From Classic Claymation to the Animated Kids Bible

The Animated Kids Bible is not a new concept. There have been many previous successful attempts at bringing the Bible to life through the use of Animation.

Nowadays, we are so used to state of the art 3D-CGI animation which is so slick and realistic looking that we tend to forget that it was preceded by an incredible stop and start form of 3D animation called Claymation.

Many people who grew up in the 1950s and 1960 were raised on animated Bible stories which were produced in Claymation. In this form of animation, the figures were made out of clay or some other type of pliable or moldable material and were made to appear as if they were moving by starting and stopping the camera every seven frames and repositioning their limbs and facial expressions.

This form of stop and start animation involved a lot of work but it provided us with many Classic Bible television shows including "Davey and Goliath" which featured a talking dog famous for his droll way of saying his owner's name. This series was created by Art Clokey and was the longest running national television show produced by a church for children.

Other notable Claymation Classics include specials such as the "Gumby and Pokey" series, also produced by Art Clokey and "Martin the Cobbler" which was based on "Where Love Is", a short story by Leo Tolstoy.

Although there were a number of these Claymation specials on television in the latter part of the twentieth century, they were morality tales that explained Christian values not stories taken directly from the Bible. One of the few Claymation series that told a Bible story was "The First Christmas", the story of the birth of Jesus, beginning with Mary and Joseph's trip from Nazareth to Bethlehem. It was narrated by Christopher Plummer.

The technology used to make the Animated Kids Bible is vastly different from this early form of 3D classic Claymation. In Claymation, because the figures were not computerized they appeared slightly jerky, whereas the characters in the Animated Kids Bible move seamlessly thanks to the use of 3D-CGI animation. Tricks of perspective make them appear so smooth and molded that they feel as though they are part of our own reality as they move through a variety of different and exciting environments from deserts to sparkling seas and ancient temples. The colors are also more vibrant as they are chosen from electronically generated palettes. Old forms of 3D Claymation were subject to studio lighting and unfortunately many of them have dimmed with age.

In spite of all this, Claymation is still used successfully today. Naturally, it has evolved and is far superior to the original form of Claymation.

There was and still is of course another type of animation, namely 2D animation which was used by Walt Disney for his Classic children's films, the most famous of which is the 1937 Disney Classic "Snow White". This type of animation was hand drawn and a very lengthy and expensive process.

Today's Animated Kids Bible is a shining example of what happens when today's technology is linked with inspiration and a successful age-old method of telling a story. It can recreate and bring to life stories that once upon a time could only have been seen through a vivid imagination. Also, because the animation is a digital form of entertainment, the sound is far superior to anything we heard as kids when we were watching Classic Claymation Bible shows on television.

By : Tom Broadbridge