Esther Thomas

Stop Motion Animation Thomas

A. Investigate 1. Design Context

Esther

Our task is to design and create a two minute stop motion video to effectively teach EC children about one letter. Through out this video, the letter will change into an object which starts with this letter. The movie is required to have an Intro and Ending and background music. This project will educate us about claymation and using stop motion. We will develop further movie production skills as well as work with storyboards.

2. Brainstorm http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kopm3awlNlY This video is very clear and informative, but at the same time simple. Each letter is individual and interesting for children, and has a simple object to go along. It has an audio track, making it even more fun and child friendly. The paper background fits well and is kept simple also. In some scenes, however, the letters are only half in the picture, neither revealing how the letter actually looks nor the object to go along with it. I find this video very well done, straight forward and creative. I like how the letters are made interesting for small children and how each object is very obvious, making it easier for children to understand. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJk7eVrg_QY This video is only about the letter C. The yellow cheese turns into a C as the mouse eats it. Adding another element, namely the mouse, and the actual action of eating makes the video enjoyable and interesting. The

Esther Thomas

video has no song as a background audio, but instead a woman says: C is for Cheese. This shows the children how the letter is pronounced, although it takes away a bit of the fun of the video. Other than that the video is very creative, educational and interesting but also fun to watch.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9dc8GNsoDQ This video has three elements. First a letter is shown as a capital and small letter. Then a quick scene is shown in which an object is shown that starts with this letter. Afterwards, there is an actual picture of the object. The video is highly informative and educational, however, lacks of fun. It has no song in the background, but has a woman explaining everything which is quite boring. I also dont find the pictures very good, as they take away the story effect and interest of the ones watching. Other than that, the letters and scenes with the objects are well done and quite detailed.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1TbX3OgIVCA This video shows a letter turning into an animal and then the whole word being shown. I think this is also a good approach to the task of educating small children. It is kept simple and is very interesting to watch. I do not think that children will understand the whole word if they arent told what is means, so I think this was a bit unnecessary. However, the video is well done, not too detailed and very interesting and child friendly.

Design Specifications

Esther Thomas 1. The video should be colorful. 2. The video should have more than one object starting with this letter. 3. The video should have en educational purpose, in my case friendship with people who are different to you. 4. The video should be enjoyable and fun to watch. 5. The storyline should be easy to understand for EC children. 6. The music should be child friendly and not distracting or disturbing. 7. The letter that the video is focusing on has to appear in the video. 8. The video should be kept fairly simple, and distracting things should be kept out of the video.

3. Ideas and Planning Music (without lyrics) should be included. F is for frog and fly and friendship. The F will be present in the background as clouds in the sky. Background: sky and a farm, clouds in the sky forming Fs. Things I will include: Fog, fish, food, fun, farm, flowers, foot, 1. Frogs and flies live in a swamp near a farm. 2. Fly flies around and is frightened when it sees Frog sticking out is tongue to eat his food (other fly). Fright is shown by Flys eyes becoming really big and the mouth open. 3. Fly flies behind a flower to hide. 4. Fog comes and Frog doesnt see well, continues sitting near a mushroom. 5. Suddenly, Fly sees a foot over Frogs head coming closer. 6. Fly flies to the foot and attacks it. 7. Foot wiggles and is set down in a different spot. 8. Frog jumps into the water. 9. Fog vanishes. 10. Frog thanks Fly. Speech bubble 11. They smile, and become friends. 12. A fish jumps in the water behind them. 13. The End.

Esther Thomas

The setting is introduced

Fly sees frog trying to eat a fly

Fly hides behind a flower

Frog continues sitting.

Fly attacks the foot. The farmer goes away.

Frog jumps away.

Frog smiles and says thank you. They become friends.

A fish jumps behind them.

4. Evaluation a. Maria Del MarD for Dolphin

Although, the educational message is unclear and I doubt there is any in this video, the animation techniques were very well used and the video was fun to watch. The D changed into a dolphin, which made it very clear for EC children that D stands for the dolphin. Also, the film was quite slow which helped for understanding, as well. The transitions were smooth, and the music fit very well to the video, as it reflected the idea of an ocean and sea animals. The titles and text slowed the video down, told the story and helped the video flow. This was very well done and made the video easier to follow and understand. I liked all of these aspects a lot and enjoyed the video a lot. However, the video has little educational purpose or this message is just not clear enough. I definitely think that EC children would enjoy

Esther Thomas watching the video, as they show great interest in animals and this video is also very colorful contributing to the fun of the film. I think the storyboard could have been improved by adding an actual educational purpose of some sort, but I dont think the film should have been made longer.

