---
name: papercraft-stop-motion-explainer
description: Turn knowledge topics into layered papercraft stop-motion explainers, including visual metaphors, miniature sets, prompts, storyboards, motion and sound plans, or rendered video. Use for tactile paper dioramas and mechanisms, not ordinary vector cartoons or photographic collage.
metadata:
  compatibility: Portable file-based workflow with sibling h3-prompt-writing; actual media generation uses tools available in the host environment.
---

# Papercraft Stop-Motion Explainer

Read the [portable workflow](../h3-prompt-writing/references/portable-workflow.md).
For scene/prompt planning read [paper staging](references/paper-staging.md).
Route a single image prompt, image series, short animation prompt, or storyboard
request directly to that artifact; do not force a full film workflow.

## Knowledge and direction

Identify the exact topic, source facts, audience, desired learning outcome, and
output type. Preserve technical terms and causal meaning. A visual metaphor helps
explain a mechanism; it must not turn into a false scientific claim.

Reuse requested duration and ratio. If unspecified, a 30-second, 16:9 general-audience
concept is a reasonable starting point. Offer distinct directions only when useful:
pop-up-book journey, paper laboratory, layered cross-section, miniature nature
theater, or mechanism board. Each should identify one learning outcome, a paper
mechanism that conveys it, and the signature visual moment.

## Build the paper world

Design characters only if they help the explanation. Specify paper construction,
silhouette, joint/hinge design, replaceable facial parts, gestures, and repeatable
identity cues. Keep the central knowledge object readable.

Plan foreground occluders, midground mechanism, background scenery, and a distant
paper plane when the shot benefits from depth. Record each layer's material,
thickness, cut/fold edges, shadow, movement, and educational role. Use real paper
mechanics such as pull-tabs, sliders, rotating discs, page folds, and pinned joints.
Motion is stepped with small pauses and rebounds, not a smooth CG melt.

Create an asset list by function: characters, scientific objects, information cards,
environment, and moving mechanisms. For a complete production, prepare one to three
preview briefs or images when useful and authorized. Respect any preview approval
requested by the user; otherwise continue under the existing end-to-end scope.

## Prompts and timeline

Write a compact storyboard with columns: time, knowledge beat, visual action,
paper movement, camera/transition, sound cue. Each shot explains one knowledge
step, with a readable pause for a necessary label. Keep ratio, material, light
direction, identity, and domain vocabulary consistent across image-series prompts.

For a short image-to-video prompt, begin from the actual image and animate a few
paper mechanisms with restrained push-in or lateral parallax. Preserve thickness,
cut edges, texture, and layer shadows. Compile final rendering prompts using the
bundled H3 mode guide, with truthful references and local clip timing.

## Sound, generation, and review

Map paper flips, cardboard slides, joint taps, soft pops, and rustles to actual
motion. Match any requested music to the topic and cultural context rather than
automatically using the same whimsical score. Keep speech intelligible. If narration
is requested, preserve its approved wording, measure its duration, and adjust the
timeline or script within the user's scope; do not silently speed up the voice.

Use available generation/editing tools, then inspect both educational accuracy
and paper construction: readable mechanism, separate layers/shadows, hinged or
stepped motion, plausible camera movement, and a clear ending takeaway. Check
narration tails, clicks, audio gaps, and music balance. Deliver requested artifacts
and state missing rendering capabilities or unresolved scientific/visual issues.