Many of our favourite animated characters are no stranger to a pair of dance tights; Batman in particular pulls off Lycra very well. Over the last couple of years however, the tables have turned and the world of dance is now taking its inspiration from our beloved cartoons. Animation dance, which involves the imitation of stop-motion film characters, is the latest development in hip-hop.
Hip-hop has always been a fast-paced discipline, which regularly regenerates inventing new moves and rejuvenating old styles. Many of its most famous techniques however, have been partially inspired by film and animation. The boogaloo for example, which was invented in 1975 and became the signature move of the Electric Boogaloos, is a technique where the dancer tries to recreate the fluidity of movement seen in cartoons. This latest innovation upholds the tradition taking its inspiration from Ray Harryhausen’s Dynamation films, such as Jason and the Argonauts (1963), which features the infamous stop motion sword fight with the seven skeleton warriors. A subcategory of popping, animation dance combines strobing, a technique that is designed to look like the dancer is moving in a strobe light, robotics and gliding to capture the ‘jerky freeze-frame dynamic’, which characterises these films. By incorporating ridged movements created by tensing the muscles and swooping waves, punctuated with the odd melodramatic ‘cinematic gesture’, they manage to create the impression that the dance is being created frame by frame.
Brought to the public attention in 2012 by Cyrus Glitch Spencer, runner-up on the So You Think You Can Dance (the US version) animation dance is helping to inspire a wide range of new moves which will once again revitalise the world of hip hop. So to see the master in action check out Cyrus’ semi-finale performance alongside Stephen tWitch Boss.
Animation Dance
Stacey MacNaught |
Many of our favourite animated characters are no stranger to a pair of dance tights; Batman in particular pulls off Lycra very well. Over the last couple of years however, the tables have turned and the world of dance is now taking its inspiration from our beloved cartoons. Animation dance, which involves the imitation of stop-motion film characters, is the latest development in hip-hop.
Hip-hop has always been a fast-paced discipline, which regularly regenerates inventing new moves and rejuvenating old styles. Many of its most famous techniques however, have been partially inspired by film and animation. The boogaloo for example, which was invented in 1975 and became the signature move of the Electric Boogaloos, is a technique where the dancer tries to recreate the fluidity of movement seen in cartoons. This latest innovation upholds the tradition taking its inspiration from Ray Harryhausen’s Dynamation films, such as Jason and the Argonauts (1963), which features the infamous stop motion sword fight with the seven skeleton warriors. A subcategory of popping, animation dance combines strobing, a technique that is designed to look like the dancer is moving in a strobe light, robotics and gliding to capture the ‘jerky freeze-frame dynamic’, which characterises these films. By incorporating ridged movements created by tensing the muscles and swooping waves, punctuated with the odd melodramatic ‘cinematic gesture’, they manage to create the impression that the dance is being created frame by frame.
Brought to the public attention in 2012 by Cyrus Glitch Spencer, runner-up on the So You Think You Can Dance (the US version) animation dance is helping to inspire a wide range of new moves which will once again revitalise the world of hip hop. So to see the master in action check out Cyrus’ semi-finale performance alongside Stephen tWitch Boss.