Made by hand

Styles built from real material, and the wording that gets each one.

Every style here is a real thing photographed, not a drawing. That single fact decides every prompt: the material has to be named, and so does the evidence that a hand touched it. A fingerprint in clay, a seam in felt, a scratch on a plate edge. A model will render any of these perfectly smooth and perfectly clean unless the flaw is asked for by name, and the flaw is the whole reason anybody wants the look.

Moved a frame at a time

4

Four materials posed, photographed, and moved again. The camera is real, so the light is real.

Claymation: Modelling clay reshaped by hand, so the surface carries every fingerprint.

Modelling clay reshaped by hand, so the surface carries every fingerprint.

Puppet Animation: A built figure on a jointed metal skeleton, dressed in real cloth and photographed.

Puppet Animation

A built figure on a jointed metal skeleton, dressed in real cloth and photographed.

Cut-Out Animation: Flat paper pieces pinned at the joints and moved by hand on a lit surface.

Cut-Out Animation

Flat paper pieces pinned at the joints and moved by hand on a lit surface.

Brick Built: A figure built entirely from interlocking plastic bricks, studs and all.

A figure built entirely from interlocking plastic bricks, studs and all.

Worked on a lit surface

3

Three materials pushed around on glass while a camera watches from above or below.

Sand on Glass: Loose sand pushed across a lit sheet of glass, so the image is made of grain and gaps.

Loose sand pushed across a lit sheet of glass, so the image is made of grain and gaps.

Paint on Glass: Slow drying oil paint worked wet on glass, so every stroke smears into the last.

Slow drying oil paint worked wet on glass, so every stroke smears into the last.

Shadow Silhouette: Jointed black shapes lit from behind, so only the outline carries the picture.

Shadow Silhouette

Jointed black shapes lit from behind, so only the outline carries the picture.

Soft, and folded

3

Three materials that are neither drawn nor moulded: fibre, folded sheet and bare wire.

Needle Felt: Loose wool stabbed into shape, so every surface is soft and slightly hairy.

Loose wool stabbed into shape, so every surface is soft and slightly hairy.

Paper Craft: A three dimensional figure folded and glued from flat sheet, so every curve is a facet.

A three dimensional figure folded and glued from flat sheet, so every curve is a facet.

Wire Armature: The skeleton on its own: bent wire, visible joints, and nothing built over it.

The skeleton on its own: bent wire, visible joints, and nothing built over it.

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Other style groups

Drawn traditionsHow a character is drawn by hand, and the wording that gets each tradition.9 drawn styles Anime and mangaThe looks from Japanese animation and comics, and the wording for each one.8 anime and manga styles PaintedThe painting media, and the wording that gets each one out of a model.7 painting media Rendered in 3DHow a computer model is made to look like something, and the wording.11 render styles Soft materialsThe surfaces that make a hard form soft, and the wording for each one.10 soft surfaces Gradient and noiseHow a colour transition is handled, and the wording for each one.5 gradient styles Applied overStyles that put one thing on top of another, and the wording for each.4 layered styles Character shapesHow a figure is built and finished, and the wording for each decision.12 character styles Studio looksThe looks asked for by studio name, described by what is on the screen.8 studio looks Technical drawingHow a thing is specified rather than depicted, and the wording for each.7 technical styles

Print stylesPrinting a sheet rather than drawing a character? The same reference, for ink on paper.

Evidence that a hand touched it, and a real lens. A fingerprint, a seam, a stray fibre, a cut edge, and a shallow depth of field from a close camera. A render is clean and sharp everywhere unless it is told not to be.