Assembly Of a Stop-Motion Puppet Armature

Stop-Motion Animation is one of the most unique art forms in the world. Since the early days, the techniques and technologies used by the animators in the various disciplines of stop-motion animation have developed by leaps and bounds, be it in design, sculpting, armature machining, filmmaking or acting.

Every Stop-Motion puppet gains its dexterity and freedom of movement from its Armature, which acts as a skeleton, hidden within its clay or foam exterior. The puppet Armature pretty much decides how easily and efficiently the puppet will perform during animation. Hence, it is vital for every animator to carefully design a puppet Armature according to his or her requirements. The Armature is the carrier of Design Intent in every Animation.

The Metal-Joint Armatures used today by most animation professionals and hobbyists consists of a combination of simple mechanical joints linked with one another in a manner that suits a particular form and generates the required movement during animation.

We shall take the example of a Standard Armature Kit available commercially and see the various stages involved in the assembly of its various components into the shape of a human being.

The first step of any Armature construction involves a rough sketch or layout to define the scale of the puppet. Fixing the size of the armature at the early stages of the armature construction helps to avoid unnecessary iterations in the later stages.

Before we proceeded to the CAD Modeling of the puppet Armature, we realized that one of the ready made joints available in the kit needed a slight modification. The joint which was to be used for the feet, used a fixed multi-purpose block attached to a ball and socket joint. We wanted a normal block to replace the multi-purpose block.

We then translated our proportional sketch to a CAD System to further optimize the proportions and build an exact dimensioned ‘Master Layout’ for the Puppet.

The next step was to build the 3D-Model of the Armature using ProEngineer, taking size and proportion reference from the master layout.

Once the 3D-Model was complete and verified for its size and proportions, the required machining drawings and dimensions were provided for the workshop.

The various parts of the armature were cut and the sharp edges rounded off. The parts were then identified into respective subassembly joints before the actual assembly process began.

The Standard Armature kit provides for a modular and easily interchangeable set of joints that can be used to build your puppet. Yet, in most cases during animation the diverse range of characters and the variety in movement expected of each puppet puts the conventional modular armature kits at a clear disadvantage. More often than not, the animator is forced to adjust his or her puppet’s character and movement styles to suit to their standard Armature kit’s limitations.

Armature Design is an Art form and each new challenging character in any animation deserves a in-depth analysis into its character and range of activities, before building its Armature. We believe that an Armature should infuse character into the puppet.

Emantras explores and brings out stable, movement specific Armatures that are custom built for a specific application. Our Armatures are driven by the puppet’s character, not the other way around.

Sajan Rajagopal