Home » Moviemakers: Papermation

Moviemakers: Papermation

Using little more than paper, scissors and a camera, students can create their own stunning mini-movies with the ‘papermation’ technique. Try this easy-to-implement animation idea with bags of potential.

If you are not familiar with the details of stop motion apps you can check out the Teachers’ Corner Moviemakers posts on ‘How to use a stop motion app’.

Here is a video (2 mins) you can use in class explaining the papermation method.

You will need:

  • Card and paper,
  • Pens and pencils,
  • A large piece of paper or cardboard to act as a background,
  • A smartphone or digital camera,
  • A stop motion app.

It is useful to be able to hold the camera directly above the paper scene and pointing down. Creating a structure to hold the phone or camera can be part of the fun! Students can create a holder from piles of books or some furniture that will hold up a bar or beam to hold a camera.

Other ideas:

You can use fuzzy felt and or velcro to hold objects. You can also create new locations for scenes by changing the background.

If you try this activity, we’d love to see what your students create.

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