How to Make a Good Pivot Animation

The Pivot Stickfigure Animator is free animation software that allows you to create basic animated images on your computer. The program provides stick figures that you can animate and also allows you to import animations other people have created. You also choose the number of frames that you use to create the motion in your animations. To make a good Pivot animation, spend time planning out the animation you want to design and use a higher number of frames to create fluid motion.

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Instructions

- 1
  
  Plan the motion in frames by drawing out the animation in rough sketches on paper. This allows you to determine the number of frames you will need and how you want your stick figure to move before you start to work on the real animation
- 2
  
  Launch Pivot on your computer. The program automatically provides a default stick figure on a white background.
- 3
  
  Click the dot on the stick figure’s waist, hold the mouse button down and drag the stick figure to the beginning position on the background.
- 4
  
  Click, hold and drag the joints on the stick figure to arrange it in the starting pose of your animation.
- 5
  
  Click “Next Frame” to create the second frame of your animation.
- 6
  
  Change the stick figure’s pose in the new frame by slightly dragging the joints on the figure in the direction of the motion you want to create. Pivot displays the pose from the previous frame in a gray outline, allowing you to see how the second frame changes from the first.
- 7
  
  Continue to create new frames and make new poses for each frame. Make each pose change very slightly from the previous pose to create a smooth animation. Use your rough sketches as a guide as you design each pose and complete the motion.
- 8
  
  Click the “Play” button to view your animation at any time. If you see errors in your animation, you can stop the playback and make changes to your stick figure’s pose.
- 9
  
  Click “File” and “Save Animation” to export the animation to an image file when you are done.