LIGHT TABLE

I needed 25 frames for every second of film. In total, about 100,000. And to achieve this he had to work with absolute precision to move each figure exactly to create the feeling of fluid movement, preventing the figures from appearing static. To achieve this, Reiniger developed the scissors technique. He used an empty table in the center, on which he placed a glass and transparent paper. Similar to the lamp table, he placed his cut-out figures on the paper so that the light from below highlighted the silhouette. By overlapping several glass plates, he simulated the depth later seen on film, giving the impression that the figures were moving in space.

A technique that served him, for example, to simulate scenes such as the movement of waves. Films of great artistic value like "Cenincienta", "Carmen", "Coro Robado" or "Papageno" came out of his animation desk in Berlin. Generally with themes related to stories, myths or opera librettos. She herself stated: "I am obsessed with ballet, cinema and theatre, and I am a Mozart fanatic".

An international figure

Lotte Reiniger died in 1982 near Tübingen. In Germany, his name had practically fallen into oblivion. But abroad, his mastery is still appreciated as could be seen in the tribute that Google paid him for the 117th anniversary of his birth. His film “The Adventures of Prince Ahmed” is available at almost all Goethe Institutes and there it is one of the most requested silent films worldwide.

Nowadays, anyone who has anything to do with the animated film scene remembers the figure of Lotte Reiniger and her role as a pioneer. This is seen, for example, in "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows", where in the last scene a tale is told using the technique of Reiniger's scissors. Also in the well-known animated film "Persepolis", by Marjane Satrapi, there are many references to this great pioneer of animation, which Germany is trying to rediscover.

Deutsche Welle/Helga Spannhake (JAG/ERS), text originally published in June 2016.