Crankie (Paper Movie)

Information supplied by George Konnoff

The crankie consists of pictures on a long roll of paper which is scrolled past the audience in a viewer, the Crankie Box. For paper, look in the yellow pages under paper, and ask paper companies about rolls of 'butcher's paper'. If you find an old-fashioned butcher who wraps meat in paper, you can ask them for some. The paper must be fitted onto the reel carefully, exactly vertical, otherwise it will ride up or down. The edges can be reinforced with tape if they start to fray. The crank is moved from reel to reel to crank the paper through and then to rewind it.

Crankie Box

Front
Crankie Box Front
Crankie Box Top / Crankie Box Bottom Inside
crankie top crankie bottom inside
Crankie Box Side View / Reel Side View
crankie side view
Crank Side View

Crank Top View

Note: The crankie is useful as illustration for a story or song, as part of a larger show, or as a free-standing street theater. The pictures can be done in crayon, charcoal, magic marker, or (not too wet) watercolor or acrylics. The illustrations can be done as separate pictures or as one continuous landscape. The crankie can be lit from the front or the back. Paper can be cut out or spliced in, but the splice will show. Doing a preliminary sketch and putting the paper into the crankie to try it out takes time, but will save aggravation later. A very small crankie can be made with a crayon box, two pencils, and a roll of the paper that stationary shops sell for calculators.
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