What is experimental animation? Experimental animation is a form of animation in which motion image have their own rhythm and movement where it has no narration or a specific structure in animated films. It is considered to be subjective and non-linear that deals with philosophic and spiritual concerns that the artists and film-makers convey (From WIKIPEDIA). Filmmakers have experimented with how and what to animate, from slices of wax to drawing directly on strips of film to the more traditional forms that we see in commercial animation.
Painting, pinning, sculpting, and sanding are four experimental animation techniques.
Painting on glass
Oskar Fischinger is one of the earliest pioneers of paint on glass, who began his first film experiments in the 1920s. He was interested in the concept of visual music so that in 1940 he contributed a sequence to Fantasia which is produced by Walt Disney
The Old Man and the Sea (1999) which is directed by Aleksandr Petrov is probably the most renowned paint on glass film. It was completed by 29000 panes of glass for 2 years.
pinscreen animation
In the 1930s, Alexandre Alexeieff and Claire Parker created this technique at the NFB. Pinscreen animation consists of a large, side-lit pinboard. Animators push the pins forward or backward, creating monochromatic images that ripple across the surface.
The pinscreen technique can produce quite poetic effects, as it lends itself to subtle gradations and mysterious tones.