b. Sarang- P for Pasta

This video does not contain any type of educational message. The animation techniques are pretty well done: I especially like that the background is black and white as a contrast to the yellow pasta, and it fits the word. I think everything comes in well and is very clear. Also, the transitions are very well done. I do not think that the music really fits the film. The credits are too quick and are hard to read for this reason- this could be easily be improved by making them a few seconds slower. I dont think that the video is educational- some EC children could learn how pasta looks as actual pasta is used in the video, however, I doubt that EC children have not seen pasta before. I also dont really think the video is appropriate for EC children. Even though, I greatly enjoyed the video and think the background is amazing, the video has no color and I doubt it would attract little childrens attention. Also, the video does not include a story. It should definitely be made longer and include an actual storyboard.

c. Darya Guettler- D for Dolphin

This video has a very clear and important educational value; the message of this film is to help each other, be friendly and make new friends this way. Animation techniques are used very nicely: the animals movement and the

Esther Thomas combination of the two backgrounds are very smooth and well done. The editing is also very well done; the transitions are smooth and the music fits really well and is child appropriate. The dolphin sounds which Darya edited into the music give a nice detail. Also, the tear that the dolphin cries when it looses its toy duck, is a very nice detail that brings the video to live. The credits were slow enough to be read easily. The video is very educational and child friendly: it is colorful and very fun to watch. EC children would definitely enjoy this video. The length is perfect.

What Have I Learned - Summary?

A good claymation video should we well prepared, include animation techniques and be well edited. The transitions should be smooth and enough pictures should be included, in order for the movement to look real. Music does not necessarily have to be included; however, is a nice detail which makes the video more fun. As our claymation was aimed at EC children, the video should be colorful and fun to watch. The story should be easy to follow and an educational purpose should be included and understandable.

Reflection On My Own Claymation Video

My claymation was a story about a fly-eating frog which someone throws a basket at. Although, the frog eats flies, a fly near him warns him of the danger and the frog is able to escape. This way the frog and the fly become friends. The videos message is that you should not judge people and instead give everyone a chance. I think the message was pretty clear. I stuck to my storyboard mostly; however, I forgot to add the fish in the end. My animation techniques were adequate; although transitions were pretty smooth, the background was not fixed on one point and kept changing a bit. The video was rather simple and not too detailed, one detail I included was the open mouth of the fly, symbolizing fright when it sees the frog eat another fly. Also, the video was slightly too quick; I could have easily improved this by adding a few extra milliseconds to each slide. The titles was part of the claymation, and the credits were slow enough to read them easily. I think my video was educational, as the message was quite easy to understand and one of the most important ones I know; it is especially important for EC children that are starting to make their first friends at this age. The video is very colorful and includes animals, thus I think EC children would enjoy watching it.

Evaluation of the other class a. C for Color

Esther Thomas There is neither a clear educational purpose in this video, nor an actual story. The transitions between pictures are rather smooth, even if there are a few choppy transitions. The editing techniques are also well done, though the credits are a bit quick; they should be a slower. I like how colorful the background is, underlining the C for color. It is fun to watch, very colorful and EC students would definitely like it. The music matches fairly well; other songs could fit better but the music is not bad. It can be improved by adding an educational message; the colors could be doing something. The length of the video is good.

b. B for Bike
This video does not really have an educational purpose; however, it has a story which I think is straight forward and simple. I like that. The transitions are smooth and the backgrounds are fun and diverse. Unfortunately, there are no credits, but the rest of the editing is good and some titles are included under pictures. I think the video is very fun to watch and EC children would enjoy it, as well. It contains some color, even though it isnt too colorful but I dont thinkthis makes the video less good. The length is fine, but could be lengthened. Also credits should be included.

c. Teamwork
This video does not include a letter; however it has a very important educational message which I think is really good! The message is straight forward and easy to understand; the story is about teamwork. The animation techniques are well done, transitions are smooth and the figures are well made. The title and credit are put together which I think is fine. Also, writing under slides is adequate; however, there are spelling errors. This should be checked. The video is very educational and very fun to watch! I think EC children would enjoy it, not only because it contains color, but also because it has a nice story. I dont think the video should be made longer.

Esther Thomas

d. W for Wind, ect.

This video does not include any educational purpose or clear storyboard. I liked the video as the animation techniques were well done. I think the credits are not really funny and unnecessary. However, the video is very fun to watch as it is entertaining and well done. It contains nice colors and I think EC children would enjoy it. It can be improved by focusing on one letter and making a clear storyboard to match it.

What have I learned?

Other than further developing animation and stop motion techniques, I began to think critically about target groups, in this case EC children. I often have the problem in different subjects that I did not efficiently reach my target group and this project gave me a good chance to develop this skill.

What did I enjoy?

I really enjoyed this project; I loved shaping objects and animals from clay, making backgrounds and having the chance to be creative. We had a lot of freedom which let us be as creative as we want and have a chance to make own decisions. Choosing and adding music was also very fun.