stop Motion Animator I have worked with has their own preferred techniques, materials and processes.
The problem is, puppet building can involve expensive materials, complicated processes, a workshop full of tools and a large space for building purpose-made stages for your set.
What is special about puppets made for Stop Motion Animation?
- Firstly, your puppet must be lightweight. A heavy puppet will droop, bend and probably topple over.
- Your armature must be durable, remember, you will be manipulating your puppet hundreds, maybe thousands of times. It needs to handle the stress!
- Your Tie-down system determines how you build your sets and how you will animate your puppet.
Our Basic Armature Design
After years of working with Animation professionals students and Animation enthusiasts, I have developed an affordable armature system which I use for most of my workshops now.
This system is so quick and simple that I run workshops with our members who can design, build and animate their puppet in just one day.
These processes are constantly adapting but the movie below shows the very basic version using our pin-down technique for anchoring the puppet.
Video Tutorial
Materials
Here is the current materials list for our pin-down armature:
These are fantastic, they can be used to create armatures for human or animal puppets all you need a small flat-head screwdriver.
This wire is slightly more expensive than alternative metal wire but is not as brittle and springy. Regardless of this, it is wise to twist thin wire together so that you have back-up if a strand snaps, this becomes more likely on stress points as your puppet get used more.
This stuff is expensive. It is my current head model material of choice though because it is so lightweight. It can also be easily painted, is nice an matt and can take pin-eyes and glued-on elements such as hair.
My members love this stuff as it is MAGIC! It sets completely hard within seconds and can be re-melted in hot water. It is great for feet as they need to be very strong to take the stress of your tie-down method. There is a knack to working with it and you have to work fast.
These are part of my essential animation kit, they are surprisingly expensive though, especially when you are just buying white ones for eyes.
These are not essential as you can just use the polymorph straight on your wire. I find that popping your pin through the hole in the Spade Crimp stops it from becoming wobbly over time and helps keep your pin straight when making your feet.
Young Animators Club make dozens of puppets every month so I buy large quantities of these materials and can produce a single armature for £1.11.
I always welcome feedback and suggestions regarding materials and suppliers. Please comment below or contact me.
If you are just building one or two puppets then the cost per puppet is greater, often my students will buy a pot of Polymorph or a tub of Model Magic and split it between them to keep the costs down.
Tie-down Techniques
Your tie-down system will allow your feet to be anchored to the stage to prevent it from moving or falling over as you animate. Your chosen system will determine how you animate your puppet and what surface you animate them on.
PIN-DOWN
Our pin-down system is ideal if you are short of space and it is by far the quickest and cheapest system.
Pros
Stages can be built from either Foam-board or corrugated cardboard. The key is to build up 3+ layers so that your pin has plenty of support and is less likely to move around as you manipulate your puppet.
The tiny pin holes are very easy to disguise on your set floor.
Cons
The pin-down system is the least stable system and therefore relies on well-made feet and very light-weight puppets.
I doubt this system would suit a professional set-up but is ideal for students, school projects and films on a tight budget.
THREADED TIE-DOWN
The Threaded Tie-down system is probably the most time-consuming method but is very reliable and can accommodate quite cumbersome puppets. You can either drill holes in your set as you animate or use perforated steel sheet for your base.
Pros
Very strong
Inexpensive
Cons
Requires a custom-made stage which has plenty of access underneath.
Time-consuming
You need plenty of space
Holes need to be made in your stage to bolt your feet down. These may need to be plugged with plasticine or covered as you animate. Alternatively, you can ‘fix it in post’, this phrase tends to ring alarm bells for me, just make sure you test and practise removing any elements digitally BEFORE you start shooting.
MAGNETIC TIE-DOWN
This option can be expensive but is a great system.
Pros
Quicker than threaded tie-down
No need to make holes in your set.
Cons
You need quite big feet to have a big enough magnetic surface area
Most tables are too thick for this system to work so a thin stage base needs to be made and raised so that you can access your magnets underneath.
Magnets tend to be rather brittle and can shatter easily, they can also pinch your skin.
Useful links:
Videos:
Nick Hilligoss and Tie Down Position
This video is about Nick Hilligoss and Tiedowns
Books:
The Advanced Art of Stop-Motion Animation
Take an in-depth look at the art and techniques of stop-motion animation. The Advanced Art of Stop-Motion Animation helps experienced stop-motion artists enhance their craft by exploring the professional methods and advanced technology used by top film st