The art of "channeling" one's voice through an inanimate object at hand such as a puppet, doll, or stuffed toy, making it seem that it is talking. For this effect, the performer keeps their mouth superficially closed with minimal movement, but keeping it slightly open for the voice to remain clear and not muffled, all the while moving the object to show it seemingly speaking.
The Japanese term fukuwajutsu (腹話術) is literally translated as "belly talking" due to the early misconceptions of ventriloquists voluntarily producing their voices through their bellies in the same manner as a stomach growl, when ventriloquism is still in fact normal talking but with a bit of misdirection provided by the use of a prop.
