The Spinning Animation Show

 Part of 80 animations created by students of the FOSBOS Straubing and developed together with Thomas Stellmach in a zoetrope workshop.
Set-up for the presentation of The Spinning Animation Show with the title 'The-Spinning-History' for the celebration of 800 years of Straubing.
Animation on eight paper discs created for the show The Spinning History.
Presentation of the Spinning History, 800 years of Straubing, idea by Thomas Stellmach
The-Spinning-Animation-Show-800-Jahre-Straubing-audience in front of a praxinoskope
Thomas Stellmach is introducing the students on stage

Project Details

The fascinating final presentation of a zoetrope workshop ...

A ‘Spinning Animation Show’ is like an exhibition and live performance. In this show, the participants of a zoetrope workshop themselves present their effectively designed cyclical animations on various optical, partly historical, image viewing devices in front of an audience and to a cinematic soundtrack.

 

In a zoetrope workshop, participants produce animation loops on a strip or disc of paper that show a very short action of less than a second in a cycle.

Read more about what a zoetrope is and what we do in a zoetrope workshop.

 

A Spinning Animation Show is an effective final presentation of a zoetrope workshop customised for the audience. The following examples were produced in workshops lasting several days or weeks on paper strips, paper discs or transparent Plexiglas by talented youngsters, trainees or professionals.

 

The participants presented the animations themselves in an audio-visual show on several optical devices like zoetropes, praxinoscopes, projection devices or on rotating paper discs with stroboscopic light.

 

The following examples show which themes, locations or stories can be presented a Spinning Animation Show.

... created by excellent pupils.

Themes: Panta Rhei, Balance, Flow and The World is Sound

 

From 2006 to 2019, I gave workshops in various animation techniques for the German winners of the International Youth Creativ Competition.

 

In 2015, I developed the zoetrope workshop and a Spinning Animation Show based on the theme: Panta Rhei – Everything Flows. Since then, three additional zoetrope workshop projects have been realised, each culminating in a live Spinning Animation Show. The resulting performances were presented by the workshop participants and accompanied by an original sound collage of instrumental samples created by me. Each workshop lasted six days, and the final show had a running time of approximately 20 minutes.

The Spinning Animation Show 2015

Theme: panta rhei

Making-of film by Simone Klar

(With English subtitle)

The Spinning Animation Show 2016

Theme: balance

Making-of film by Simone Klar

(in German)

The Spinning Animation Show 2017

Theme: flow

Making-of film by Simone Klar

(in German)

The Spinning Animation Show 2019

Theme: plankton / the world is sound

Making-of film by Simone Klar

(in German)

... created by trainees.

Theme: city history – ‘The Spinning History’

 

I was commissioned by the city of Straubing to hold a zoetrope workshop at the Technical and Vocational College Straubing (FOSBOS/department of design) for the celebration ‘800 Years of Neustadt Straubing’.

 

The goal of the zoetrope workshop was to create a Spinning Animation Show about the history of my home city Straubing with the help of four teachers and 24 young creative trainees. The show was called The Spinning History

 

I traveled from Kassel to Straubing four times and held the workshop at the FOSBOS technical and vocational college for several days. The total duration of the workshop was about 3 months.

 

81 humorously and succinctly animation loops of historical events were produced in two months. I have developed a soundtrack of 10 channels of music and sounds myself.

 

The results were presented by the participants on eight optical devices with the soundtrack in a fascinating 40-minute Show.

 

Read more about in my blog: The Spinning History – A Zoetrope Animation Project.

