As a little kid, Lotte Reiniger loved reading fairytales and fell in love with puppetry. At school, she learned about Scherenschnitte, or papercuts, which helped her create her signature style of silhouettes. She grew up to make more than 40 films throughout her long career, most of which were fairytales that used her stop-film animation technique of hand-cut silhouettes. Her most famous film is The Adventures of Prince Achmed, which was released in 1926 and is the oldest surviving animated movie. (It came out a full 11 years before Disney’s Snow White!)
This innovative picture book biography celebrates an unsung hero of early animation! Today, Reiniger known as the foremost pioneer of silhouette animation and the inventor of an early form of the multiplane camera. With art inspired by Reiniger’s cut-paper style and a text that uses a fairytale motif that mimics her movies, Out of the Shadows is a sweeping tribute to one of most important figures of animation, whose influence still resonates today.
"Berlin-born Reiniger is 'a modern girl who loved traditional tales' as well as a specific new technology: silent film. Combining two concepts — flat, rod-style 'Chinese puppets' received as a gift, and the art of Scherenschnitte — she begins creating moving figures that she stages in her own fairy tale dramas. An alliance with an actor leads to collaboration and finally to her own films — including the first feature-length, stop-motion animated movie.... Reiniger’s determination inspires in this visually arresting picture book, as does the reminder that animation started with very simple tools." — Publishers Weekly
Recommended Age | 6 - 9 |
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Author | Fiona Robinson |
Illustrator | Fiona Robinson |
ISBN | 1419740857 |
Publication Date | Feb 8, 2022 |
Publisher | Abrams Books for Young Readers |
Language | English |