Make a Zoetrope Animation Spinner

Zoetrope Instructions

Cut through both layers at the same time

Tape tube closed. Don't overlap edges .

Punch hole and tape bottom closed.

Tape straw petals to inside. Cover with loose circle.

Cut out a strip. Don't tape.

Punch hole in plate. Rest plate on fist, spin with other hand.

Clip the template onto a black sheet of cardstock and cut the zoetrope out at the same time. Save the circle for later.
Slowly and carefully cut the slits the width of the thick black lines, including the slit at the very edge of the zoetrope (see the photo, the edges may be cut off on a printed copy). Keep the bottom circle attached to the side of the cylinder.
Use the pencil to poke a hole in the bottom of the zoetrope. Then tape the edges of the cylinder together so they just meet (don’t overlap them).
Fold up the bottom and the tabs around it. Tape the tabs on the outside of the cylinder. Add more tape wherever you see gaps.
Take the straw and cut three snips in one end. Fold them back like flower petals. Slide the straw through the hole in the bottom of the zoetrope from the inside. Tape the straw’s tabs onto the bottom.
Cut out the circle. Use a glue stick to attach inside the zoetrope, over the straw.

Cut out the animation strips. If you can’t see the dotted lines between each frame, fold the strip like this:
- Fold the short edges together.
- Fold in the same direction twice more.
- Unfold and you have a strip with 8 equal frames, to line up with the 8 slits in the zoetrope.

Start with a simple shape. Move or change it in each frame.
If you want to end in a particular place, or make your drawing loop, draw the last frame and then fill in the middle. (This is called “in-betweening.”)
Make lines dark so you can see them more clearly as they speed by.
Color helps you keep track of the animated object.

Wrap one hand loosely around the straw loosely. Let the zoetrope rest on top of your hand. It may help to slide a paper plate on the straw between your hand and the zoetrope.
Hold the zoetrope so the inside is brightly lit.
Use your other hand to spin the straw. Look through the slits as the zoetrope spins.
Adjust the speed and position of the zoetrope until you get the best effect. With a zoetrope so small, it probably doesn’t need to go as fast as you think!

Experiment with different styles of drawing, or vary the number of drawings.
Look at classic zoetrope paper strips in the public domain. The girl jumping rope was first printed in The Pictures Magazine in the 1890s, and shared on the website of the Museums Victoria in Australia. collections.museumsvictoria.com.au/articles/2908

I was an in-betweener (assistant animator) on an Oscar nominated animated short directed by Emmy-winner Michael Sporn!

Draw on lower half of page

Flip new page on top and trace

Move one part a tiny bit

Test by flipping from back to front

Start on the last page. Draw a simple shape using a dark marker that doesn’t bleed through. Keep it on the lower half of the paper.
Turn the next page on top of your first drawing. Trace over your first drawing, but change its shape or position just a little bit.
Continue adding new pages, changing your drawing slightly each time.
To check your work, flip the pages:

Put out your left hand (or if you’re a lefty, your right hand), palm up.
Place the pad in your hand so that the stapled edge is at the top, closest to your fingertips.
Bend your fingers over the top of the pad to hold it in place.
With the thumb of the other hand, pick up all the pages in the pad and flip from back (last page) to front (first page).