philip lelyveld The world of entertainment technology

How Laika blends 3D printing and CGI to make mesmerizing stop-motion movies

Laika Studios does animation differently.

That’s been readily apparent from the moment its extraordinary first movie, Coraline, hit theaters in 2009. In fact, the Portland, Oregon-based animation studio is a bona fide pioneer of its craft, creating an entirely new way to meld state-of-the-art technology with the relatively ancient art of stop-motion animation to create films that look and feel utterly unique. In the video above, we take you behind the curtain at Laika’s headquarters for a peek at the studio’s new film, Missing Link, and to check out the latest innovations from this groundbreaking studio.

One of the most intriguing elements of Laika’s ever-expanding toolkit is its growing collection of 3D printers. Using the cutting-edge technique of rapid prototyping, Laika has revolutionized stop-motion animation, using advanced handmade puppets with incredibly expressive faces to walk an intriguing line between realism and fantasy.See the full story here: https://www.digitaltrends.com/movies/how-laika-used-advanced-3d-printing-and-movie-magic-to-create-missing-link/