Cutout Animation

The first major movie animations were produced by Lotte Reiniger, she used a technique called cutout animation which used cutout character torsos with separate limbs which were arranged and animated in much the way stop-motion is: by taking a photograph each frame and moving the cutouts to emulate motion.
Many 60s-70s children's cartoons were animated with cutouts: Mary Mungo and Midge, Crystal Tips and Alistair as well as the original series of Captain Pugwash and Sir Prancelot, not forgetting Ivor the Engine or Noggin the Nogg.

Terry Gilliam

When I think of cutout animation, I think of Terry Gilliam. The famous movie director and comedian started out producing cutout animations for Do Not Adjust Your Set after previously working on photo strips for Help! magazine. Working on the show he began on what would be the early blueprint for the Monty Python Cartoons which he worked on while also writing and acting in the live action sketches. Monty Python was formed from a small number of comedians which had worked on Do Not Adjust Your Set and I'm Sorry I'll Read It Again. The group produced the television show: Monty Python's Flying Circus as well as four movies and a small number of live shows when the group occasionally reformed.

Gilliam's animations are well known for their use of old stock imagery, usually recoloured and often embellished by cutting images out and sticking them to others or redrawing certain parts - much the way that Cyriak does now. The use of stock imagery combined with Gilliam's own drawing work provided the surreal look the show was themed upon. It also allowed for an easy and quick method of animation which in turn added to the smoothness and surreal element of the show; for instance, an entire scene could be animated in such a way that it blends perfectly into the next live action scene.

Although Gilliam no longer produces cutout animations, references to his early work crop up all around, in one of his recent films: the Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus; a huge similarity can be made to his cartoons, most notably in the Jude Law dream sequence - which features dancing policemen in skirts, a giant policeman's head, and lots of Russians running under the dress of a giant old lady who's head comes off to reveal she is actually a machine being operated by the devil.

South Park

Having been inspired by Gilliam, Trey Parker and Matt Stone created South Park. Though the original sketches and pilot episode were created using traditional cutout stop motion techniques, the programme is actually animated digitally. The use of digital animation is much quicker to that of stop motion and despite being made digitally, it still retains the image of a cutout animation.

The series started in 1997 and is still ongoing with a huge fan following, though it's jokes are often controversial and in many cases offensive.