Lotte Reiniger (1899 – 1981) was a German (and later British) silhouette animator and film director. She was most well known for “Prince Achmed”, a stop motion movie completed in 1926 and the oldest surviving animated feature length film.
The movie featured a silhouette animation technique which Reiniger invented involving manipulated cutouts made from cardboard and thin sheets of lead under a camera.
Her work is a wonderful example of creating breathtaking art with a simple technique. The beautifully designed sets and refined movements of the puppets make the story come to life. Take a look below at the sets:
all images (c) ASIFA Hollywood
This clip below is from Prince Achmed:
I was really excited to see how she works. Below is a short documentary which illustrates her techniques. The introduction is rather long, but at 3:40 minutes she starts cutting paper and that’s remarkable to see. At 6:00 minutes she explains enthusiastically how to make an animation table by cutting “a hole into your best dining room table” with a thick charming German accent.
Absolutely worth seeing in my opinion:
Before I forget, there are still a few hours left to enter my Give-Away!
