How to Make a Running Person Flipbook

Stick people make excellent flipbook "actors" because they are quick and easy to draw.

Most of us remember being shown a flipbook as children. Flipbooks work so that, when the pages are “flipped” through, it appears that an image on the page is actually moving. A series of still pictures viewed in quick succession creates the illusion of movement, whether it is actors dancing across the silver screen or a man running on paper.

Things You'll Need

• Paper
• Pencil
• Binder
• CD

Instructions

1. Choose the point of view from which your running man will be viewed. For instance, he might be running toward or away from the person looking at the flipbook, or horizontally across the page.

2. Practice drawing your running man in a sketchbook. Since flipbook figures are almost always stick figures, the lack of detail means you really have to think only about proportion and posing.

3. Determine the number of pages for your flipbook. The pages themselves need to be in a book small enough to be easily flipped.

4. Create a series of images of a running stick man. Each should have a slightly different pose from the previous one in order to show a slight progression in the runner's movement. For example, the first page should show him raising his right foot slightly while moving his right slightly arm back and the left slightly forward.

5. Go to the next page and continue the movements from the previous page with a small drop in the position of the overall body. Later pages can show the knee and elbow bending.

6. Continue creating pages in this way. When you get to the midpoint of the running pose, reverse the action to have the left leg and the right arm coming forward.

7. Place your images in sequence in a binder that will serve as your flipbook. Alternatively, scan and save them on a CD so you can have an office supply store print your flip book for you.

Tips & Warnings

• One of the best ways to understand the types of movement that a runner makes is to watch a video of a runner or to ask someone to run a short distance so that you can observe his movements.

References

• Curbly: How to Draw a Flip Book.