Characters

Stop motion is go! But aside from my single human character, I need not a small number of clay characters. This is useful as a film maker because clay characters don't have other commitments. Nor do they need feeding or paying, and they never get tired/cold. Easy! I just have to make them first... But how?

Well, I've found this article here which has all sorts of useful hints and tips for creating a stop motion cast. This bit of particular use...

" Clay Figures: One of the main ways that Stop Motion figures are created is using clay. This can be found in many productions, from Gumby, Bob the Builder, and Celebrity Deathmatch. Clay allows you to create your figure from drawings or imagination and because you are not relying on action figures, that will be a lot more flexible and allow for a smoother animation.

To begin making a clay figure, you need to build a skeleton. Just like humans have bones to keep them up, clay figures need what are known as armatures. There are many ways of doing this and one of the easiest ways is simply creating a wire structure. Using aluminum wire and tools, you will twist and shape the wire to form the basic shape and size of the body you would like to create. Then, at key anchor points, either hot glue or melted clay would be attached for a stronger bond and less amount of breaking. These anchor points are at the head, hands, feet, pelvis, and anywhere else necessary to create the figure. "

So that's it. I need to go out and buy/find some...

• Modelling clay
• Aluminium Wire
• Willing helpers

Then I should be all set to go about making my models and start making my film. Exciting!