Of all the different forms of entertainment available to us here on Earth, nothing captivates my attention quite like a well-made stop-motion film. The intensive and fantastical form of cinema has found 3D printing technology to be a beneficial ally, using it to bring their animated ideas to life. In the past year, we’ve seen esteemed director Charlie Kaufmann use 3D printing to create the faces for his characters in the film Anomalisa, and prior to that, 3D printed goblins were gracing the screen in the stop-motion series House of Monsters, which featured the voice of actor Christopher Lloyd.
It’s evident that this emerging technology is making its way in Hollywood, and now, 3D printing has become a staple in the newest stop-motion film created by the American cinema studio LAIKA. Known for their animated films, such as Coraline and ParaNorman, LAIKA has turned to the extensive 3D printing knowledge of Stratasys to help create a puppet for their latest animation, Kubo and The Two Strings. One of the film’s feature characters, named Moonbeast, will be entirely 3D printed from 850 individual exterior pieces, as well as an internal armature of 250 parts. The flying character Moonbeast, which is voiced by actor Ralph Fiennes, will be the studio’s first-ever fully 3D printed character.
In addition to this fully 3D printed puppet character, LAIKA has also heavily relied on rapid-prototype face replacement printing, which earned the studio an Academy Sci-Tech award. With their ‘RP’ printing, Kubo‘s characters will feature over 22 million different facial expressions, far surpassing their previous capabilities of 1.5 million. In order to use 3D printing technology to its full potential, the studio turned to Stratasys and their R&D facility in Israel to bring the many facial expressions to fruition. Aside from their use of 3D printing, the studio also utilized other unique techniques to create their puppet characters, such as origami and feathers.
“We found a new way to print with plastic [for the non-human characters],” said Brian McLean, director of RP printing. “We reached out to Stratasys and collaborated with their R&D in Israel. With access to new software and hardware, we reached a [greater] level of color and sophistication in a plastic-printed 3D part.”
The film, which features voice acting from Charlize Theron, Matthew McConaughey, Rooney Mara, and others, is scheduled to be released in theaters on August 19, 2016. Kubo and The Two Strings will mark the directorial debut for LAIKA’s CEO and lead artist Travis Knight. According to Knight, the film follows the emotional story of a boy named Kubo, and all of the zany creatures and friends that inevitably become his surrogate family.
The stop-motion film is set in a mythological version of Japan, and is essentially conjoining Western and Eastern themes into a heart-warming and colorfully animated journey. Ultimately, Kubo and The Two Strings also mends together the traditional form of stop-motion film and new innovative techniques that have been enabled in part thanks to 3D printing technology. You can check out the trailer to LAIKA’s newest film below! Discuss further in the LAIKA & 3D Printing forum over at 3DPB.com.
[Source: Indie Wire]
Subscribe to Our Email Newsletter
Stay up-to-date on all the latest news from the 3D printing industry and receive information and offers from third party vendors.
You May Also Like
3D Printing Meets Nuclear: NAAREA’s Bold Bet on Microreactors
The nuclear industry isn’t exactly known for moving fast, but NAAREA wants to change that. The French startup has ambitious plans to roll out a new kind of compact nuclear...
3D Printing Webinar and Event Roundup: January 26, 2025
In this week’s roundup of 3D printing webinars and events, we’ve got a variety of offerings to tell you about, ranging from advanced AM training, robotic simulation for aerospace, and...
Italy’s Da Vinci Bridge Reinvented with 3D Printing and Stone Waste
Italy’s city of Bari has inaugurated a new 3D printed, self-supporting bridge that, for the first time, uses waste materials from stone processing. This structure, known as Da Vinci’s Bridge,...
Update: Velo3D Enters Forbearance Agreement as Debt Challenges Intensify
See the addendum to this article for an update from 12/12/24. Velo3D is set to lay off an additional 46 employees by the end of 2024 as part of its latest...