How to Make a Stick Figure Animation in Flash CS5

Flash CS5 offers animation options to set an inanimate stick figure in motion on your computer screen.

The ease of drawing a stick figure with pen and paper translates well to the computer screen, but when you use Adobe Flash CS5, you can do much more. Instead of just letting your stick-figure creation lie stagnant on the page, you can use Flash to make him communicate with you, acknowledge your presence, and get into his own stick-figure adventures. Flash offers options for animation that range from the simple to the complex.

Instructions

1. Start Flash CS5. Click the "Flash Document" link in the middle of the startup screen.

2. Click the pencil tool in the middle of the tools section on the left of the stage. Click into the "Colors" box and choose a color for the stick figure. Click the small drop-down box under the "Options" section, and click "Straighten." This straightens your lines for the stick figure.

3. Draw the stick figure in the middle of the stage. You might give him a round head, upturned arms like a "V," downturned legs like an upside down "V," and a straight body.

4. Right-click a frame on the timeline to the right of the current keyframe, which is 1. You might select a frame such as 80. Select "Insert Keyframe." Nothing changes on the stage or the stick figure, but the frame gets a solid dot in it, and the entire timeline between the two keyframes is now shaded gray.

5. Right-click a frame between the two keyframes; it does not have to be the exact middle, such as 40. Choose "Insert Keyframe." Another solid circle appears.

6. Click the eraser icon on the tools section and erase one of the stick figure's arms. Click the pencil tool and draw the arm again, but in a different position, such as at a higher angle. Make any other changes such as the angles of the legs, as desired.

7. Click the small vertical rectangle in the box to the left of the solid circle on the timeline. Open the "Property Inspector" panel at the bottom of the stage. Click the "Tween" menu and choose "Motion. That portion of the timeline now is shaded blue and has an arrow. Repeat the "Tween" process on the other vertical rectangle on the timeline, so there are two arrows.

8. Drag the timeline indicator back to keyframe 1. Click the "Control" menu. Click "Play," and watch the stick figure wave at you and, if you changed the legs, start running. To keep the animation going, click the "Loop Playback" option on the "Control" menu.

Tips & Warnings

• This is a very basic animation, just like the basics of a stick figure. You can experiment with some of Flash's options to add to the animation, including making text bubbles appear so that the stick figure talks, or making clothes and accessories appear and vanish.

References

• Adobe: Creating Your First Flash Professional CS5 Document