Here is a list and a brief description of the hacks I use to make movies and take pictures. I have taken pics of the hacks and numbered them so you know what it looks like:

Animation triggering hacks

- Paul's reactions tester (9). In game animation trigger. To obtain it, after entering the testing animation cheat, click on a sim while pressing the shift key and then spaw->Paul's reaction tester. The main use of this hack is overlay animations. Check Jaydee's tutorial on how to use this technique here or here.

- Decorgal's standing (1) and sitting (2) conversation hacks: trigger conversation and interaction animations: moderate or animate speech, reactions, arguments, hand shakes... You can use these with her talk overlay hack (12) to obtain less cartoony talking animations. This hack also make possible conversation while walking, inside a vehicule or from the bath tub. Decorgal also made an action hack (10) and a custom poses hack (11).
(standing conversation hack is also available at Decorgal's custom content site

- Jixs' dance animations hack (3) and idle animations hack (4) (both also available for download at simtacular productions). Jixs made the first one to allow in-synch dancing for his Ooh lala movie. The second one lets you trigger the idle animations from CAS and normal gameplay.

- JayDee's photo poses' (14), Open For Business' (15), Season's (16) and Nightlife's (17) animboxes. First one triggers the poses animations from the loading screen and the photobooth pictures (requires Nightlife), the second one the anims from OFB and the last one the anims from Seasons.

- Squinge's hula dance & more (25). More animations for your movie making or pictures taking needs (animations loops in this hack). To use this hack, you have to click on the sim itself to access the menu instead of clicking on an object.
-> EDIT: Squinge has retired from the hacking business. But you can download this hack at the sims 2 graveyard

- Ceedj TS2 studios machinima tool. A bit outdated by newer hacks, but I personnaly still use it for distress anims.

- Aikea Guinea's animation painting of chaos and doom (6) and animation painting of bedlam & catastrophe (7). These were made for personnal use and as a result are a bit messy and hard to use. Most animations listed in these hacks are available in the hacks I have mentionned above, although some are only available in this ones as far as I know. The best interest of these 2 hacks in my opinion is that the animations loops. It can be handy for extras who will not stop moving in the middle of filming because their action queue is empty.

Nova's cat animation box (5). Nova made this hack to help her with her movie Bad Cat and the Sunshiny Spot. This is an animation painting for your cats, and only for your cats ;). You, of course need Pets to use this one.

Other usefull hacks

- Jixs' prop attachment hack (8). I love love love this hack. So mush that I offered to translate it into french for it (I know, I should get my lazy self in motion and do the same for other hacks...). Bassically, what it does is add an accesory to your sims (glasses, weapons, handcuffs, shopping bags...) and let you use overlaying animations of the carrying arm to fit the accesory. I have tons of cool accesories under the glasses section of CAS that I never use because it's tedious to find them and put them on my sims. This hack is so simple to use that even when I'm in the middle of an anim, I can add the accesory that I *might* have forgotten. Plus, bloody cleaver? Yeah baby!

- the insimenator (23). Some simmers can't play without it, others think it's useless because most of its features can be accessed via the testingcheatanabled cheat. I personnally think it's very handy and use it instead of the cheat options most of the time

- Wintermuteai's hacked dresser (18). Allow you to purchase new clothes from home. No need to get your sims to a community lot anymore to add items to their wardrobe. Marylou and Numeror now offers an updated version of this dresser, that let you get the clothes for free, and also let you purchase seasons outerwear.

- Twojeff’s movie maker tool (22). Let you remove those sleeping Zzzs when your sims are sleeping in beds. Can also trigger nightmares

- Eric's family ghost (20) and Smonaff's ghost hack (25). Apply ghost effects and anims to your sims, so you can have controllable ghosts. Smonaff's hack also have some zombie walkingstyle options, if you have nightlife.

- Eric's Sim Effects (21). Let you apply visual effects to you sims, like fire, smoke, flies...

- Shaklin's model animation changer (19). Let you change the face expression of your sims as well as their walkstyle.
-> EDIT: Shaklin's site and MTS2 profile and now empty. But you can download this hack at the sims 2 graveyard

- for all you other hacks needs, I recommend checking stuff made by Numeror, Squinge and Two Jeffs. Chances are they allready made it.