The Reluctant Blogger

To conclude: The style of stop-motion animation is extremely flexible. If the objects are being moved instead of being animated or manipulated it means that they can go anywhere within 2D space. The simple 2D drawings themselves are childlike in appearance but also in essence as they represent the most basic form of animation. Because of the physical involvement of having to use ones hands and fingertips to move every item bit by bit, frame by frame, it is like child's play. The animators hands set the tone of the film. Everything was done in a way that let the children steer the direction of the film by giving them open questions they were free to interpret as well as letting them express their ideas about the subject through art. The film depended entirely on their responses and the activities were carried out in a way that ensured they were comfortable and happy during the process. The initial audience for this film was children and the different animations, style and co...

For the main body of animation, extra drawings were created using both pen and paper and then digitally drawn in Photoshop using a Wacom tablet. After the drawings were made, the images were scanned into a computer and drawn over and coloured. The fill tool was used for the main bulk of colour, and then shading added. The drawings on the left were for the 'What Do Aliens Eat?" part of the film. The original idea was that the food drawings would appear as a tally chart every time the item was mentioned in the interviews. A 'ping' sound would then accompany it. However after second thoughts, another idea was had: 'A trolley in a supermarket moving along and the items falling off the shelf into the basket - perhaps with an alien pushing it down the aisle?' So, a supermarket aisle was drawn on half an A3 piece of paper. A single food item was drawn on each shelf.  Once the image was scanned in and opened in Photoshop, each item was coloured in and the...

Testing and creating the title sequence: To achieve a childlike style many different drawing styles were looked at to see which would appeal most to children and young adults. The detailed ones were fascinating to look at, however placing too much detail into a stop motion animation would clutter the screen. Simpler drawings with black outlines - similar to the style of Rachel Ryle - were more suited. Sketches were made and the colouring was tested. Felt-tip pens created too harsh a tone, whilst colouring crayons provided a softer layout that was pleasing to the eye. The title sequence for 'Kids and UFO's was made up of 147 different photographs. The basic idea was this: A girl in a rocket is launched into space from her back garden, flying past stars, planets, aliens and ufo's. The rocket then flies away to reveal the title of the film: 'Kids and UFOs'. Drawings were created on paper, coloured in using crayons and cut out. These were then placed on a col...

The title sequence for the film 'What Kid's Think about UFO's' will consist of paper stop-motion animation, in which objects will be drawn onto paper, cut out and photographed frame by frame. Here are a few of the influences that inspired this: 1. Paper cut-outs - The drawings in this video are childlike and drawn with pencil. This is the effect the film title sequence should achieve but by adding a little extra colour and vibrancy, it should appeal more to children as well as make it more fun and engaging to watch. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IbSbZDnsA-8 2. This film uses coloured paper cut-outs in the form of animated origami. The paper unfolds and refolds to create different shapes and sequences. Added fast paced music also helps to engage the audience and moves with the piece. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJEBbs9X6s4 3. This animation uses tiny objects to create a short narrative such as pennys, pins and different fabrics. The use of sma...

The team decided to interview a range of children between the ages of 7 and 18 upon realising that a diverse choice would provide various answers and give more insight into a child's mind and imagination. The team went in expecting the younger children to be more imaginative and flamboyant than the older kids. But what happened in the interviews turned out to be something quite different. Each section was approached in a specific way: Boys Brigade    The Boys Brigade is a uniformed organisation that is made up of 4 sections: Anchor boys (5-8 years old) Junior (8-11 yrs) Company (11-15 yrs) Senior (15-18 yrs) To cover a more diverse range of children, the team decided to interview boys from the junior and company sections, along with two senior members. The boys seemed quite happy to be interviewed, though some were shyer than others. Since aliens and space is seen as a 'boys subject' it was thought that these kids would have much wilder and more imaginati...

The team decided to interview a range of children between the ages of 7 and 18 upon realising that a diverse choice would provide various answers and give more insight into a child's mind and imagination. The team went in expecting the younger children to be more imaginative and flamboyant than the older kids. But what happened in the interviews turned out to be something quite different. Each section was approached in a specific way: Guides: GirlGuides are a uniformed organisation for girls only, aged 10-14.    The guides were a little shy at first, but after the introductions were made they were quite happy to sit down with the team and have a chat whilst doing the first activity.    They enjoyed creating the drawings of various UFO's and aliens, and discussed the topic in depth with their group. This allowed the team to get to know the girls more before the interviews took place.    Each girl was interviewed individually - which after further ...

How to interview children and young adults Introduction: There is much taboo about working with children in film. As W.C. Fields once said: “Never work with children or animals.” Sometimes they are too lively or energetic for a director to cope with; they may have short attention spans; they are unpredictable. "The audience always looks for the adorable young child or animal - they steal every scene. "many stars will never appear with animals or children in the belief that no adult can compete" has been cited in print since 1931, in a newspaer article indicating that this film tradition carried over from the stage."        - Barry Popik (2012), "Never work with children or animals" (Show Business Adage) But something special happens when you place a child in front of the camera, when you let them take centre stage and unleash their imagination. In taking away the pressure and the script, a filmmaker can use that unpredictability to cre...

Last Moments - 45 second - 1 minute film " In 1944 a young air cadet runs for cover during an air raid; the threat of V1 flying bombs overhead. Little does she know that these are her last moments." View the finished film here:  https://vimeo.com/154870269 There have been enough novels, biographies, movies, dramas and documentaries depicting scenes from the Second World War. Away from the battlefield, millions of people ducked for cover during the Blitz in 1940/41 and in the years afterwards. The British government put precautions in place: air raid sirens, shelters, bunkers, black outs etc. but sometimes even these were not enough to protect the public. 70 years later, we can only begin to imagine what it would have been like. This short film attempts to capture some of those feelings through film and sound. Sounds: 1. Air raid Siren    The air raid siren is one of the most iconic sounds of the Second World War. First used in 1939 to warn of incoming enemy p...

Advanced Negotiated Pitch: What kids think of: UFO’s Intro: ‘What kids think of: UFO’s’ is a short documentary-style film asking a range of children what they think about aliens, using different styles of animation to illustrate and accentuate the narrative. The storyline will depend entirely on the children’s response as will the animation. Aims & Objectives: The main objective of this film is to give insight into a child’s mind through a fun subject, by working with a diverse range of young people using interviews and art activities; to research stop-motion animation methods via books and the internet; to test the results before applying them to the finished product. Research and Discussion: The title sequence will be created using paper stop-motion animation – also known as ‘cut-out animation’. This technique consists of making flat paper characters, props and backgrounds that are manoeuvred and simulated to create a simple animation by photographing each frame...