ɪt jˈuːɾɪlˌaɪzᵻz fˈɪɡjɚz kˈʌt ˌaʊɾəv pˈeɪpɚbˌoːɹd, sˈʌmtaɪmz ɹˌiːɪnfˈoːɹst wɪð θˈɪn mˈɛɾəl ʃˈiːts, ænd tˈaɪd təɡˌɛðɚɹ æt ðɛɹ dʒˈɔɪnts wɪð θɹˈɛd ɔːɹ wˈaɪɚ jˈuːʒuːəli sˈʌbstɪtˌuːɾᵻd baɪ plˈæstɪk ɔːɹ mˈɛɾəl pˈeɪpɚ fˈæsənɚz ɪn kəntˈɛmpɚɹˌɛɹi pɹədˈʌkʃənz wˌɪtʃ ɑːɹ ðˈɛn mˈuːvd fɹˈeɪmbaɪfɹˈeɪm ˌɔn ɐn ˌænɪmˈeɪʃən stˈænd ænd fˈɪlmd tˈɑːpdˌaʊn wɪð ɐ ɹˈɑːstɹəm kˈæmɹə sˈʌtʃ tɛknˈiːks wɜː jˈuːzd, ɔːlbˈiːɪt wɪð staɪlˈɪstɪk tʃˈeɪndʒᵻz, baɪ sˈʌtʃ pɹæktˈɪʃənɚz æz nəbjˈʊɹɹoʊ ˈɑːfuːdʒi ɪnðə nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd fˈoːɹɾi z ænd bɹˈuːnoʊ dʒˈeɪ. bˈɜːtdʒ ɪnðə nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd sˈɛvənti z.
It utilizes figures cut out of paperboard, sometimes reinforced with thin metal sheets, and tied together at their joints with thread or wire (usually substituted by plastic or metal paper fasteners in contemporary productions) which are then moved frame-by-frame on an animation stand and filmed top-down with a rostrum camera – such techniques were used, albeit with stylistic changes, by such practitioners as Noburō Ōfuji in the 1940s and Bruno J. Böttge in the 1970s.