How to Make a Claymation Movie Using Powerpoint
Thanks to programs like PowerPoint, animators can have a complete filmmaking production facility right on their computers. More imaginative animators can create a claymation movie. PowerPoint will help make it look professional using this unique animation art form.
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Things You'll Need
- Cardboard
- Construction paper
- Glue
- Pipe cleaners
- Aluminum foil
- Modeling clay
- Detachable eyes
- Miniature lamps
- Digital camera
Instructions
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Materials
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1
Create the frame backdrop of your claymation movie by setting up a tri-fold board made from cardboard. Be sure it's black so it'll give the illusion of depth in each scene if captured in the movie.
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2
Take some construction paper and create the backgrounds you'll use for each scene. Make these with multiple colors so it'll stand out in relation to the black frame backdrop. Create other miniature props out of paper or cardboard.
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3
Find two miniature lamps with flexible necks for your lighting. Set them up at an angle on the left and right of the table that holds the backdrops. Imagine this as how spotlights work in lighting a stage.
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4
Attach pipe cleaners to create joints for arms and legs by joining them together with glue or anything else secure. Cover them with aluminum foil.
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5
Apply modeling clay over the aluminum foil to create your claymation characters. Apply other details such as facial features using clay. You can use detachable eyes to give the illusion of eye blinks or eye expressions in the movie.
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6
Set up a digital camera with a sturdy tripod so you can effectively take pictures within the frame width of the backdrop.
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7
Move your clay figures a tiny bit each time for each frame. Snap a picture with your camera for each frame of movement. This could be thousands of pictures, but will obviously be doable with a digital camera.
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8
Open PowerPoint with the Start Menu on Windows. Open all your slides on your computer from your camera and upload them to Powerpoint by opening "File" and then "Save As," using the .png format. Select "Every Slide" on the save options window rather than each slide individually.
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9
Set the slide transition time on PowerPoint to a setting of zero so it'll show each picture in quick succession to fully animate each frame. Change the slide transition time by finding "Slide Transition" in the top menu and disable the option of changing each frame by clicking your mouse. Make sure the time transition time is set to 0:00.
Sound Editing
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10
Choose Insert at the top menu. Select from there "Movies and Sounds" and then the name of your sound file. Choose to have the music play automatically upon first frame.
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Right-click on a little speaker icon that appears on the screen. Use your mouse to customize the timing of the music for the movie.
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12
Select "Custom Animation" from the right-click options and wait for your sound file to appear on the right side of the screen. Right-click again on the file and select "Timing."
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13
Watch for the options under "Timing." The start options should be set to "With Previous," a "0" delay and setting as many repeats as you need.
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14
Choose "Effects" at the top menu and set your effects to make the sound start and stop on the movie's first and last frame.
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1
Tips & Warnings
Using the process of claymation is a complex stand-alone project. Consider reading the tutorial in Resource 1 to give you more detailed tips on how to make the animation part look as professional as Will Vinton's California Raisins.