Excerpt of the show The Spinning History

(in German)

Excerpt: making of the zoetrope workshop

(in German)

Report by Niederbayern TV

(in German)

Report by the Bavarian Broadcast TV

(in German)

  • Five animated zoetrope paper strips depicting historical events from 800 years of Straubing's history.
  • 80 animations created by students and teachers of the FOSBOS Straubing and developed together with Thomas Stellmach in a zoetrope workshop.
  • Animation on eight paper discs created for the show The Spinning History.
  • Ready to set-up the technical equipment of the Spinning Animation Show so called 'The-Spinning-History'.
  • Students and Thomas Stellmach preparing The-Spinning-Animation-Show "The Spinning History"
  • Set-up for the presentation of the Zoetrop show 'The Spinning History' for the celebration of 800 years of Straubing. Idea by Thomas Stellmach
  • Set-up for the presentation of The Spinning Animation Show with the title 'The-Spinning-History' for the celebration of 800 years of Straubing.
  • The-Spinning-Animation-Show-800-Jahre-Straubing-audience in front of a praxinoskope
  • Thomas Stellmach in conversation with audience members after the Spinning-Animation-Show 'The Spinning History'.
  • Thomas Stellmach is introducing the students on stage

Photos about the preprocess and the show

Trailer of The Spinning History

… created by professionals.

Theme: plankton

 

In 2018 I ran a one-week zoetrope workshop in Northeim for the German association of puppeteers and puppet theatres UNIMA (Union Internationale de la Marionette). The theme of the show was plankton.

 

We developed a Spinning Animation Show which presented an underwater world. In five days, eleven professional puppeteers created 35 two- and three-dimensional animations on paper strips and round discs. The 25-minute show was performed on six devices and accompanied by live music on a Hang instrument.

 

The film of the results and a making-of film will follow shortly.

  • Zoetrope workshop with puppeteers at the Theatre of the Night in Northeim, held by Thomas Stellmach.
  • Zoetrope workshop with puppeteers at the Theatre of the Night in Northeim, held by Thomas Stellmach. A Zoetrope presents a loop animation.
  • Zoetrope workshop with puppeteers at the Theatre of the Night in Northeim, held by Thomas Stellmach.
  • Zoetrope workshop with puppeteers at the Theatre of the Night in Northeim, held by Thomas Stellmach.
  • Zoetrope workshop with puppeteers at the Theatre of the Night in Northeim, held by Thomas Stellmach.
  • Zoetrope workshop with puppeteers at the Theatre of the Night in Northeim, held by Thomas Stellmach.
  • Zoetrope workshop with puppeteers at the Theatre of the Night in Northeim, held by Thomas Stellmach.
  • Zoetrope workshop with puppeteers at the Theatre of the Night in Northeim, held by Thomas Stellmach.
  • Zoetrope workshop with puppeteers at the Theatre of the Night in Northeim, held by Thomas Stellmach.
  • Zoetrope workshop with puppeteers at the Theatre of the Night in Northeim, held by Thomas Stellmach.
  • Zoetrope workshop with puppeteers at the Theatre of the Night in Northeim, held by Thomas Stellmach.
  • Zoetrope workshop with puppeteers at the Theatre of the Night in Northeim, held by Thomas Stellmach.
  • A modeled animation on a cardboard disc created by a participant during a Zoetrope workshop. The workshop was held by Thomas Stellmach during the 4th Conference of German Puppeteers at the Theater der Nacht in Northeim.
  • A modeled animation on a cardboard disc created by a participant during a Zoetrope workshop. The workshop was held by Thomas Stellmach during the 4th Conference of German Puppeteers at the Theater der Nacht in Northeim.
  • A modeled animation on a cardboard disc created by a participant during a Zoetrope workshop. The workshop was held by Thomas Stellmach during the 4th Conference of German Puppeteers at the Theater der Nacht in Northeim.
  • A modeled animation on a cardboard disc created by a participant during a Zoetrope workshop. The workshop was held by Thomas Stellmach during the 4th Conference of German Puppeteers at the Theater der Nacht in Northeim.
  • A modeled animation on a cardboard disc created by a participant during a Zoetrope workshop. The workshop was held by Thomas Stellmach during the 4th Conference of German Puppeteers at the Theater der Nacht in Northeim.

Photos about the preprocess and the show Plankton

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Idea and Realization

Thomas Stellmach

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2D animation, object animation

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