Process for Human Armature:

• Let’s look at the drawing of our Ninja character. It can be broken into basic shapes. I have added a shape for thighs also; you may or may not do that according to your character design.

• It’s always good to make your character on the same scale as your final model. It acts like a map showing you the direction.

• This proportion chart will relieve you from many headaches later on during the claymation stage. At that stage, mistakes made in production become difficult to fix. It becomes easier to check whether the length of arm or leg is correct or not.

• 8 inch is a good size for a puppet to get animated. If it was small than this it would be difficult to animate it. Also, try to make the hands long, animation become easy. • Its better to decide your wire flow on the paper itself. It helps in making up your mind and you will not get lost.

• Start sculpting the basic shapes using plaster of paris or you can also use a high density thermocol.

• Giving them proper shapes using a coarse sandpaper.

• Carving out the head to mount the eyes.

• Ready with our basic shapes.

• Applying m-seal on the areas where the wire will be wound so that wire may get properly tightened over plaster of paris.

• If you are using thermocol instead of plaster of paris then apply fevicol over your thermocol pieces before using the wire.

• Taking around 2-3 meters of aluminium wire of 2mm thickness.

• Starting with the head.

• Check the length of the neck by keeping your armature on the proportion chart.

• Making the hands.

• While coiling take care that the wires should get properly entangled else your armature won’t be that strong.

• Similarly making the other hand.

• I am not making fingers here but if you want to make then use a thin aluminium wire (0.2mm around) so that it can be animated easily.

• Fixing the torso.

• Making the legs.

• Taking the length of the leg using the proportion chart.

• Making the feet and coiling the wire upward.

• Fixing the thighs and similarly making the other leg.

• Tying the final knot below the pelvis.

• Cutting the last unused wire using plier or a wire cutter.

• Creating bones using m-seal. Leaving the joint area, else the wire may break.

• Here is the final armature.