Sand is direct animation under camera, all the scenes are progressively animated during the shooting. After a shoot, the drawing is transformed or erased to leave room to the following, it “doesn’t exist” any more. It is different than traditional cartoon movies (on papers) or computer animations (where there all intermediate drawings remain and can be used again and again).

Sand animation is undoubtedly even more transitory than animation in volume (puppets, clay…) because the drawing itself is transformed and cannot be found any more (because of this fluid matter characteristics), while a character in volume always exists (except if one destroys it or transforms it) and can be re-used.

– Pictures from my sand films