Evaluation:
For my animation I started off with some
research. I looked at different types of stop-motion animations. I also looked
at different ways to animation, like with clay figures or with drawings to help
decide the method I wanted to animate. I looked at music videos and
professional animations. This gave me a rough idea of what I wanted to do and
how I wanted to do it. I came up with a few ideas of what I wanted to do and
pitched this to my class. From there I created a storyboard, mind map, and a
mood board to create a stronger image of my animation and what I wanted. I
planned the types of shots I wanted for each scene and gave a rough estimate of
how long I wanted each scene to last. I also thought about the type of music I
wanted, which was fun and comedic music, and looked into sound effects that
would add to the comedic effect of my animation.
I then started preparing my animation by
creating the sets and characters. I wanted two sets as my character were in
different settings. One of them is in a hallway with an elevator, whereas the
other setting is in a bedroom office. So I created two sets using foam boards I
stuck together. I printed off the backgrounds and stuck them to the foam
boards. For the bedroom office set I wanted a checked carpet floor. So I used
felt and cut them out into squares and stuck them in a checked pattern on the
foam board. This created a realistic carpet look for my set. For the characters
I decided to draw them with four different expressions each. As I didn’t have a
light box not all of them were the same height, however I did my best to draw
them with all the same proportions from what I could see. I then cut them out
and I decided to leave an outline on them and not cut directly around them, as
I wanted it to look more cartoon like and I felt as if this would help with
that look. I stuck pieces of foam board at the back of the characters so that
they could stand on their own. It was quite hard to do as the foam boards I cut
out were different lengths and as I stuck them at an angle they were not stuck
at the same angle on every character. So some of the characters stood more at
an angle than others. It would have been better if I stuck the characters on a
small platform so I could move them around and they wouldn’t be at different
angles. I made props like the computer, table and CCTV camera using craft foam.
For the computers I just printed an image of the screen and keyboard and stuck
them on the craft foam I felt that by adding props I could add more to the sets
and establish what was happening in the scenes better.
For the actual production I found it
difficult to film as I have a timetable clashing meaning I only attend one
lesson, furthermore the room used to animate was rarely free at the times I was
free. Therefore I decided to film my animation at home. I filmed my animation
using my phone on an app called Stop Motion Studio. As I wasn’t using a
professional video camera I couldn’t set the white balance on my camera so the
lighting did look slightly yellow. Also I did my best to film the animation all
at once so that the lighting wouldn’t change in between and was a lot more
consistent. I didn’t have anything to balance my phone on so it was hard to
keep the shot level as it kept moving. This ended up with some of the shots
being slightly choppy. Using the app was very helpful as I was able to filming
all the scenes for the cat girl and just copy and paste the parts I wanted into
the part where I just filmed the other character. I was then able to add music
and sound effects to the places I wanted and adjust how loud and quiet I wanted
to make them. I saved the video onto my phone where I then exported it onto my
Google drive and uploaded onto YouTube.
From this project I have developed planning
skills to help develop my animation. I have also learnt how to use different
technologies, like the stop motion app and uploading a video onto YouTube. I
have also learnt how to edit my animation from this. I have also learnt about
different types of camera shots from the shots I have used in my animation,
like a close-up and a mid-shot. I have developed my creative ability from the
sets and props I made for my animation, also from character designs and how I
made the characters stand up. I have also had to do a lot of time management as
my timetable clash meant I had to go back and catch up on a lot of missed work.
Furthermore it meant I had to do a lot of the work in my own time, whilst
keeping to the deadlines.
As I used a different app to film my
animation and not the software Istopmotion I found it hard to keep to the
timings I of each scene, as there was not really a timer showing you how long
parts of the animation were. Another thing I changed as well was the position
of the male character, instead a side view I changed it to a front view as I
found it easier to film like this. Another complication I had was adding sound
effects. I found it hard to find exact sound effects that I wanted to use for
my animation, so some of the planned sound effects had to be cut out. My animation
is aimed at teenagers and young kids so I made sure no profanities were used in
my animation. I used a simplistic storyline so that it is easier to understand
what is happening. I also used bright colours in my animation to attract
the attention of the audience. I gave my animation fun music to attract more
kids and teenagers and to fit in with the comedic theme of my animation. The
sound effects I added also helped create this effect too. I made the
expressions and designs of the characters less realistic and drew them in a
more cartoon and fun style to show that it is aimed at teenagers and kids,
whilst fitting into the theme and genre.
From the feedback I got I did realise that my
animation was a bit vague about what was happening and if not told any context
it would be hard to figure out what is happening. I should have added text or
have added more character expressions and sounds to show a clearer idea of what
was happening. The feedback I got did show that they liked the aesthetics of
the animation and the details I added, they also liked the sound effects and
music that I added to create a fun atmosphere. Someone did mention the outlines
I made for the characters and how it would look better if I had cut them out to
the character’s exact shape. I think the strengths of my animation is the
aesthetics I provided, like the set, characters, and props I made. One of the
areas that needs improving is the actual filming of the animation as it was
quite choppy and the lighting wasn’t the best and could have been improved a
lot more. From my video feedback people liked the sound effects, props, and the
artwork of the characters. A few of the things they thought I could have improved
was the narrative of my animation as it wasn’t clear what it was about, also I
could have made my animation longer and included a few more character facial
features rather than the few I had.
