We’re always game to celebrate the splendor of zoetropes here at Nerdist. Through cleverly positioned drawings or items and utilizing the way our eyes process light, these machines are quite literally one of the first forms form of animation people ever created. And while some zoetropes we’ve featured in the past require 3D printers and more math than we can handle on a weekend afternoon, a new video shows that a zoetrope can be created with just a little knowhow and a whole bunch of LEGO.
A recent video by YouTube’s Sariel’s LEGO® Workshop shows us a zoetrope made with a handful of Lego Star Wars stormtroopers, a Technic LEGO motor base, and some well placed black LEGO backings. The planks of black LEGO that the troopers are stuck to are important for giving our eyes something to cut between each of the static “images.” By looking through the slots on the side as the mechanism spins, the slight difference in the trooper positions come together in a cohesive animation because our brains don’t know any better than to connect them together as fluid motion in those brief moments of they’re out of our line of sight.
Knowing a build like this can be made with something we’ve probably got in an old box in our attics really makes us want to build one of our own. However, gathering 15 identical LEGO figures may still require a quick run to the nearest toy store.
What do you think of the Lego zoetrope? Think you’ve got the old LEGOÂ pieces hanging around to build one yourself? Let’s discuss in the comments below!
Image: Sariel’s LEGO® Workshop
